irwinloy

A City of Vancouver child care pot that funds 144 spaces locally will be drained without a big cash injection.

The city’s child care endowment reserve provides subsidies that fund almost 30 per cent of Vancouver’s 500 licensed group infant/toddler spaces.

“What it does is it helps offset the cost of the operating costs of running these spots,” said Carol Ann Young, the city’s acting director of social planning.

But the $5.8 million reserve is not self-sustaining and will be depleted by 2025. City staff have suggested the provincial government match the funds, with the money coming from some $127 million in unallocated bilateral transfer payments B.C. received as part of last year's early learning/child care agreement (the Conservatives have since pledged to axe the deal next year).

Another $6 million would make the reserve self-sustaining, while also providing enough money for another 132 spots.

City council will be asked to petition the province next week, but the minister responsible for child care, Linda Reid, was non-committal yesterday.

“We currently directly subsidize families,” Reid said in an interview. “I’m not sure we would take that direct subsidy option and provide the money to municipalities.”

The province gives child care subsidies to 25,000 families.

Child care is not traditionally the domain of municipalities. In 2002, a $40-million cut to B.C.’s child care budget caused enough worry for the city to boost its own modest child care subsidies.

Tags: vancouver, child care