The Landscape of Child Care in VA

Virginia Child Care Mapping Project

Child Care Aware of Virginia’s child care mapping project allows you to see the various types of child care programs throughout Virginia. Each map can be viewed from a statewide perspective, or you can zoom in to see counties, communities or neighborhoods. A legend is available for each map to describe the type of child care shown (licensed centers, license-exempt care, etc.). Overlaid with data related to children in families where all parents are working (varying shades of purple, darkening as the percentage of children in working families increases), the mapping clearly shows that some areas where a high percentage of children are in working families have very few licensed (or quality-rated) child care programs available to families. Data reflects operating status as of May 2023. 

Your view of the interactive maps below can be customized by checking or unchecking the features you would like to see.

These maps are intended for data/research use only. They should not be used to search for child care, as they are not regularly updated. To search for available child care in your area, click here.

Map Tips

• Click on the map to open and view the programs in each type of care category
• Zoom in to see counties, communities or neighborhoods
• On the left panel, view the legend to see the color coding symbols for types of child care
• On the left panel, click on “content” to check or uncheck various categories
• County poverty levels are reflected with various shades of red (darkest indicating highest poverty)
• Click on the symbols/colors to see a pop-up box with program details (program info, census data)
• % Poverty vs. % Working Families: The map background is auto-set to show % of poverty of the area. You can change this feature to show the % of children in households where all parents are working. Uncheck ACS Poverty Status Variables and Check ACS Children by Parental Labor Force Participation Variables. This changes the background color to purple (the darkest shade reflects the greatest % of children in working families. As the purple becomes lighter, the % declines).
• Map loading time may take a few seconds, so please be patient!

For more detailed descriptions of each licensing type, visit Child Care of VA website and click on Providers.

Home-based Child Care and Head Start Programs in Neighborhoods where Spanish is Spoken at Home

Click here to see child care supply in neighborhoods where Spanish is spoken at home. As the blue shading becomes darker, the percentage of children in homes where Spanish is spoken at home is greater.