Some parents in Kelowna, B.C. , have been dealing with a difficult reality the past few months, struggling to find a daycare spot for their child in the city.
Parents rallied together Monday evening as they continue to search for solutions to the current crisis.
Many parents in Kelowna were desperately trying to bring attention to the current state of child care in the city after it was announced in January that Building Blocks Educare on Gordon Drive will be closing this June.
“Our daycare closed with almost no notice to parents at all, less than two months’ notice. Waitlists in Kelowna are over two to three years long. So as you can imagine, most of the families at building blocks have absolutely nowhere to go for their children,” said concerned parent Belinda Hardy.
Hardy says her family was lucky, both her children got accepted into another daycare in the city, although she acknowledges not many parents are getting that same chance.
Families are searching for both short-term and long-term options, as in recent months child care in Kelowna has taken a hit.
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“Since late December until now, over 300 child-care spaces have closed for various reasons,” said Melissa Hunt-Anderson, executive director of Childhood Connections Society. “Building Blocks is the biggest one but we’ve had other ones close and it’s a disappointing pattern that we’re seeing now more in this community.”
“The city is the fastest growing city in Canada over the last five years, and a lot of things haven’t kept up and child care is kind of at the heart of being able to allow families like ours to work,” said parent Andrew King.
Supporters came to the Childhood Connections center to rally for solutions to the current crisis. They would like to see the Ministry of Education and Child Care acknowledge the issue and develop a plan.
Kelowna-West MLA Ben Stewart says that action is needed to attract more workers to the area.
“We need to have more early childhood educators. Of course, with the higher cost of living here in the Okanagan as well as across the province, we need to make certain that they’re getting fair wages and they’re attracted to the job,” Stewart said.
As parents held signs at cars passing by on Hwy. 97 they hoped to not only raise awareness among Kelowna residents but, hoped local governments would take notice too.
That would lead to altering policies for new daycares in the city, opening up further spots for children.
Hardy said there needs to be a “streamlined” process. “There are huge waitlists for licensing, there are huge bottlenecks for improving facilities and those could all be alleviated with help from the city and Interior Health.”
With the number of daycare spaces available dwindling, more parents say they will have to leave the workforce which could lead to gaps in certain fields across the Okanagan.
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