Home / Education / Saskatchewan Expands Campus-Based Child Care with $10.8M Investment
Saskatchewan Expands Campus-Based Child Care with $10.8M Investment
27 Aug
Summary
- 540 new child-care spaces to be created across Saskatchewan
- 450 spaces at Saskatchewan Polytechnic campuses, 90 at Northlands College
- 30% of spaces reserved for families facing barriers, including children with disabilities
In a move to expand access to affordable and inclusive child care, the provincial and federal governments have announced a joint investment of $10.8 million to create 540 new child-care spaces at post-secondary campuses across Saskatchewan.
The majority of the new spaces, 450 in total, will be spread across the four Saskatchewan Polytechnic campuses in Regina, Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, and Saskatoon. The remaining 90 spaces will be established at the Northlands College campus in La Ronge.
Notably, 30% of the new child-care spots will be reserved for "families facing barriers to access, including children with disabilities," according to a joint statement from the governments. This initiative aims to ensure that high-quality, affordable child care is available to all families, regardless of their circumstances.
The new on-campus child-care facilities will serve as both support for students and university staff, as well as training sites for students pursuing early childhood education degrees. This dual-purpose approach is expected to benefit the community as a whole.
The investment is part of the Saskatchewan government's broader efforts to lower the cost of child care through partnerships with the federal government. The federal funding is being provided through the early learning and child-care infrastructure fund, as part of an agreement made in 2021 to bring the average cost of child care down to $10 per day by 2026.
