After a four-year wait, more Tri-City parents are getting access to $10 a day child care.
This week, the B.C. government announced that Seaview Montessori Preschool and Daycare, located at Seaview Elementary, at 1215 Cecil Dr. in Port Moody, would be the city's first site to offer the cost-saving program.
Offering 54 spots to children under 36 months, three- to five-year-olds and school aged kids, Seaview Montessori would be one of the rare corporate centres to participate in the program, as most centres offering $10 day are family daycares or non profits.
"Every family should have access to quality, affordable child care and I am thrilled that we are part of the plan that is aimed at making that happen," stated Jennifer Peltier, manager at Seaview Montessori.
A Tri-City parent also welcomed the news.
"We are thrilled that Seaview Montessori has been accepted as one of the $10 a Day ChildCareBC centres," said Catherine Macala, who called the program "life changing" in a press release.
Since it was initiated in 2018, with 2,500 spots, the $10 a Day ChildCareBC program has grown to include 6,500 child care spaces, with 12,500 expected across B.C. by December 2022.
Coquitlam already has three child care centres offering $10 a day care:
- Hami’s Playhouse Infant & Toddler
- Kid’s Cottage Daycare Society
- Little Scholars YMCA Child Care
NO $10 A DAY CHILD CARE IN PORT COQUITLAM
However, one city stands out for having no $10 a day child care centres: Port Coquitlam.
Michelle Lahti, who runs Cedar Drive Preschool and daycare in a portable at Cedar Drive Elementary in Port Coquitlam, had hoped to apply last year but faced a major hurdle.
A financial audit costing up to $7,000 was required and Lahti said she needed approval for the large expenditure from the non-profit society that runs the daycare.
There just wasn't enough time to get this audit done to meet the application deadline, she said.
"I had every box checked except that financial one. It was such a big undertaking."
However, Lahti said the society has since approved the audit, which will be done soon, and she hopes to apply again for the next round of applications.
There are other ways for families to get a break on child care fees, the province's Child Care Fee Reduction Initiative and the Affordable Child Care program both support an additional 100,000 B.C. children with fee reductions up to $350.
Still, families hoping to sign up for the $10 a Day ChildCareBC will have to wait and see if their daycare centre qualifies as priority for participation is given to non-profit/public organizations, Indigenous-led and home-based child care in locations where $10 a Day ChildCareBC Centres are not available.
Child care based in municipal community centres and on school grounds also qualify.
The $10 a Day ChildCareBC program is a partnership between the B.C. government and the federal government through the Canada Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement.
