Finding child care, particularly when you are leaving your baby for the first time, can be extremely stressful. Look here for resource and referral agencies that will educate you about the process and options, and then help you find a quality caregiver.

Local Resources

• Wu Yee Children's Services offers listings of child care providers.
• San Francisco Children's Council is a great source for finding child care near your work or your home.  Parent and provider workshops are offered monthly. The Children's Council also offers a toy-lending library for parents and child care facilities. Call 415-343-3309 for more information.
• The San Francisco Early Head Start Program is designed for pregnant women and infants and toddlers (birth to 3 years of age). Eligible families include low-income families, foster families, and children with exceptional needs.
• The Family Child Care Association of San Francisco offers a free online resource listing for in-home child care providers, searchable by neighborhood.
• The Action Alliance for Children provides information about current trends and policy issues affecting children and their families. Information is also available in Chinese and Spanish.
• Children Now is a non-partisan, independent voice for children, working to translate the nation's commitment to children and families into action. Find information on health insurance, education, and other resources.
• First 5 San Francisco funds programs and activities for families with children 0 to ­5 years old. Download the free monthly newsletter with activities and parent tips.
• Bay SuperSitters and Nannies is a lower cost nanny referral service, referring San Francisco families highly qualified, fully screened nannies for full time, part time, and occasional care.
• UrbanSitter offers parents the ability to find and book trusted sitters online.  It’s a unique spin on some of the other childcare services that are available, in that their focus is on connecting parents with sitters through people they know (via Facebook). 
  

State and National Resources

• Momtrusted.com is a free resource for parents to find early education and care providers.  Search by zipcode. 
• National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies is a national non-profit dedicated to providing the most up-to-date and useful information to parents seeking child care, for child care professionals, NACCRRA members, and child care advocates.
• NannyNetwork.com features a searchable database of nanny placement agencies and nanny referral services, directories of firms offering nanny tax services, nanny health and worker's compensation insurance, nanny background verification, and a reading room with articles of interest to nannies and nanny employers.
• Child Care Law Center offers resources for California child care agencies and parents. Find a wealth of information about subsidies, welfare, advocacy, and more.
• Care.com has been a national leader in helping families find special needs resources, in addition to child care resources. Care.com offers many caregiver support resources and articles.  See the Special Needs Caregiver Guide.