Child care & early learning
A place to learn.
A fit for your family.
Find local child care, explore help paying for it, and prepare the questions that matter to your family.
Start with your everyday life
Good care starts
with a good conversation.
Think about the hours you need, the places you travel, and what helps your child feel comfortable. Bring those details into your search.
Find a child care provider.
Use CHS’s Orange County referral search or speak with its Resource and Referral team. Referrals help you find programs to contact and visit.
Open the child care searchHelp paying for care
Make room
in the family budget.
CHS offers child care payment programs for eligible families in Orange County. Its application starts the process for consideration as funding becomes available.
Ask about eligibility, required documents, any family fees, and waiting-list steps. Applying does not guarantee an immediate child care placement.
Explore payment assistance
Bring these questions on a visit
Look around.
Ask what matters.
Your daily routine
What ages do you serve? What are your hours, holiday closures, and pickup arrangements? Ask what happens if your schedule changes.
Your child’s experience
What does a typical day include? How do you welcome a new child, share updates with caregivers, and support different communication or learning needs?
Costs and next steps
What is included in the fee? Are there other charges? Ask about current openings, the waitlist, enrollment paperwork, and a chance to visit.
One guide. More ways to learn.
Understand your early learning options.
First 5’s Family Choices guide introduces child care, preschool, and transitional kindergarten resources. The PDF includes English, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, and Korean.
Open the multilingual guideExplore the official source: First 5 family resources
Explore the official source: CHS child care referrals
Explore the official source: CHS payment assistance
