4Cs Expands Access and Strengthens Child Care Navigation Across San Mateo County
by David Fleishman, Executive Director, 4Cs of San Mateo County
San Mateo County is home to families with widely varied languages, incomes, and child care needs. Parents know firsthand that finding child care is one of the most important and often one of the most overwhelming tasks families can face. They shouldn’t have to navigate multiple systems or wonder where to turn for trusted information and financial assistance.
As San Mateo County’s Child Care Resource & Referral agency, 4Cs believes access to child care begins with access to information with simple, parent-centered systems. That’s why I am pleased to share service expansions that have recently been accomplished thanks to collaborative, resource-maximizing efforts focused on better serving all families and child care providers countywide.
These service improvements reflect a broad countywide commitment to coordination and collaboration. In January 2026, the San Mateo County Child Care Partnership Council reinforced that approach by adopting the San Mateo County Child Care Blueprint. Along with my fellow nonprofit leaders in the area, we worked together on a plan that helps align partners, services, and funding around shared priorities to strengthen existing systems and deliver greater value for county residents.
As our county’s Child Care Resource & Referral Agency for more than 50 years, 4Cs continues to expand our services to support a unified navigation system that best serves families and children, providers, and partners. Because we are constantly listening and seeking feedback on what families, providers, and partners need, we are meeting needs with the latest updates and upgrades to the way residents access child care.
In fact, earlier this year 4Cs spent months of planning, testing, staff training, and collaboration with county and state partners to expand how families throughout San Mateo County can find and connect with child care. Such improvements reflect our commitment to continually improve the experience families and providers have when working with 4Cs.
As always, 4Cs supports families of all income levels with finding child care options that meet their needs. For families with low income, 4Cs administers the Alternative Payment Program, providing child care subsidies so families can seek and maintain employment, attend educational or vocational training, or comply with court orders.
Our new platform is now in place, supported by state funding, and enhanced features will continue to be phased in. Families can use the platform to search for child care, and when eligible, apply for assistance with child care costs, and track their enrollment status.
The platform also gives providers tools to manage their program profiles, update information for families and participate in subsidy programs where applicable. Together, these features make it easier for families to find care and for providers to keep their information current.
Working with our valued partners, 4Cs has recently expanded several services, including:
· Our new parent portal. Any family, in a multitude of languages, can search for child care programs that meet their family’s needs. This new portal offers the ability to send a message directly to programs and to save their search history for future reference. That portal can be found here: https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sanmateo/service/search
· Our new provider portal. Child care providers can make real-time updates to program descriptions, upload photos, and indicate current vacancies. For families who apply for a subsidy and use the child care search function, their search activity is connected to their MyCareConnect account, creating a more seamless experience. For providers serving families with subsidies, the platform allows full subsidy management, including a secure platform to send, receive, and store documents. That portal can be found here: https://sanmateo4cs.org/provider-referral-database/
· Our subsidy connection application. Families needing assistance in paying for child care can apply, see real-time status updates regarding enrollment, and manage the entire subsidy process. That portal can be found here: https://app.mycareconnect.io/carewait3/sanmateo/service
Each of these portals allows a single place for secure document exchange.
These enhancements are not the finish line but part of our ongoing service mission. We will continue gathering feedback from families, providers, community partners, and staff to refine our platform and ensure it continues to evolve alongside the changing needs of our community. Continuous improvement is essential to delivering high-quality service and ensuring that the systems we build remain responsive, accessible, and effective for those we serve.
Technology alone does not solve child care challenges, but when paired with expertise, guidance, and support from dedicated staff, it goes a long way to help meet needs. Together with families and our partners, 4Cs will continue improving access and building a more coordinated child care system for San Mateo County residents. I am grateful for the phenomenal staff at 4Cs and to the many dedicated people who work hard every day to make sure our child care providers and families are getting the support and services they need.
