Connecticut Child Care Business Expansion Grant
Women's Business Development Council (WBDC)
Up to $25,000
Researched for this program: 5 rejection traps · 5 required documentsWhat decides this award ↓
CT child care expansion grant
A Connecticut Office of Early Childhood (OEC)-funded grant administered by the Women's Business Development Council for established child care providers who are growing their licensed capacity. Awards up to $25,000 to businesses that have operated at least two years and are increasing licensed capacity by three or more full-time-equivalent slots, opening a new location, or moving up a license tier (family home to group home, or group home to center). Funds can support classroom construction, furniture and fixtures, educational supplies, and limited operating costs for a new location. The program is the established-provider counterpart to WBDC's Start-Up Grant and runs in periodic competitive rounds, with the next round anticipated in Winter 2026.
- Funding type
- Grant
- Level
- State
- Amount range
- Up to $25,000
- Realistic amount
- Awards are sized to the documented expansion project and use-of-funds, up to the $25,000 cap.
- Deadline
- Periodic competitive rounds. FY2025 window ran Feb 1–28, 2025 and is closed. Next round anticipated Winter 2026.
- Status
- between-intakes
- States
- Connecticut
- Payment model
- milestone
Who qualifies
- OEC-licensed (or pending licensure) as a family home, group home, or center in Connecticut
- Operating full-time with enrolled children for at least 2 years
- Increasing licensed capacity by 3+ full-time-equivalent slots, opening a new location, or upgrading license tier
- At least 75% current enrollment at licensed capacity
- Good standing with CT Department of Revenue Services
- Profitable in at least one of the past three years (or broke even if nonprofit)
- Business banking relationship and digital bookkeeping system; annual sales under $2,500,000
What it covers
Eligible expenses
- Construction for new classrooms
- Furniture and fixtures
- Educational supplies
- Night-shift supplies (bedding, cots)
- Limited operating expenses for a new location
- Up to $2,000 for employee salary (excluding owner)
Ineligible expenses
- Real estate purchases
- Renovations for leased spaces with under 3 years remaining
- Insurance-covered projects
- Wish-list / vanity upgrades
- Owner compensation
How to apply
-
1
Create eCenter profile
Register on the WBDC eCenterDirect portal before applying.
~1 hrs
-
2
Attend grant information session
Attend or watch a required info session (English/Spanish) covering scope and eligibility.
~1 hrs
-
3
Document the expansion project and finances
Prepare an itemized use-of-funds tied to the capacity increase, historical financials showing profitability/break-even, projections, and CT DRS standing.
~7 hrs
-
4
Submit during the open window
Complete and submit the application; optional free 1:1 advising available.
~4 hrs
The 3-or-more-FTE-slot increase is a hard threshold — quantify the exact new licensed capacity in your application, since awards are tied to documented slot creation. If you received a WBDC Start-Up, Emergency Facilities, or Expansion grant for the same license in the last 6 months you're ineligible, so time your applications across WBDC's child care grant suite.
Deadline & timing
Not first-come; all eligible applications considered after the window closes. WBDC posts the next window on ctwbdc.org; applicants must create an eCenter profile and attend a grant info session.
Not accepting applications right now — get one email when it reopens
GrantCompass tracks Connecticut Child Care Business Expansion Grant’s application windows in the live catalog. Leave an email and we’ll tell you the day the next window opens.
Free. One email when the window moves, deadline warnings on your watchlist, and the monthly closing-soon digest. Unsubscribe anytime.
Programs that stack well
Related programs
This program is not taking applications today — these are
Alternatives computed from the live GrantCompass catalog on August 25, 2026 — all 183 open grant programs · filter the database.
Explore more funding
Last updated September 5, 2026. GrantCompass is an independent funding-discovery tool and is not affiliated with any government agency. Always confirm details on the official program page.