Support for LAist comes from
Local and national news, NPR, things to do, food recommendations and guides to Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire
Stay Connected
Listen

Share This

Early Childhood Education

Majority of LA County parents struggle with basic needs, survey finds

An adult embraces a young child who is wearing pajamas.
L.A. County parents with young children are struggling to provide basic needs.
(
Charles Deluvio
/
Unsplash
)

Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.

Topline:

More than 70% of parents in L.A. County with children under 6 are struggling to meet a basic need like food, housing, utilities, or childcare, according to a survey by the Stanford Center on Early Childhood. More than half struggled with food insecurity.

The survey: The survey collected responses from 1,375 parents in L.A. County between November 2022 and May 2024.

Rent vs. food: The survey found that food insecurity was at high levels in the county. “My biggest concern is not being able to pay rent, and if I do pay it, I won’t have enough for food,” one parent reported.

Support for LAist comes from

Parent employment: 90% of parents in the county are employed in either full-time or part-time work, but many reported concerns about not having enough hours. And 91% of parents reported experiencing parenting stress.

As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.

Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.

We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.

Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.

Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

Chip in now to fund your local journalism
A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right
(
LAist
)

Trending on LAist