The State of Early Childhood, A System in Transition, which is a recent statistic published by the Connecticut Voices for Children Executive Summary in November, estimated there were 163,951 children needing care, and just 59,790 slots available. According to Connecticut Voices for Children, in May there were 3,000 children on the wait list for Care 4 Kids, which serves infants and toddlers. The report noted that the situation is also strained for low-income parents needing care. It found that the number of infants and toddlers served through Care 4 Kids increased approximately 15% over the decade, from 7,069 to 8,127.
Affordable childcare is a real concern for Stratford working families, not just low-income families, but spanning all economic levels.
How is this gap being addressed by our state? We all agree that education is not only important for our children, but a driver for economic development. Good schools are probably the number one criteria for those looking to move to Stratford or do business in Stratford.
For answers, we reached out to State Representative Kaitlyn Shake, who represents Stratford’s 120th District In the Connecticut House of Representatives.
According to Representative Shake, who responded to the Stratford Crier through an email:
“Connecticut’s early childhood care system continues to be underfunded. What is the expected outcome on state legislation to address this? During the 2025 session, the legislature passed Senate Bill 1, a bill I was proud to support. Senate Bill 1 established the Early Childhood Education Endowment Fund, an investable trust fund starting with a down payment of almost $300 million. The Early Childhood Education Endowment Fund will create universal access to childcare. By 2027, families earning up to $100,000 will be able to receive childcare at no cost, and families earning more than $100,000 will pay no more than 7% of their income for childcare. The Office of Early Childhood will use a percentage of the endowment funds to fund childhood programs, expansion costs, health insurance subsidies for early childhood education employees, higher wages for educators, and much more. The endowment is set up so it will grow over time, allowing more families to receive support as it grows. This endowment will be extremely beneficial to families and early childhood education providers over the next few years as benefits are rolled out.”
We reached out to, Maggie Adair, Communications Manager at the Office of Early Childhood, and in an email she noted that in Stratford there are 96 licensed and licensed-exempt providers. “Regarding your question about the cost, the average costs of childcare is information collected by United Way of CT. I am sharing this resource with you: Average Child Care Cost – 211 Child Care.”
The rising cost of Child Care in Connecticut is a problem, as we are already one of the most expensive states to live in. A search for childcare costs in Connecticut took us to TOOTRiS, a platform used by agencies and parents in real-time to provide information. The following charts are from the TOOTRiS publication, “Cost of Child Care in Connecticut: A Breakdown for 2025”.
Center-Based:
- Infant: $17,888 annually / $1,490.67 monthly
- 4-Year-Old: $14,716 annually / $1,226.33 monthly
- School-Age: $7,748 annually / $645.67 monthly
Family-Based:
- Infant: $14,040 annually / $1,170.00 monthly
- 4-Year-Old: N/A
- School-Age: $7,540 annually / $628.33 monthly
TOOTRiS also researched and published information on the cost of childcare in Connecticut cities, where they claim childcare costs are higher. Our benchmark is Bridgeport.
“In Bridgeport, the average hourly rate for Child Care providers is $21.64, with the cost of providing Child Care for a 40-hour workweek $866, cost for a month’s worth is around $2,813. Infant care is provided at an hourly rate of $23.02, a weekly rate of $921, or a monthly rate of $2,993. The median annual income in Bridgeport is $56,584 while median rent is $1,650.” Source TOOTRiS “Cost of Child Care in Connecticut: A Breakdown for 2025”
Many of our readers have children needing care, but several factors stand in their way in trying for enrollment. Childcare is expensive, and childcare providers are low wage earners. Connecticut’s minimum wage is $16.94 per hour, $678 a week, $2,710 a month, $32,525 a year. For many childcare workers that is less than what parents have to pay for their childcare.
According to Roxanna, Specialist, 211childcare@CTUnitedWay.org: “211 Child Care is a free and confidential website that operates under the United Way of CT umbrella. This statewide program has multiple portals that can link users up with local childcare providers, after school programs, camps, activities, etc. We address needs from birth to high school.”
The Early Childhood Collaborative of Stratford was formed in July as Stratford’s Local Governance Partner to the CT OEC. Susanne Clement is the Liaison for the Early Childhood Collaborative of Stratford and Amanda Joy serves as the Family Liaison, alongside her primary role as Program Administrator at Stratford Parents’ Place. In a call to Amanda Joy, she said,“Our collaborative has roots in what was called the Stratford School Readiness and Childcare Advisory Council. We are also in the process of hiring three Parent Ambassadors, to fully staff our collaborative.”
State Rep. Kaitlyn Shake recently met with childcare providers in Stratford who told her that the Town of Stratford is working to increase availability of childcare facilities.
“We have many childcare facilities here in Stratford,” she said, “and I wanted to connect our early childhood educational leaders and childcare business owners who staff these facilities directly with our OEC Commissioner. The meeting was an opportunity to review and discuss the early childhood education legislation and historic financial investment passed during the 2025 session.”
Rep. Shake met with leaders and owners of the Stratford United Methodist Church (SUMC) Preschool, Honey Bear Learning Center, Helen King Reynolds Preschool, Victoria Soto Preschool, Stratford Parents Place, Stratford YMCA, and the Town of Stratford.
In an email to the Stratford Crier following this meeting, Rep. Shake noted, “After meeting with Stratford early childcare providers, educators and the Office of Early Childhood Commissioner Elena Trueworthy, we all had an understanding that there is a significant need to expand access and increase affordability for early childhood education and preK for families across the state. The community round table offered the opportunity for our local providers and early childhood educators to ask their clarifying questions on timeline and process directly to our EOC commissioner and staff. Feedback from attendees after the meeting was positive and I look forward to continue supporting and building relationships with them as the new changes continue to roll out over the next several years. Our early childhood educators and care providers are providing essential care for many families, yet they are stuck feeling like their profession, and this field, have been left behind.”
According to Rep. Shake, “The passage of Senate Bill 1 and the establishment of the Connecticut Early Childhood Education Endowment Fund were major wins for these providers, who have been tirelessly advocating for more. Now, as the endowment benefits begin to roll out, I hope to see providers and families feeling stronger about the status of early childhood education and care.”
In November, Gov. Ned Lamont added up to 1,000 new spaces for the Early Start CT program, but, according to Amanda Joy, she does not know if any of the Stratford programs applied. Gov. Lamont is also increasing provider payments for the program by 8% to “support providers with operational costs and increased staff compensation,” as the governor’s office release states.
Sources: State Representative Kaitlyn Shake; Maggie Adair, Communications Manager at the Office of Early Childhood; Suzanne Clement, Liaison for the Early Childhood Collaborative of Stratford; Amanda Joy, Family Liaison, Early Childhood Collaborative of Stratford
