The province announced over $1 million in grants for local governments to do an inventory on child care spaces last month. (Province of B.C. photo)

The province announced over $1 million in grants for local governments to do an inventory on child care spaces last month. (Province of B.C. photo)

City wants help compiling child-care inventory

$25,000 grant to help create plan to fill child-care needs in Salmon Arm

The City of Salmon Arm would like help investigating what, exactly, is needed in terms of child care in the community.

The city has received a $25,000 grant to determine child-care needs.

Submissions are welcome from interested groups, businesses or individuals to take on the following projects:

• Create an inventory of existing child-care spaces in Salmon Arm (using the UBCM Child Care Planning Program template to populate information gathered through this process);

• Develop a needs assessment, broken down by neighbourhood;

• Identify space creation targets for the next 10 years; and

• Recommend actions that will enable the city/local stakeholders to meet the targets.

Read more: Childcare crisis looms over B.C. Interior

Read more: Salmon Arm receives funding to plan improvements to childcare services

The city received the grant for the development of the Salmon Arm Community Child Care Planning Initiative 2019 from the Ministry of Child and Family Development, which is administered through the Union of BC Municipalities.

The initiative will be led by a collaborative Child Care Planning Committee comprised of local stakeholders.

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The committee will oversee the work of a consultant who will collect data and information on existing childcare services, and conduct research through interviews and engagement with School District #83, Interior Health, childcare providers, parents, families and other organizations/businesses. Following the data collection and public engagement phases, the consultant will work with the committee to develop a Community Action Plan.

The final date for submissions is May 24.


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