1,202 new child care spaces to be added in multiple Sask. communities

Children's backpacks and shoes are seen at a daycare on Tuesday May 29, 2018. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck)

More than 1,200 new licensed not-for-profit child care facility spaces will be opened in communities across Saskatchewan, the provincial and federal governments announced Wednesday.

The 1,202 spaces will be added to 21 Saskatchewan communities as a part of a shared goal to create 28,000 new child care spaces in the province by the end of March 2026. The Government of Saskatchewan announced the expansion of 601 new spaces in December 2021.

The communities that will benefit from the additional spaces are Asquith, Bethune, Bredenbury, Grayson, Gull Lake, Hague, Humboldt, Kindersley, Lloydminster, Martensville, Milestone, Moose Jaw, Montmartre, Pilot Butte, Outlook, Prince Albert, Regina, Saskatoon, Swift Current, Warman and Zenon Park.

The new spaces will be merged into communities either through new child care facilities or by adding into existing facilities.

“This increased investment will allow more opportunities for families to find accessible child care near them,” Education Minister Dustin Duncan said.

A federal investment of nearly $1.1 billion for childcare in Saskatchewan will be provided over five years, according to the Canada-Saskatchewan Canada-Wide Early Learning and Childcare Agreement, which was signed in August 2021.

The Government of Canada’s investment, in partnership with provincial, territorial and Indigenous partners will further their goal to bring down average fees for regulated child care to $10-a-day on average by the end of March 2026.

By the end of 2022, the Government of Canada is aiming to reduce average fees for regulated early learning and child care across the country by 50 per cent.

Natural Wonders executive Sheila Paradis said their early learning centre in Swift Current is looking forward to the opening of 77 new licensed spaces for ages zero to five in the fall of 2022.

“It is encouraging to see the allocation of funding from the bilateral agreement open spaces in rural Saskatchewan which will shorten wait times,” she said.

Canada’s Minster of Families, Children and Social Development Karina Gould said the additional child care spaces will help to grow the Canada-wide system, which will allow more children and families from Saskatchewan to access high quality, affordable, flexible and inclusive child care.

“Every child deserves the best start in life,” she said.