Family, Friend and Neighbor (FFN) child care.
We provide support for Minnesota families, friends and neighbors caring for children.
Family, Friend and Neighbor (FFN) caregivers are home-based caregivers working outside of the formal child care system. Caregivers include grandparents, aunts, uncles, elders, older siblings, friends, neighbors, and others who provide informal child care. Generally, these FFN caregivers care for a small number of children in their home and are typically legally exempt from regulatory or licensing requirements. Many FFN caregivers also provide child care at no charge, and some are paid privately.
Family, Friend and Neighbor (FFN) care providers are not licensed child care businesses.
The most common child care environment is not a licensed child care center. It is a private home where child care providers’ work is typically unlicensed and unregulated by public agencies.
Family, Friend and Neighbor caregivers may have different motivations for providing child care and different goals for themselves and the children they care for. The majority of FFN caregivers are motivated to provide this form of care out of a sense of duty to support their family, their neighbors or their community, and because of their love and concern for the children they care for. Many do not consider themselves providers at all but rather grandmoms, aunties and life-long family friends caring for children they love. Relative and neighbor caregivers often share the cultural, linguistic and child-rearing practices of the families they provide care for. These caregivers are trusted members of their extended families and communities, and are the deliberately chosen child care option for many families, especially for their babies. They are also often the caregivers who are available to parents who work non-traditional or unpredictable hours, want to keep siblings together, and are looking for the most affordable care.
According to the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE) in the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), US Department of Human Services’ National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE) the number of FFN providers in Minnesota in 2019 was 82,700.
There are no restrictions for FFN caregivers unless they register with the Child Care Assistance Program as a Legal Non-licensed (LNL) child care provider. LNLs must meet various criteria, including completion of a background study and health and safety training.
Becoming an LNL allows you to participate in the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP) which provides you with additional resources and also allows qualifying families/guardians of the children you care for to receive assistance in paying for your care.
Child Care Assistance Program agencies monitor legal non-licensed child care providers who care for children who are not their own, but may be family members. Monitoring visits are scheduled with these providers every 12 months. Those caring for their own family members exclusively(verify this) are not monitored.
