The Mount Vernon/Lisbon Unit of the League of Women Voters is currently surveying parents in our community relative to their childcare needs. We have some preliminary findings that we’d like to share with the community and encourage parents who have not yet taken the survey to share their experiences too.
Two themes have emerged from the survey results so far. The first finding relates to the cost of childcare. Locally, 58% of parents shared that they are spending 10-14% of their pre-tax income on childcare. Putting that into context, the average parent nationally spends 7% on childcare.
The second preliminary finding is that 35% of parents who responded to the survey are currently utilizing unpaid childcare. We are in the process of understanding what this might mean. This might include grandparents, family, and other supportive adults. We are appreciating that families are attempting to meet their childcare needs in many different ways. It appears that families are having to be creative in their search for solutions to their childcare challenges, especially during this unique time and we’d like to hear about your experiences.
Our hope is to reach as many parents as possible to better understand our local trends. For this reason, we have extended access to the parent survey and encourage all parents to help us appreciate your unique challenges and solutions.
To complete the survey either:
• use this link: https://forms.gle/PkJY7EzD5yFfELEi7
• use your smartphone camera to scan the QR code