Surrey families will soon have access to 295 new licensed child care spots resulting from a $1.1-million investment through B.C.’s child care major capital funding program, the province announced Monday.
The investment will enable child care providers to build new facilities, buy and assemble a modular building and develop a site, renovate an existing building and buy playground equipment.
While that’s good news, it is of course a mere drop in the bucket.VIDEO: B.C. to create 3,800 childcare spaces within two years
A “Surrey Child Care Gap Assessment” conducted in 2011 found there were 8,530 child care spaces for children up to age 12 in Surrey and estimated that 30,124 more were needed. So while this week’s announcement is a step in the right direction, it’s a baby step.
Meanwhile, it is refreshing to see the NDP has not just taken care of Surrey ridings that elected an NDP MLA in the last provincial election.There are nine provincial ridings in Surrey – six held by the NDP and three, by the Liberals. Here’s how that 295-spaces pie will be shared:
Surrey-Guildford (NDP) will get 97 of the spaces, Surrey-Fleetwood (NDP), 92, Surrey-Cloverdale (Liberal), 53, Surrey-Panorama (NDP), will get 37, and Surrey-Green Timbers (NDP), 16.
Surrey-Whalley (NDP), Surrey-Newton (NDP), Surrey-White Rock (Liberal) and Surrey South (Liberal) won’t receive any new child care spaces.
Next time, and soon we hope, they’ll will also benefit from this funding program.
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