Child Care

Child care is an emerging area for local governments. In 2021, with funding from the provincial government, UBCM hired project consultants to develop a guide for local governments: Stepping Stones: Child Care Planning Guides for BC’s Local Governments.

Stepping Stones: Child Care Planning Guides for BC’s Local Governments. The guide is broken into five key areas. Download each separately here:
1) Developing a child care strategy and plan
2) Local government’s role in facilitating, securing and financing child care
3) Local government’s role in designing and building child care spaces
4) Local government regulations and provincial licensing processes
5) Working with child care operators
Top 13 actions municipalities can take to support local child care needs
Example surveys and interview guide:
Child care planning examples from BC communities
UBCM hosted a Stepping Stones-based webinar to showcase child care planning in three BC communities: Richmond, Williams Lake, and Sicamous.

In 2018, UBCM and the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC worked together to better understand the child care needs in small, rural and remote communities in BC. The final report: Child Care Needs in Small, Rural and Remote Communities in British Columbia was delivered to the provincial government in an effort to influence policy and program development for child care in small, rural and remote communities.

From 2018-2021, UBCM offered two child care funding programs to better understand local child care needs and to develop new child care spaces in their communities. The Community Child Care Planning program provided funding for local governments to develop a community child care space creation action plan. The Community Child Care Space Creation Program awarded up to $1 million to successful local governments to create new licensed child care spaces within their own facilities. The program is now closed.