Expansion of Childcare Staffing Services in Sendai, Kobe, and Hiroshima: Strengthening Supply Systems for Short-Hour and Variable Needs Driven by the "Universal Childcare Access System"

WILLOF WORK, Inc., a comprehensive human resources service provider under the WILL GROUP (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, President: Hideo Murakami), has expanded its human resource supply functions in the childcare sector across three cities—Sendai, Kobe, and Hiroshima—effective April 1, 2026, to respond to changing childcare needs driven by the "Universal Childcare Access System" and other factors. With this expansion, the service will be rolled out across 11 locations nationwide. The aim is to resolve regional shortages of childcare personnel and strengthen the ability to respond to fluctuating childcare demands.

## Background of Branch Openings in Sendai City (Miyagi), Kobe City (Hyogo), and Hiroshima City (Hiroshima)

While chronic staff shortages continue in the childcare industry, childcare needs are undergoing significant changes due to the "Universal Childcare Access System*," which will be rolled out nationwide from April 2026, and the expansion of temporary childcare services. As the environment improves to allow children to be dropped off regardless of parents' employment requirements, short-hour and spot usage is increasing, shifting childcare demand from the traditional long-hour, fixed-type to a "short-hour, variable-type."

As a result, demand fluctuates by day of the week and time of day at childcare facilities, bringing to light new challenges such as shortages of personnel for temporary childcare classes and short-hour shifts. It is difficult to handle this with traditional staffing focused on full-time workers, requiring the construction of a more flexible personnel supply system.

In addition, in regional areas, there is a trend for population and childcare demand to concentrate in core cities, increasing the importance of these cities as hubs covering wide-area demand. Taking these structural changes into account, the company selected Sendai, Kobe, and Hiroshima as service expansion areas by comprehensively considering not only population size but also childcare demand, geographical characteristics, human resource supply status (active job openings-to-applicants ratio), and child-rearing support measures by local governments. Furthermore, by promoting staffing that responds to demand fluctuations by combining full-time and part-time personnel, the company will enhance its ability to respond to changing childcare needs and expand service functions at existing locations.

*What is the Universal Childcare Access System?
This system is one of the initiatives promoted by the Children and Families Agency. In addition to current early childhood education and childcare benefits, it is a new attendance benefit that can be flexibly utilized on an hourly basis, regardless of employment requirements, within a monthly allotted time frame. Institutionalized in fiscal 2025, it will be implemented in municipalities nationwide starting in April 2026 as a new benefit based on the Comprehensive Support for Children and Child-rearing Act.

## Overview of Each Branch

Starting April 1, 2026, the cities and branches for expanded childcare staffing services are as follows:

■Sendai Branch
Address: Daiwa Securities Sendai Building, 2-8-13 Chuo, Aoba-ku, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture
https://maps.app.goo.gl/pfeNsn3qZt8MP1Zq5
Access: 10-minute walk from the West Exit of JR Sendai Station
Start of Operations: Wednesday, April 1, 2026

■Kobe Branch