however the majority of private expenditure on preprimary education comes from households via parental fees however in austria the czech republic estonia germany iceland israel and japan more than of all private funding comes from other private entities eg private businesses and nonprofit organisations religious organisations charitable organisations and business and labour associations in these countries encouraging private foundations and community engagement to support ecec centres is increasingly seen as an important policy lever and a potential source of additional resources this type of funding can act as a connector between families and ecec services as well as other services for children a social network to support parents in reducing stress and making smart choices especially for disadvantaged families and an environment to promote social cohesion however some foundations may also contribute to the financing of ecec settings