Childcare is an act of caring and supervising minor children. It is a tradition in western countries society for children to be looked after by their parents, but the requirement of two-job households refers that childcare is often allotted, part of the time to child minders and part of the time to crèches. Most of the western countries have obligatory education and at the time when the child is at school, the school is supposed to act as a loco parent. In case where parents are missing or found dead, or may be unfit to care for their children, state agencies like social services might take on the childcare role. Opulent people who desire the services of experts might delegate the parental role almost completely to nannies.

Anyhow, for many the use of paid childcare could be a matter of choice with further debates raging on both side, whether children’s are happy about it or not. There is however not doubt that for all children the initial years are drastically significant to form a basis for good education, ethics, discipline and social integration.

Consistency of approach, skills and requirement of careers and society ownership has been proved in several studies to develop the options for a child reaching his or her full potential. For example a recent study conducted in Australia exposed that 20% of careers working in large viable area, child care chains will not put their own children in the centre they work in, whereas only 2% of careers of society owned non-profit centers had similar concerns. One of the challenges and worry for parents who desire to use childcare is to find qualified providers. Some jurisdictions want licensing or certification. Parents might also turn to self-governing rating services, or depend on recommendations and referrals.

Today many organizations probably in the developed countries campaign for no cost or subsidized childcare for all, even other such movement for tax breaks and allowances to let parent’s non-finance driven choice. There are many of the free and subsidized childcare programs in the United States that develops Child Development Programs, or the school programs, which hire certified teachers to teach the children while they are at the care. In Australia most child care services are part of the national Quality Assurance system with makes sure that they offer good development programs.