'Less stress': More $10-a-day child care spaces opening in B.C
The prime minister was in Surrey Thursday, promising to help millennial moms by expanding child-care spaces and adding more $10-a-day spaces across the country.
That includes here in B.C., but critics say long daycare waitlists prove much more still needs to be done.
Justin Trudeau stopped by Alex House Children’s Centre in Surrey before unveiling a series of commitments to expand child-care programs.
“We know there’s more to do. That’s why we’re stepping up with a billion dollars worth of low-cost loans available to not-for-profit and public child-care providers to expand, to create more spaces,” Trudeau said.
The federal government is also promising student loan forgiveness for rural and remote early childhood educators and more training for those wanting to work in child care.
An additional 27 child-care centres in B.C. are joining the province’s $10-a-day child-care program, adding more than 930 affordable spaces for families.
The centres are making the transition this month and next.
North Vancouver mom Rory Richards said while she’s grateful some families will benefit, many others will not.
“Nine-hundred-and-thirty new spaces, $10-a-day spaces, seems actually quite low to me when you consider how many spaces are needed for each municipality. And most of those families are going to need $10-a-day,” she said.
Richards said she spent years on waitlists, trying to get her twin daughters into child care.
“I did get a call back from one child-care facility four years later,” she said, adding that by then, she’d given up and had hired a nanny instead.
She said she paid thousands of dollars in waitlist fees, a charge the province said will no longer be permitted at licensed child-care centres as of April 1.
“Waitlists are crazy," said Sharon Gregson, spokesperson for the Coalition of Childcare Advocates.
"In East Vancouver, (there is) a child-care provider with 400 spaces and 3,000 children on the waiting list. A child-care provider in Kamloops: 180 spaces and 800 children on the waitlist."
She said 75 per cent of children have no access to licensed daycare.
“(It's) great to see more child-care investments coming from the federal government," said Gregson. “That’s good, because we’re not seeing the province stepping up as much as we’d like.
But the provincial government said it’s supporting families with reduced child-care costs.
“On average, they’re saving $920 per child per month," said Mitzi Dean, B.C.'s minister of state for child care, at a news conference.
"That’s putting over $10,000 back in the pockets of families … throughout a whole year.”
With the new spaces, more than 15,300 children and their families across B.C. will be helped by the program, saving thousands of dollars annually, officials said.
“Together, we’re making sure families across the province get the quality child care they need without worrying about the cost,” said Trudeau in a news release.
"In addition to the $10-a-day program, we have increased the fee reductions, are eliminating waitlist fees and continue to offer additional support for families who need it most, all of which are important ways we are making life more affordable,” Dean said.
Average child care cost down from $54 to $19
Sarah Mara, a mother of one child in care, said the $10-a-day program has been a big help for her family.
“The $10-a-day savings have allowed us to plan for the future with less stress knowing that our child-care fees will not be increasing like all the other costs of living," Mara said in the news release.
Officials said British Columbia and the federal government have brought average daily cost of child care for children ages five and under in B.C. down to $19 from $54.
The province said it prioritized centres in communities that don’t already have $10-a-day spaces, or where there are very few child-care centres compared to the region’s population density.
“The federal government has committed an additional $47 million over three years through the Child-Care Infrastructure Fund,” the release reads.
“This new funding will support non-profit, public and/or Indigenous-led organizations to build or maintain child-care facilities, particularly in under-served communities, and is in addition to the existing ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund.”
The province said it’s on track to meet its next goal: opening up an additional 20,000 spaces for children by 2026.
Paul Kershaw, founder of Generation Squeeze, said his organization has been asking for a national child-care program for many years.
“We’re delighted … Mr. Trudeau has actually implemented a plan to make sure child care never again costs another rent- or mortgage-sized payment,” Kershaw said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Scottie Scheffler isn't the first pro golfer to be arrested during a tournament
Scottie Scheffler's arrest hours before his second-round tee time at the PGA Championship in Louisville, Kentucky, will go down as one of the most shocking in professional golf history. It certainly wasn't the first, though.
NEW What a wildfire survivor says she regrets not grabbing before leaving home
Carol Christian had 15 minutes to evacuate her home during the Fort McMurray wildfires in 2016. She ended up losing the house and everything inside. Now, she wants to share the lessons she learned.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta border: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Canadian convicted of attacking Nancy Pelosi's husband with a hammer sentenced to 30 years
The man convicted of attempting to kidnap then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and attacking her husband with a hammer was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison.
World No. 1 golfer charged with police officer assault before PGA Championship second round
World number one golfer Scottie Scheffler was arrested and charged with the assault of a police officer in what he called a 'chaotic situation' before being released in time to start his second round at the PGA Championship on Friday.
Australia's richest woman seeks removal of her portrait from exhibition
Art is subjective. And while many artists long to share their work with the world, there's no guarantee that the audience will understand it, or even like it.
B.C. optometrist warns against trending eye colour change procedure
A medical procedure that can permanently change a person's eye colour may be trending on social media, but a B.C. optometrist is warning about the significant risks associated.