Average $15-a-day regulated child care for families in Alberta

EDMONTON,  AB, March 15, 2024 /CNW/ - Too many families across Canada lack access to high-quality, affordable, flexible and inclusive child care. That's why the Government of Canada is working with provinces and territories, including Alberta, to provide families in Canada with $10-a-day, on average, regulated child care for children up to kindergarden age by March 2026. This is a plan to make life more affordable, create new jobs, get parents?especially mothers?back into the workforce, grow the middle class, and offer each child the best possible start in life.

Today, the Honourable Randy Boissonnault, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages of Canada, on behalf of the Honourable Jenna Sudds, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, joined the Honourable Matt Jones, Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade for Alberta, in Edmonton to announce that the province has reached an average fee of $15-a-day for licensed child care as of January 1, 2024.

With this fee reduction, Alberta families could now save up to $13,700 annually per child in regulated child care with the Affordability Grant and subsidy, as compared to before the signing of the Canada-Alberta Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care agreement in November 2021.   

Today's announcement means that the governments of Canada and Alberta are making child care more affordable for families in the province, working toward their goal of reaching an average fee of $10-a-day for licensed child care by 2026.

As of January 1, 2024, over half of provinces and territories are delivering regulated child care for an average of $10-a-day or less and the remaining jurisdictions have reduced fees for regulated child care by at least 50 per cent. To ensure more families can access affordable, high-quality, flexible and inclusive early learning and child care, the Government of Canada will continue to work with provincial, territorial, and Indigenous partners to strengthen the Canada-wide early learning and child care system, including work to create new child care spaces and support the early learning and child care workforce.

"Today's announcement marks significant progress in creating a strong child care system that makes life more affordable for Alberta families. This fee reduction means families could be saving up to $13,700 a year, leaving more money in the pockets of parents to help them afford other essentials. I look forward to continuing to work with the province towards our shared goal of an average fee of $10-a-day child care so every family has access to high-quality, affordable, flexible and inclusive child care."
? The Honourable Jenna Sudds, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development

"Our government heard from Canadians and took action in 2021 to lower child care fees for Albertans, saving families thousands of dollars each month. Providing $15 a day child care is a life changer ? allowing parents to return to work, children to receive adequate care and learning opportunities and to allow our economy to grow."
? The Honourable Randy Boissonnault, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages

"High-quality, affordable and accessible child care continues to be a cornerstone of Alberta's ongoing success in both attracting new citizens and growing the economy. Through the Affordability Grant and child care subsidy, Alberta families are saving up to $13,700 per year at a time when the cost of almost everything else is going up. We will continue to work collaboratively with the federal government to ensure quality child care in Alberta is sustainable for providers, affordable for Alberta families and where children can thrive."
? The Honourable Matt Jones, Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade for Alberta

• Alberta signed its Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement on November 14, 2021.
• As part of the agreement with Alberta, the Government of Canada is investing close to $3.8 billion over five years to help improve regulated early learning and child care for children up to kindergarten age in the province.
• This is in addition to the over $290 million announced through the Canada-Alberta Early Learning and Child Care Agreement ? 2021 to 2025. Additionally, the federal government invested about $56 million through a one-time investment in 2021?2022 to support operators and staff through increased early childcare workforce supports.
• On January 31, 2023, the Governments of Canada and Alberta announced the Alberta Cost Control Framework and For-Profit Expansion Plan. The Cost Control Framework and For-Profit Expansion Plan ensures the sound and reasonable use of public funds in Alberta's for-profit child care sector. The framework also guides how federal funds can be used to support the development of up to 22,500 new child care spaces among Alberta's for-profit child care providers over the remainder of the Canada-Alberta Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement.
• As part of Budget 2021, the Government of Canada made a transformative investment of more than $27 billion over five years to build a Canada-wide early learning and child care system with provinces and territories. Combined with other investments, including in Indigenous early learning and child care, up to $30 billion over five years will be provided in support of early learning and child care.
• As part of the Canada-wide early learning and child care system, the Government of Canada aims to create approximately 250,000 new child care spaces across the country by March 2026 to give families affordable child care options, no matter where they live. Alberta has committed to creating up to 68,700 new regulated child care spaces as a part of this target.
• Since the signing of the agreement, as of December 2023, about 22,000 net new spaces have been created in Alberta. All of these spaces have been funded under the Canada-Alberta Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement.

Toward $10-a-day: Early Learning and Child Care

Canada ? Alberta Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement - 2021 to 2026

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SOURCE Employment and Social Development Canada