Child Care Advocates of BC Welcome School Act Changes. 

We welcome the announcement by the BC government to table Bill 19, the School Amendment Act, which removes barriers for school districts to provide child care for children of all ages on school grounds throughout the year.

This policy shift has the potential to advance a more seamless continuum between early learning and K–12, improve access to quality child care for families, and make better use of existing public infrastructure.

• Enabling school districts to provide child care is a smart way to reduce capital costs and ensure stability in the child care sector.
• Operating during non-instructional days and winter/spring/summer breaks is key to supporting working families.

We urge the BC government to commit to the following:

1. Sustained funding - School Districts need predictable operational funding with access to capital funds for retrofits and expansion.
2. Early Childhood Educators – Recognize ECEs as valued professionals with a publicly funded fair wage grid to address recruitment and retention.
3. Equity approach - Rural, remote, and Indigenous communities, as well as lower-income neighbourhoods, must not be left behind. The province should ensure that school-based child care does not inadvertently widen geographic or socio-economic gaps.
4. Cost recovery for sustainable operations – Provide clarification on allowing districts to recover “reasonable costs” to ensure transparency and consistency across the province.
5. Affordability - The next step is to ensure that existing and new child care programs have fees set at no more than $10aDay.

“This change is a welcome and long‑anticipated move toward the vision of connecting child care & early learning with school systems,” said Kate Spence, Parent and Chairperson, “But legislation alone is not enough. If we truly want child care on school grounds to deliver benefits for all families, the province must also implement the promised fair wage grid for educators, a capital expansion plan, and maximum $10aDay fees. Otherwise, the result risks continuing the current inequities of BC’s child care system.”

Download the media release here...