What is CFF?

Children & Families First, is a private, not-for-profit dependent care resource and referral organization providing services that help people successfully manage their work and personal lives in Delaware and nationwide. We provide information and programs for individuals with child care and/or elder care needs, the community-at-large, care providers, and employers. We are funded by individual and foundation contributions, and government grants and contracts.


PROGRAMS IN THE COMMUNITY

REFERRAL SERVICES

  • Child Care Referral Service
    CFF provides referrals to child care centers, family child care homes, preschools, school-age programs, and summer camps.

  • Elder Care Referral Service
    CFF provides referrals representing 20 different services in Delaware, including assisted living, companion services, financial assistance, legal programs, senior housing, and transportation.

PROGRAMS TO INCREASE CHILD CARE* QUALITY AND AVAILABILITY
*child care includes after-school care

  • Delaware Child Care Capacity-Building Program
    CFF manages this program through a contract with Delaware Health and Social Services. The program’s goal is to increase the supply and quality of child care to fill identified gaps: infant/toddler care, care for school-age children, care for children with disabilities, care for mildly ill children, and care during non-traditional hours. Through an RFP process, mini-grants are awarded to providers to expand, enhance, or create programs to address these gaps.

  • Child Care Food Program
    The Food Program is a nutrition and meal reimbursement program, administered in Delaware by the Department of Education and funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. As one of the program sponsors, Children & Families First manages this reimbursement process for Delaware family child care homes and small child care centers who meet the income criteria. CFF also conducts training for the participating providers, who are visited three times a year by CFF food program monitors. Participants must serve meals meeting USDA requirements.

  • Relative Caregiver Training
    CFF provides free training for Relative Caregivers that have contracts with the Delaware Division of Social Services. The 45 hours of training uses Delaware First curriculum, topics include Safety, Health, Nutrition, Early Language and Literacy, Child Development, Understanding Children's Behavior, and CPR and First Aid.

  • Delaware AfterSchool Alliance (DEASA)
    The Delaware AfterSchool Alliance (DEASA) is a public-private partnership that endorses the goal of all school-age children being academically, socially, culturally, and physically healthy.

PROGRAMS TO SUPPORT ELDERS

  • Grand Time Off Program
    CFF manages a program in Delaware to provide respite for grandparents and relatives who are raising other family members' children in their own homes. Caregivers can use Grand Time Off to help them find and pay for short-term, occasional child care needs. CFF operates Grand Time Off through a contract with the Delaware Division of Services for Aging and Adults with Physical Disabilities.

  • ElderBuddy Program
    Piloted in 2003 with AstraZeneca, the ElderBuddy program matches employee volunteers with elders in need of companionship. More than 30 elders at senior housing facilities in Wilmington have been paired with AstraZeneca employees who have made a commitment to visit their elderly friendsfor a minimum of two hours a month. Matches are based on common interests and other requests. AstraZeneca provided CFF with a grant to develop and manage the program. The ElderBuddy program also links elders to resources that might be helpful to them.

CFF'S CORPORATE SERVICES

  • Child Care and Elder Care Resource and Referral
    CFF specialists provide client employees with helpful support, guidance, information, and referrals to programs and services that meet their specific needs and have confirmed openings, when applicable. Child care specialists connect employees to child care centers, family child care homes, preschools, school-age programs, and summer camps. Elder care specialists provide customized referrals to a wide range of services and programs that cover housing, health care, transportation, legal and insurance issues, and much more.

  • Just in Time Care
    Launched in 1995, Just in Time Care is a unique, comprehensive, community-based program that links employees with backup care options whenever their regular child care or elder care is unavailable. Employers subsidize the cost, helping to alleviate some of the financial burden on employees.