Children and Family Development
Families in Richmond will have access to more than 400 new licensed child care spaces as part of the Province’s ongoing commitment to increasing access to child care through the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
“Creating new child care spaces is one of the ways we are making life better for families in Richmond,” said Henry Yao, MLA for Richmond South Centre. “Through this investment, more parents will be able to go back to work or school, knowing their children are being cared for in a safe and educational environment.”
The Childcare BC New Spaces Fund is supporting seven projects to create 403 new licensed child care spaces in Richmond. These spaces are part of the fastest creation of child care spaces in B.C.’s history and were part of the September 2020 milestone that marked more than 20,000 new spaces funded throughout the province in just over two years.
“Despite the challenges of the pandemic, our commitment to building a universal and inclusive child care system remains as strong as ever,” said Katrina Chen, Minister of State for Child Care. “These new child care spaces in Richmond are bringing us one step closer to delivering the quality, affordable and inclusive child care that all B.C. families deserve.”
Families will be able to access new child care spaces at the following child care centres:
- F.A. Tomsett Elementary School Child Care (42 spaces)
- Sprouts Child Care Centre (77 spaces)
- Hummingbird Child Care Centre (37 spaces)
- Seedings Early Childhood Development Hub (77 spaces)
- Aves Flow (42 spaces)
- Academics preKindergarten YVR (72 spaces)
- Willowbrae Childcare Academy South Richmond (56 spaces)
“The City of Richmond is committed to being a leader in fostering a comprehensive, high-quality child care system throughout the community and has demonstrated success working with developers to create centres to support this,” said Malcolm Brodie, mayor, City of Richmond. “By working with not-for-profit child care operators, developers, the Richmond School District and provincial government, the city has been able to enhance access to child care for families across Richmond, and these new centres are examples of that partnership in action.”
An additional 4,110 spaces, funded through the 2017 Budget Update and the Early Learning and Child Care agreement with the Government of Canada, takes the total number of new, licensed spaces funded in B.C. to more than 24,500 since July 2017.
Quick Facts:
- Since July 2018, more than 20,000 new licensed child care spaces have been funded in British Columbia, including 1,123 spaces in Richmond.
- Throughout the province, the Childcare BC plan has helped parents save up to $1,600 a month per child through the Affordable Child Care Benefit and the Child Care Fee Reduction Initiative.
- As a result of these investments, parents in Richmond have saved more than $40.8 million on child care.
- Early childhood educators in Richmond have received over $3.2 million in wage enhancements.
- Through B.C.’s combined affordability initiatives, more than 36,000 children have received child care for $10/day or less since the beginning of the Childcare BC plan.
Learn More:
For information on health and safety standards for child care during COVID-19, visit: www.gov.bc.ca/ChildCareCovid-19Response
Child care factsheet: https://news.gov.bc.ca/18430
To learn more about the Childcare BC New Spaces Fund, visit: www.gov.bc.ca/childcare/newspacesfund
For more about Childcare BC, visit: www.gov.bc.ca/childcare
A backgrounder follows.
