The governments of Alberta and Canada are collaborating to address the growing demand for affordable child care in the province, with a focus on creating 22,500 new licensed child-care spaces in areas where they are most needed.
Private child-care operators have been recognized for their role in providing high-quality and cost-effective child-care options tailored to the unique needs of Alberta families. Alberta’s government is expanding the Space Creation Grant, which will now include private child-care operators.
Through the Canada-Alberta Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, $28 million is being allocated to assist private operators with the costs associated with establishing new child-care spaces. This expansion will cater to the needs of high-demand communities across the province.
The commitment to expanding the Space Creation Grant emphasizes the government’s dedication to ensuring that Alberta parents have choices when selecting child-care options that best suit their family’s needs. Additionally, this initiative brings Alberta closer to achieving the goal of providing child care at an average cost of $10 per day by 2026.
The Canada-Alberta Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement is set to provide an estimated $3.8 billion for child care over a five-year period, which has already led to a 50 percent reduction in parent fees for children aged zero to kindergarten.
Applications for Space Creation Grant funding are open to both new and existing licensed non-profit and private facility-based child-care programs, as well as family day home agencies interested in creating new child-care spaces. Operators can apply through the Alberta Purchasing Connection website, with no current closing date for applications.
Eligible recipients can receive up to $1,350 for family day home agencies and up to $6,000 for facility-based programs for each new licensed child-care space established.
The Canada-Alberta Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement aims to create a total of 65,000 child-care spaces, which includes both non-profit and private spaces. Additionally, the government is supporting an additional 3,700 private spaces, ensuring a total commitment of 68,700 new spaces for Alberta families.