Child Care Referrals

If you are a parent or guardian of a child or children needing child care, we are here to help! We are the Larimer County agency contracted to participate in the statewide child care referral network managed by Qualistar Colorado, and the only agency in Larimer County to have a list of all licensed child care providers. There are over 400 licensed providers including home providers, child care centers, preschools, and before and after school programs.

Call (970)377-3388, option 4 to receive your free child care referral. If calling long distance, please call our toll free number at 1-877-338-2273.

What a Child Care Referral is:
During a 15 minute phone conversation one of our child care referral specialists will talk with you about your child care needs. She will ask for information such as where you would like your care to be located, the hours and days you need care, and some demographic information. This information is then used to search our child care provider database. The referral specialist will try to give you a list of 10-15 child care providers that most closely match your needs.

While you are on the phone, the referral specialist will also give you information about the steps you need to take to find child care and what to look for when making your child care choice. Written information that you can use as you visit child care providers is also included with your child care referrals.

You can receive the referrals in the way that works best for you including email, fax, mail, or picked up in our office. If the original referrals do not work for any reason, another search can be run by expanding the geographical search area and/or changing your search criteria.

Important Information about the Child Care Referral Program

What a Child Care Referral is NOT:

The Early Childhood Council Child Care Referral program provides referrals only, not recommendations. We cannot warrant the information of any provider, nor can we guarantee that any provider gives quality care. It is your responsibility to screen child care providers and decide who will best meet your family's needs.

To review a child care provider's license/record, call the Colorado Division of Child Care at 1-800-799-5876 or visit the Division of Child Care website.

To do an online search of our child care provider database, please visit the Qualistar website, and click on the link that says "Find Care for Your Child".

Note: Although the online search is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the information you can use to select child care providers is limited. You may get an overwhelmingly large or very small number of providers when using the online search depending on your criteria.