Bridget Garsh is COO and Co-Founder of NeighborSchools and host of the podcast, “Work Like A Mother” and this episode we’re talking about childcare for working moms and solutions to the struggles they face finding it. It’s not a secret that finding affordable, reliable, and safe childcare is one of the toughest tasks for working parents that often falls on the shoulders of working moms. This episode Dr. Whitney speaks with Bridget Garsh of NeighborSchools about why childcare has been such a struggle for working parents and the solutions they are trying to bridge that gap.

Key takeaways:

Dr. Whitney: Tell us about NeighborSchools. How is it different from other childcare solutions that are out there?

Bridget: Our mission at NeighborSchools is to make childcare better for everyone involved in this critical resource, so that’s kids, parents, schools, teachers, businesses. Everyone. The way that we do that is by supporting caregivers. Our platform helps and supports caregivers start and sustain small, local childcare centers in their homes. 

And because they’re in a home, a few things happen: there’s way less overhead costs which means it’s more affordable for families and because they’re paying the caregiver directly, the caregiver is able to take home MUCH more than if they were working at a corporate center. Another thing that separates us from regular childcare centers is that because everyone is operating their business right from our platform, we know everything about them, from their hours, to what openings they have, to their location, to their philosophy. 

So this makes it MUCH easier for parents to access that information without having to call to each place. They can fill out their information on our site and we give them personalized recommendations based on what REALLY matters to families.

Dr. Whitney: How do you vet the caregivers so you know that they’re safe and reliable, that way parents can get to the real crux of what they’re looking for and not have to worry about things like getting a background check?

Bridget: A lot of people don’t realize the strict licensing requirements there are for daycare providers. And the same licensing that goes over sees corporate centers over sees in-home centers. So we only work with licensed providers. That means the educator will be background checked, but so will every member of the house who will be present in the home when the children are there. Plus there’s regular visits and oversight from that same board, making sure that those locations are safe for kids.

And because we’re set up the way that we are, we’re able to provide constant training and resources for those educators that they probably wouldn’t have access to if they were doing this on their own.

Dr. Whitney: Did I even see that there are some places that provide weekend care? That’s a dream come true!

Bridget: We are really just the business partner for the educators, which means they can set their own schedules and hours based on what works best for them, but also what needs are present in their community. We have an educator who is shifting her hours because there’s a lot of parents in her area that work the night shift and she wanted to be able to provide that kind of support for them.

Dr. Whitney: Let’s get into the idea of reduced costs for families and more money going into the pocket of the providers. And if I had to guess, most of these educators are women, so through this model we are providing more for female entrepreneurs.

Bridget: ¼ of childcare workers leave the profession because they can’t make ends meet. And there’s already a scarcity of childcare workers that are available, so until we can find a way to create an opportunity for both sides to thrive, we will be seeing the same thing. The hopeful thing is that stats say there are 100,000 women who are ready and wanting to open an in-home daycare, and we are helping to support them through all of the licensing process and backend business support that they need to get off the ground and running.

Dr. Whitney: How does it work with your system for emergency care or short-term care for when things like COVID hits or something comes up that would most likely remove women from the workforce?

Bridget: When emergencies come up, most people are going to want something close to home and in their neighborhood, right? But that sort of care hasn’t been readily accessible before. Our hope is that through our network and having all of this information available to parents, we’ll be able to fill in that gap. It’s more convenient and affordable for parents and we really want to make that happen for as many parents that need it.

Dr. Whitney: I would think the number one thing that keeps the system broken and keeps childcare unavailable for parents is cost and the second would be availability.

Bridget: 51% of parents across the US live in a childcare desert, so they truly have no options. And as we keep expanding into other states, it’s really exciting to see that a homebased center can happen anywhere. A corporate center is just not going to pop up in someplace really rural, but there are amazing men and women who have a passion to educate children and they can do it anywhere. 

So for accessibility, this model works everywhere. Which means we are putting more money into the hands of female entrepreneurs, but we’re also empowering more women to go out and build their own careers.

Dr. Whitney: Tell us where you guys are providing care and how they can reach out to you about it.

Bridget: We started in Massachusetts and have expanded into New York and Pennsylvania, but are always looking to expand into other areas. If you’re outside those areas, come to the site and tell us you’re looking for care in a certain area, because then it gives us the opportunity to see the needs that are out there.

Whether you’re a family looking for care or a business wanting to see how you can make your benefits better or you’re wanting to join our team, I’d say connect with us on LinkedIn and on our website. And of course, they can listen to the podcast, Work Like a Mother.

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