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U.S. Army FAMILY CHILD CARE - Your Child's Home Away From Home

The U.S. Army Family Child Care (FCC) Program is one child care option provided to military family members, Department of Defense civilians and Department of Defense contractors through the Army Child and Youth Services (CYS). The FCC Program is provided by military family members or civilians working as independent contractors in individual housing units located on a military installation, in government-controlled housing off the installation or civilian housing off the installation.

FCC Homes have unique qualities making them the preferred child care choice for many families. Homes provide flexible hours, a comfortable family like setting, and activities based on real life experiences in the home and neighborhood. In FCC, siblings can stay together, younger and older children learn from each other in a small group setting, and school-age children can remain in a neighborhood setting.

Most homes offer full-day, part-day, and hourly care. Special services may include 24-hour and long-term care during mobilization and training exercises, evening and weekend care, and care for special needs children and mildly ill children. The flexibility of FCC providers is an asset in meeting the diverse work hours of military families.

Parents can expect to receive the same quality of care in an Army FCC home as in an Army Child Development Center or School-Age Program. FCC Providers receive the same training and support as CYS facility based staff. Each group of 25 to 40 providers is designated an FCC Network with its own Director and Trainer and managed like a "center without walls."

The capacity of the FCC Home is determined by size of the home and the ages of the children enrolled in the home. Generally the capacity in an FCC Home at any one time is six children including the providers own children who are enrolled in the program. Homes serving infant/toddlers exclusively (4 weeks to 2 years) can serve a maximum of three children. Homes serving school-age children exclusively (5 to 12 Years) can serve a maximum of 8 children.

FCC Providers and their homes meet specific requirements related to health, fire prevention, safety, and child development programming and are certified by the Installation. FCC Providers pass stringent background checks and inspections. FCC Homes are regularly visited and inspected by FCC, Child and Youth Services (CYS), and Installation representatives.
 

Parents

Parents have many choices when choosing quality child care for their children. Many parents may already be familiar with family child care as being an integral part of their community. Often providing a home setting very much like their own, family child care can provide a quality early learning environment where children can grow and thrive.
 

WHAT IS NAFCC ACCREDITATION?

Accreditation is used by organizations and institutions to assure the quality of programs or services.  Hospitals become accredited to give patients a level of security knowing that health and safety practices are followed.  Accredited colleges and universities meet eligibility standards and maintain required elements providing quality education.  Accreditation systems are usually voluntary and created to verify the quality of the services provided.
 

NAFCC is the only national accreditation system for family child care providers.  This system was developed with input from hundreds of providers, parents, and early care and education experts to create a definition of quality for family child care programs across the country.  Click here for accreditation history.
 

Each family child care program goes through the in depth accreditation process: requiring training, health assessments, criminal background checks, as well as an observation verifying compliance with the Quality Standards for NAFCC Accreditation standards.  Decisions are made individually based on information gathered from an observer, the provider, and the parents of the children in the program.
 

For questions concerning this page, contact the School Liaison Officer.

Last updated:  January 2007