High-quality child care is an essential resource for families and children. Reliable child care enables parental workforce participation, simultaneously providing children with a safe, nurturing, and structured environment that promotes healthy development. Quality child care also strengthens families' economic stability, improving child development outcomes and promoting broader economic growth.

Despite the essential need for child care, families across the United States face challenges accessing it. Though the lack of access to child care is widespread across the country, the key to implementing effective solutions requires understanding the specific local challenges within states and regions.

United Way of Greater Nashville engaged the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center (Policy Impact Center) at Vanderbilt University to conduct the Davidson County Child Care Landscape Study. The purpose of the study is to collect localized data to understand the strengths, challenges, and true costs of the greater Davidson County child care system.