Child Care is under Temporary Freeze (Added 08.13.20)

TWC has placed a temporary freeze on child care waitlists statewide. Therefore, our CCS waitlist is frozen until further notice, and we are not currently enrolling children. When TWC lifts the freeze, we will notify all parents enrolled or on the waiting list by text message.

Child Care for Essential Workers–No Longer Accepting Applications (Updated 5.19.20)

The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) is phasing out the emergency program to subsidize childcare for Texas’ essential workers. Applications for essential workers are no longer being accepted. TWC made this move after Gov. Greg Abbott announced that child care providers could re-open statewide.

Essential workers who are already on the subsidized plan will continue to receive child care for the three month period they were initially approved for under this program. After the approved three months, parents can (1) begin to pay the full cost of child care or (2) apply for Workforce Solutions for the Heart of Texas’ regular subsidized child care program. Applicants must meet eligibility requirements to be added to the waitlist.

Need child care: Essential workers and all other parents who live in Bosque, Falls, Freestone, Hill, Limestone or McLennan county can apply for Workforce Solutions for the Heart of Texas’ regular subsidized child care program for low-income families if they meet eligibility requirements. Please click here to determine if you meet the minimum eligibility requirements and to apply.

Find child care: If you need to find a child care provider that is open and accepting new children, you can click here to visit the state’s Frontline Child Care Portal.

FAQs

We understand many families and child care programs that participate in the Texas Workforce Commission’s (TWC) subsidized child care program have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We have put together a list of questions for child care parents and providers that we will continue to update as we receive more information. Please continue to check back for an updated list of FAQs.

• FAQs for Child Care Parents (updated 4.23.20)

TWC Child Care & Early Learning COVID-19 Resources and Information

TWC has approved multiple policy actions to support families and programs at this time and continues to move quickly to respond to child care needs across the state. Use the following links to access information and parent resources provided by TWC:

• TWC Parent Resources
• TWC Child Care & Early Learning COVID-19 Information

FAQs

We understand many families and child care programs that participate in the Texas Workforce Commission’s (TWC) subsidized child care program have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. We have put together a list of questions for child care providers and programs that we will continue to update as we receive more information. Please continue to check back for an updated list of FAQs.

• FAQs for Child Care Provider (updated 4.23.20)

TWC Child Care & Early Learning COVID-19 Resources and Information

TWC has approved multiple policy actions to support families and programs at this time and continues to move quickly to respond to child care needs across the state. Use the following links to access information and provider resources provided by TWC:

• TWC Child Care & Early Learning COVID-19 Information
• TWC Resources for Child Care Programs

TWC Frontline Child Care Availability Portal (added 3.30.20)

TWC announced that a new support is currently under development: the official statewide Frontline Child Care Availability Portal.  This website will allow parents to search for available child care near their home or work, and it will display a map of licensed child care centers, licensed homes, and registered homes. It will show each facility’s operating hours, along with the number of open seats for each age group at the facility. After searching, families will need to contact the child care facility directly to enroll their child.

The website is not yet fully developed, but you can go ahead and list the number of child care seats for each age group you currently have available by logging into the Frontline Child Care Availability Portal.

Click here to view TWC’s full post about this new portal.

Texas Human and Health Services Guidance

Texas Human and Health Services (HHS) is monitoring the outbreak and providing guidance regulated child care programs statewide, new screening requirements for staff and visitors. Click here to view the full statement.

Work in Texas (WIT) Desk Aids (added 4.16.20)

If you are a child care provider who needs to post a job or a child care teacher searching for a job in WorkinTexas.com, click the links below to download instructions.

• WIT Instructions for Providers to Post Jobs (PDF)
• WIT Instructions for Child Care Teachers Searching for Jobs (PDF)