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Excerpt: "Last year, government took its first steps to make quality child care more affordable and available to more B.C. families. A $1 billion dollar investment over three years – the most significant child care investment in B.C. history – will reduce child care costs, increase the number of spaces and deliver the highest quality care.

Tens of thousands of B.C. families are already enjoying the benefits. With child-care costs reduced by hundreds of dollars a month, young families can consider home ownership for the first time. More parents can participate fully in the workforce, confident their children are getting high-quality care from early childhood educators who know their work is valued.

This year, government will set the foundation for the full implementation of B.C.’s affordable child care program. A key element of this effort will be a collaborative process to develop new legislation to give universal access to quality, affordable childcare the force of law."

Excerpt: "The extra bursaries build on the success of the ECE bursary program that approved approximately 1,100 applications for just over $2 million in the fall of 2018. A new $1.9-million investment through the Province’s Early Learning and Child Care Agreement with the Government of Canada means more potential and current ECEs will benefit. This is in addition to the $10 million that was previously announced in September 2018 to expand the ECE Education Support Fund, which is administered by the Early Childhood Educators of British Columbia (ECEBC)."

Excerpt: "Indigenous families in over 30 communities throughout the province will benefit from more than 600 new, free licensed child care spaces and expanded Aboriginal Head Start (AHS) programs."

Excerpt: "Municipalities and regional districts can now apply for up to $4 million to buy land for child care centres and create new licensed child care spaces in their communities."

Excerpt: "CREATING AFFORDABLE CHILD CARE: Two years ago, this government put B.C. on the path to universal child care. Tens of thousands of families are already feeling the benefits. Fee reductions and the affordable child care benefit have put more money back in families' pockets. And parents are bringing their skills back into the workforce, benefiting local business and the economy. There is more work to do to help British Columbians find quality child care they can afford. Government continues to train more Early Childhood Educators, to make sure B.C. has the professional, caring and skilled child care workers it needs. Those Early Childhood Educators are now earning higher wages, with an additional $1-per-hour increase coming April 1 for those working in licensed care. As work on universal child care continues, this government will work to increase the number of spaces for school-aged children, and partner with school districts to create more before- and after-school care."

Excerpt: "Launching this fall, the new BC Child Opportunity Benefit will help lift up thousands of kids and give them the opportunities they deserve, now and down the road.
Families with one child will be eligible to receive up to $1,600 annually. For two children, that goes up to $2,600, and it's up to $3,400 for three kids. People can bank on this tax-free support up until their child's eighteenth birthday. On top of the new benefit, this will be the first full year that people won't have to pay the unfair MSP premium. Together, these two measures could save families thousands of dollars that they can put towards what really matters: setting up the next generation for success.

For many, that starts with access to affordable, high-quality child care. Child care for all is closer than ever to becoming a reality in our province. Thousands of new licensed child care spaces are opening, and some parents are saving nearly $20,000 annually. Budget 2020 builds on the progress with total investments reaching $2 billion over three years for child care in British Columbia. Child care is critical to achieving equality in the workplace, helping to close the gender pay gap, and giving more parents — particularly women — the opportunity to take their careers to the next level.

We are also investing in B.C.'s early childhood educators — again, almost entirely women — with more bursaries and increased wages. Additionally, B.C.'s minimum wage will rise to more than $15 per hour by 2021. For the almost 140,000 people who currently earn minimum wage, more than half of which are women, this will provide a much-needed boost."

Excerpt: "This legislation puts into the School Act – for the first time – recognition that school boards can directly operate before and after school care. Currently, if boards want to offer child care they must offer it through a separate, licensed provider. Boards will be required to have a child care policy in place that addresses reconciliation and inclusive education commitments, while prioritizing available space on their properties not being used for K-12 students."

Excerpt: "Canada and British Columbia agree that the long term vision, principles and objectives for early learning and child care, which are set out in the Multilateral Early Learning and Child Care Framework that is attached as Annex 1, will guide the investment of funds provided under this Agreement."

Excerpt: "Today, the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, announced $83 million in federal support for British Columbia’s child care sector to help ensure that safe and sufficient child care spaces are available to support parents’ gradual return to work."

Excerpt: "A cap on fees for new child care facilities receiving the Child Care Fee Reduction Initiative (CCFRI) will help keep new child care spaces affordable for B.C. families."

Excerpt: "Budget 2021 will: More than double the number of children who can get care for $10 a day or less through an expansion of the Universal Child Care Prototype Program. This investment will add 75 more child care centres to the program, increasing the number of spaces by approximately 3,750; Help more families access child care on school grounds by expanding the Seamless Day pilot program from four school districts to 24; Support approximately 11,000 ECEs in licensed child care centres, and encourage better recruitment and retention in the sector by doubling the ECE wage enhancement to $4 an hour..."

Excerpt: "More families than ever are benefiting from better access to quality, affordable child care, thanks to the fastest creation of child care spaces in B.C.’s history. The Province has exceeded its original three-year goal and has funded nearly 26,000 new licensed child care spaces since the 10-year Childcare BC plan was launched in 2018. Nearly 70% of these spaces are expected to be open for families within the next year."