Building child care with the Childcare BC New Spaces Fund

As we highlighted in the April 2019 edition of Ops Talk, the Government of B.C. is investing $1.3 billion over the next three years to lay the groundwork for a new universal child care system for B.C. families. The goal is to provide affordable, quality child care that is available to every family that wants or needs it.

What’s new? Government listened to your feedback, and we relaunched the Childcare BC New Spaces Fund on July 15, 2019 with new funding maximums. We now offer up to $3 million per facility for public sector applicants, including school districts.

The Childcare BC New Spaces Fund is providing $221 million to support government’s goal of supporting the creation of 22,000 new licensed child care spaces in B.C. by 2021. Public sector partners are critical to reaching this ambitious goal. Adding child care on school grounds provides a safe, convenient location for families who may need to also drop off older children, and the green space at schools is especially beneficial in urban locations where land is scarce and prohibitively expensive.

School districts can apply to the Childcare BC New Spaces Fund at any time and you can submit your application for funding when your project is ready. A public-sector organization that is directly operating a child care facility – or partnering with a non-profit

A bird’s eye view of the modular child care centre design for the Cowichan Valley School District 79 projects. organization to run a facility – can apply for up to $3 million per facility in order to create affordable licensed child care spaces for children from birth to age 12.

Several school districts have already started building child care centres on school property to meet the need in their communities. Each district uses a different approach depending on their resources, space available, and the costs of construction in their area.

Here are three projects that the Ministry of Children and Family Development has funded in the last year, and that we are pleased to showcase.

COWIChAn VALLey sChOOL DIstRICt 79 • Creating 125 spaces on school grounds at three schools, including: • Three new modular child care centres on elementary school grounds that are scheduled to open starting in

January 2020. • These new facilities will house a total of 61 infant-toddler spaces, 10 preschool spaces for children, and 54 out-of-school care spaces. • The district received a total of $2,994,700 through the

Province’s Childcare BC New Spaces Fund.

VAnCOuVeR IsLAnD nORth sChOOL DIstRICt 85 • Created 12 infant toddler spaces in a renovated portable that was previously used for a Young Parent Program at Port Hardy Secondary School. • Two spaces reserved for the Young Parent Program, and the remaining 10 are for community families. • Awarded $38,415 through the Province’s Childcare

BC New Spaces Fund in December 2018, and opened

June 2019. • Co-located with Supported Child Development, Infant

Development, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and

Family Navigator Programs.

PeACe RIVeR nORth sChOOL DIstRICt 60 • Creating 61 spaces at the Anne Roberts Young Elementary School Daycare • 12 infant-toddler spaces • 25 spaces for children aged three years to Kindergarten • 24 out of school care spaces • Awarded $1 million through the Province’s Childcare

BC New Spaces Fund in 2019, and expected to open in July 2020.

Let’s Play Child Care Centre opened 12 infant and toddler spaces in June 2019 in this renovated portable on the School District #85 Port Hardy Secondary School site.

The Greater Victoria School District #61 has completed their first of 11 modular child care centres at six elementary school sites. The new centre located at Frank Hobbs Elementary School opened 12 three-to-five-year-old child care spaces, as well as 73 outof-school care spaces in October 2019.

Peace River North School District is building on the success of the 37 space child care centre in the Margaret Ma Murray Community School that opened in August 2018. The Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows School District 42 is about to open the doors to the new C’esquenela Elementary School Child Care Centre in mid-November 2019. They will be offering 23 out-of-school care spaces, and 20 preschool spaces in a centre inside the school.

ChILD CARe PROjeCt uPDAtes

We are pleased to share an update from the projects we highlighted in the Spring Edition of Ops Talk.

For more information on the Childcare BC New Spaces Fund, please visit: www.gov.bc.ca/childcare/ newspacesfund. n