National Child Care Survey, 1988 [Canada]: Designated Adult, Spouse, Economic Family Records

The CNCCS was designed to provide accurate, detailed information about Canadian child care. In addition to information on child care regulated by provincial or territorial legislation, the CNCCS examines 'informal child care'. Informal arrangements include self-care, often called 'latch-key' arrangements, care provided by parents and other family members, neighbours, friends and by licensed and unlicensed in-home providers. The survey also provides reliable estimates of the number of children using these informal arrangements. Further, differentiating between paid and unpaid informal day care allowed the CNCCS to examine familial, non-familial, formal and informal child care separately. Finally, the CNCCS examines care used by at-home parents as well as care arrangements used while parents work, study, participate in voluntary organizations, or attend to personal and family matters. The objectives of the Child care survey are: * to accurately describe the nature of child care needs in Canada; * to show current child care use patterns; * to find out what child care arrangements and options parents prefer; * to find out what influences child care needs, use patterns and preferences; * to examine how different child care patterns affect children, mothers and fathers, both on an individual basis and in relationship to each other; * to find out how parents feel about the affordability, availability and quality of major child care options.