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Qualified staff, affordable child care and facility space must all be in place if more child care spaces are to be created in the province.
That's the key finding of a provincial government consultation on child care space creation. The consultation, which included an online survey and group discussions, was prompted by the federal government's plan to work with employers to create child care spaces.
The federal government is considering offering one-time tax credits or grants to businesses should they choose to create child care spaces in their community.
Eighty-four per cent of child care operators who completed the online survey said difficulties in recruiting and retaining qualified staff were a barrier to creating new spaces.
In each of the five meetings held around the province, child care operators indicated they were operating at less than half of capacity because they were unable to find staff.
Child care operators also said Alberta's Five-Point Child Care Investment Plan, announced in October 2005, is improving the quality of child care programs, encouraging child care workers to stay in the field and helping operators to keep costs to parents down.
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Other highlights of the consultation include:
- Eighty-nine per cent of child care operators and 74 per cent of employers who completed the survey believe demand is exceeding the supply of child care spaces;
- More than 80 per cent of employers said quality child care was a priority for Alberta;
- Sixty-five per cent of employers felt their business had a role to play in helping employees access quality child care and 35 per cent said they were already doing so through corporate donations to child care programs, financial support to employees and on-site daycare; and
- While 57 per cent of all survey respondents said they would use a federal grant or tax credit to create child care spaces in their community, participants in the discussion groups questioned whether it was an appropriate role for businesses not directly involved in the child care sector.
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- reprinted from the Sherwood Park News