While family homelessness has decreased in D.C. over the last decade, it’s still a challenge: during the 2024-2025 school year, D.C. Public Schools reported 9,104 students were unhoused.
One reason why homelessness among D.C. youth is such a prevalent issue is that many live in poverty. According to DC Action, “approximately 21,000 District children lived in families with incomes below the federal poverty line in 2023.” Many of these families have a hard time finding affordable childcare, which prevents them from working more and growing their incomes, according to a 2024 fact sheet from the First Five Years Fund. Unhoused families in D.C. and Maryland face numerous obstacles when accessing affordable childcare, including programs with age restrictions, strict shelter rules, lack of transportation, and lack of financial literacy and long-term support.
Many shelters don’t have on-site childcare and also don’t permit families to leave children alone or hire babysitters to come into the shelter, making outside childcare the only option. While D.C. provides financial support for homeless families in need of childcare, families and their advocates say the process can still be challenging…