CANADA, April 8 - Families and children living in the Vancouver Hastings-Sunrise neighbourhood will benefit from 24 new child care spaces at West Coast Christian Fellowship.

“Parents and families need access to affordable and quality child care to work or pursue their goals,” said Niki Sharma, MLA for Vancouver-Hastings. “These new child care spaces give kids in the Hastings-Sunrise area a great opportunity to learn and grow, and helps create a community where families can thrive. We know the real impact reliable child care has on families’ lives.”

Nearly $770,000 in ChildCareBC New Spaces funding was used to upgrade an existing space, including a full kitchen and playground.

“The partnership of capital funding from the Province of B.C. has enabled us to provide this needed service in our community,” said Brady Meeking, director, East Village Kids. “We look forward to being one of the many supports to young families in our neighbourhood.”

The new centre includes eight infant-toddler spaces and 16 spaces for children from age three to kindergarten.

“I feel privileged to have access to child care with highly qualified staff and state-of-the-art facilities set in a safe, family-friendly residential neighbourhood,” said Laura, parent of a child attending East Village Kids.

Since 2018, ChildCareBC’s accelerated programs to create spaces have helped fund more than 34,000 new licensed child care spaces in British Columbia. More than 1,300 of these are in Vancouver and surrounding areas. Funding the creation of new child care spaces is part of the Province’s goal to build access to affordable, quality, inclusive child care as a core service families can rely on.

Last year, the Province and the Government of Canada invested more than $260 million to fund new licensed child care spaces in high-need areas throughout B.C.

Learn More: 

For information about the ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund, visit: https://gov.bc.ca/childcare/newspacesfund 

For information about ChildCareBC, visit: https://gov.bc.ca/childcare