A new Suffolk grant will help at least 10 child care businesses get started or expand by covering their permit fees.
Suffolk’s Economic Development Authority is providing $8,500 for home-based child care providers. Each can get up to $850 with help navigating the application process for the permit needed to serve between eight and 12 children. Only businesses that receive a state child care license will be eligible.
Janet Days, economic development director, said cost is a main reason why these businesses have trouble getting started.
“It’s small, but it’s helpful,” Days said at Wednesday’s Suffolk City Council meeting.
The funding chips away at a larger child care shortage. Licensed providers meet 77% of Suffolk’s demand for early childhood care and education, according to a 2025 study of child care access across Southeastern Virginia. That means more than 1,400 children whose parents need child care can’t get it. Services are more sparse in Suffolk’s more rural southwestern reaches.
Suffolk’s ratio is only outpaced by Norfolk in southside Hampton Roads, which only meets 67% of its demand. The Eastern Shore fares worse at 63%.
Minus 9 to 5, an initiative based out of Old Dominion University focused on child care system research and coordination, was part of the group that conducted the study. Executive Director Jane Glasgow said the deficit prevents young children from being ready for school and is a significant economic hit for businesses and governments.
“We need to start looking at child care as a critical infrastructure,” Glasgow said.
In Virginia, more than two-thirds of parents have reported being unable to work because of child care issues. A survey by the Virginia Chamber of Commerce and Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond found that about 41% of businesses saw job offers or promotions decline because of inadequate child care and 34% of businesses saw employees quit.
The loss of worker productivity amounts to an estimated $3.1 billion annual impact in Virginia, Glasgow said.
It’s not just finding child care that’s challenging parents, but paying for it.
Child care costs Suffolk parents between $13,000 to more than $15,000 per year. The federal government recommends families spend no more than 7% of their income on child care, meaning Suffolk families would need to earn between $185,000 and $263,000 each year to fall under that affordability threshold.
“And that’s for one child,” Glasgow said.
Improving child care affordability and availability could also help improve school readiness. Almost 40% of children start kindergarten without the skills they need, Glasgow said. Stable and thoughtful care environments can help children build a base of learning and behavior at a crucial stage of brain development.
“You want them to have a high-quality, engaging experience where they are being stimulated, talked to and supported in their learning,” Glasgow said. “Not just put in front of a TV.”
The new grant program builds on a pilot Suffolk began in 2025, funded by Minus 9 to 5, which opened four home businesses and one just over the border in Chesapeake.
Days said one application is already in process and that she’s heard from six more businesses.
“We’re verifying that they’ve done all their certifications, all the training,” she said. “They’re doing it right.”
Minus 9 to 5 is the lead agency for the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation Region Ready Southeastern group tackling these issues. They’re working to fund and coordinate more solutions in the region.
Suffolk, Glasgow said, will also need to work with state and federal leaders for more money and find additional ways to lower costs, offer tax incentives and streamline processes for businesses.
“There’s no simple solution to solving this problem,” Glasgow said.
