80 New Subsidized Child-Care Spaces
The Department of Community Services will be subsidizing 80 new child-care spaces in 28 non-profit licensed centres across Nova Scotia, Community Services Minister Francene Cosman has announced.
"Affordable, quality child care is an investment in our future," said Ms. Cosman. "We know parents need support in raising their children and this is part of a larger government effort to strengthen and expand our existing programs that promote healthy child development."
The minister's allocation of the new subsidized spaces closely follows the recommendations of the Nova Scotia Roundtable on Child Care, a ministerial advisory group that comprises parents, child-care teachers and operators, and members of the community. Centres were selected according to location, availability of child-care services in each county, needs of special populations and the number of spaces in a centre.
Today's announcement is part of the province's reinvestment strategy under the National Child Benefit program. Nova Scotia has committed $2.2 million annually for a range of Healthy Child Development Initiatives to help overburdened families in many circumstances. These initiatives include expanded centre-based child care, expanded family child care, community-based prevention programs and expanded early-intervention programs. Consultation is under way with community groups to direct funds where they are most needed, and to set a strategic new direction for the department's child-development programs.
The government has increased the number of subsidized spaces made available to low-income parents by 280 since 1993, bringing the total to 2,380 this year. There are currently more than 10,000 licensed child-care spaces in more than 370 centre-based child-care programs in Nova Scotia. These spaces serve more than 11,000 children either full or part time.
LIST OF THE CENTRES BEING ALLOCATED NEW SUBSIDIZED SPACES
Child-Care Centre No. Allocated
Boys and Girls Club of Yarmouth Day Care, Yarmouth 2 Spaces Bridgewater Day Care Centre, Bridgewater 2 Spaces Digby Pre-School Co-op, Digby 1 Space East Preston Day Care Centre, East Preston 3 Spaces First Friends Day Care Society, Lower Sackville 3 Spaces Horton High School Child Care Centre, Wolfville 5 Spaces Isle Madame Day Care Association, D'Escousse 2 Spaces Kingstec Day Care, Kentville 3 Spaces Little People's Place of Shelburne Day Care, Shelburne 2 Spaces Lunenburg Day Care Centre, Lunenburg 2 Spaces Mount Saint Vincent Child Study Centre, Bedford 2 Spaces Needham Preschool/Day Care, Halifax 2 Spaces New Minas Children's Centre, New Minas 4 Spaces Niki's Place Pre-School and Day Care, Truro 3 Spaces Northwood Child Care Centre, Halifax 4 Spaces N.S. Community College-Cumberland Campus, Springhill 5 Spaces Peter Green Hall Children's Centre, Halifax 1 Space Playschool Day Care Centre, New Waterford 3 Spaces Point Pleasant Child Care-St. Mary's, Halifax 3 Spaces Prescolaire de la Picasse, Petit de Grat 3 Spaces Queens Day Care Association, Liverpool 6 Spaces Sackville-Bedford Development Centre, Lower Sackville 4 Spaces Shearwater Children's Centre, Shearwater 2 Spaces South End Community Day Care Centre, Halifax 2 Spaces Southwest Regional School Board, Yarmouth 4 Spaces Sydney Day Care Centre, Sydney 2 Spaces Windsor Day Care Centre, Windsor 2 Spaces The YWCA of Halifax, Halifax 3 Spaces
Total 80 Spaces