New Democrat MLA Michele Babchuk says families across the North Island will save money on child care as local child care sites become $10 a Day ChildCareBC sites where fees are capped at a maximum of $200 a month per child.

“Nearly 150 childcare spaces in communities across the North Island are converting to $10 a day spaces,” said Michele Babchuk, MLA for the North Island. “This will make a big difference for dozens of families who will be able to access the childcare they need at a more affordable price, saving them hundreds of dollars each month.”

The following child care sites are becoming $10 a Day ChildCareBC sites, which means a total of 144 child care spaces will have fees dramatically reduced for parents:

• Port Hardy, Stepping Stones Child Care Centre- 72 spaces
• Quathiaski Cove, Quadra Children’s Centre- 41 spaces
• Tahsis, Puddle Ducks Day Care- 6 spaces
• Campbell River, Leishman Early Learning and Care- 25 spaces

Spaces in the $10 a Day ChildCareBC program reduce the average cost of child care from $1,000 a month at participating facilities (for full-time, centre-based infant care) to $200 a month, saving families approximately $800 a month per child on average. The newly approved $10-a-day spaces are being offered at 61 child care centres throughout B.C., bringing the total number of $10 a Day spaces in B.C. to nearly 11,000.

In addition to these spaces, the Province, with federal funding support, is helping approximately 69,000 families with the cost of child care at centres that are not part of the $10-a-day program through child care fee reductions of up to $550 more per month per child. These savings, which kicked in on Dec. 1, 2022, are in addition to the $350 per month per child that families have been saving through the Child Care Fee Reduction Initiative since 2018.

For more information on the $10 a Day ChildCareBC sites and spaces: www.gov.bc.ca/childcare10aDaysites