New Hampshire’s childcare crisis does not end when a child turns 5

Those comments point to a gap between the childcare conversation happening at the policy level and the reality families are experiencing. Children do not stop needing care when they enter kindergarten, and parents do not stop working when their child turns 5. The challenge simply changes. Instead of searching for infant care or full-day preschool, families begin piecing together before-school care, afterschool programs, school vacations, teacher workshop days, unexpected closures, snow days, and summer care.

As the network lead for the New Hampshire Afterschool Network, I spend a lot of time speaking with out-of-school time programs across the state. I hear from directors with limited staffing. I hear from programs trying to keep tuition affordable while also paying qualified staff, purchasing supplies, providing food, and covering transportation. I also hear from families who have called every program in their area and still cannot find an opening.

Somewhere along the way, school-age care became separated from the larger child care conversation. We use the terms early childhood education, child care, school-age care, and afterschool as though families experience each of them as a completely separate system. They do not. A parent is simply trying to make sure their child has somewhere safe, supportive, and engaging to be while they work.

The need does not disappear when the school day begins because the school day and the workday do not operate on the same schedule. Many elementary schools dismiss students between 2:30 and 3 p.m., while parents may not leave work until 5 p.m. or later. School is also closed during vacations, holidays, professional development days, and much of the summer. Families are left trying to fill those hours through a combination of relatives, neighbors, flexible work arrangements, paid programs, and, sometimes, no care at all.

This is not an argument for taking attention or resources away from early childhood education. It is an argument for looking at how children are cared for across the full continuum. A family with a preschooler and an elementary school student is not experiencing two unrelated systems. They are trying to meet the needs of both children while maintaining employment and managing the cost of living. When care is unavailable for either child, the entire family feels the impact.

Employers feel it, too. Child care is regularly described as a workforce issue, but school-age care is rarely included in that discussion. If a parent cannot return to work because they cannot find infant care, we recognize that as a child care and workforce problem. If a parent has to leave work every afternoon because there is no afterschool option available, the effect is the same. The employee loses hours or may leave the workforce altogether, while the employer loses a reliable worker. The child’s age changes, but the workforce problem does not.

School-age programs also provide far more than supervision. They offer opportunities for children to build friendships, explore STEM, participate in the arts, receive homework support, stay physically active, and develop relationships with caring adults. They can provide meals, mentoring, leadership opportunities, mental health support, and a sense of belonging. For some children, an afterschool or summer program is one of the most consistent places in their lives.

School-age programs are part of the child care system, yet they are often overlooked in policy conversations and public messaging. Even the language we use can make them seem optional. The word “afterschool” may sound like a club or extracurricular activity, but for many families, it is the only thing making a full workday possible.

New Hampshire needs to begin asking a broader question. Instead of only asking how we address the childcare shortage for children from birth to age 5, we should ask how children are cared for across the continuum. That includes infancy and preschool, but it also includes elementary and middle school, before and after school, school vacations, and summer.

Families have already been telling us what they need. Their comments appear beneath nearly every article about the childcare crisis: What about my school-age child? Where can I find afterschool care? What am I supposed to do all summer? We should start listening.

The childcare crisis does not end when a child enters kindergarten. It simply changes shape. If New Hampshire wants to create meaningful childcare solutions for families and strengthen its workforce, school-age care and out-of-school time programs must be included from the beginning — not added later as an afterthought.