Child-care centres across Alberta have been given an injection of cash to ease the shortage of spaces, especially in rural areas.
The provincial government said money would be used to create 3,500 new child-care spaces in 51 communities across the province.
Audrey Morello, head of the early childhood development department at Gardner College in Camrose, said the money is welcome news.
The college, which specializes in training child-care workers, received $120,000 to create 80 new child-care spaces in the school.
Morello said the goal is to build a laboratory school where early childhood education students are able to work in the college day care while they become licensed child-care professionals. Until the school is built, part of the money will be used to renovate an existing classroom.
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“We see a great need for child-care spaces.”
Since 1984, day-care associations have been advocating for more money to train and keep high quality child-care staff, she said.
“I’m really excited. The government has come to the forefront and really made it an issue,” said Morello, who hopes the renovated dormitory would be open as a day care by fall.
With the new funding, operators can access up to $1,500 for each new space to help offset the costs of planning, minor renovations and buying supplies, equipment and toys.
Manna Middleton, director and owner of the Beehive Childcare Centre in Picture Butte, Alta., said it received $75,000 to create 50 child-care spaces in a new building in the southern Alberta community. Before the move, the facility had room for 30 children and a long waiting list. Since the move to a new facility, there are now 54 spaces with a goal of reaching 80 spaces depending on finding qualified staff. New spaces filled up almost instantly.
“Absolutely, the money was needed. You can call any day care in Western Canada and there’s no room,” said Middleton.
Some of Middleton’s families drive an hour and a half each day to drop their children at her centre.
Now she is searching for qualified staff to care for the children from infant to six years of age.
“I’m not just taking anybody. I want quality professionals.”
In recent years the Alberta government added money to help day cares retain qualified staff or to hire back staff who have left the field.
“Now we’re beginning to be recognized as professionals.”
Lynne Robson of the Stettler Regional Child Care Centre, an umbrella group for a variety of child-care services, said the non-profit society used the funding to open a day care in a local public school. Teachers, aides and even a high school student take their children to the 16-space centre. One of the biggest benefits of having the day care at the school is the ability to train and recruit high school students.
By the time the high school students graduate, they have their basic level of training complete and are willing to go straight into a day-care job. By summer, Robson hopes to have four graduates hired for careers in child care.
“We’re horribly short of child-care workers across the province. It’s very difficult to recruit and train staff,” she said.
