Daycare costs have dropped but programming quality has, too, according to experts who spoke to CHAT News. (Photo: Oksun70/Dreamstime.com)

By Adrian St.Onge

Parents benefit from lower childcare costs at the expense of programming, experts say

Jun 26, 2024 | 8:57 AM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Lower childcare costs in Alberta have come at the expense of quality programming, experts say.

In 2022, with the help of federal funding, Alberta’s childcare costs dropped to roughly $10 per child per day but there’s a downside, according to what those in the industry told CHAT News.

Childcare operators like Carleen Schaaf from Kids Play Preschool in Medicine Hat said the lower costs has been wildly successful for parents, but has also added a lot of undue stress due to the lack of transparency.

“If you want to opt into the agreement, there’s stipulations in order to do that.In order for you to get wage top-ups for your staff, subsidy for your families, you have to opt-in,” Schaaf said.

“That alone was really difficult. Just with how it’s rolled out. I, myself, was having to float $50,000 a month waiting to get paid.”

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Schaaf said that the tighter restrictions has led to taking drastic measures, including cutting programs like dance and music classes as well as not taking a wage for herself.

“We have to cut back somewhere, everybody is looking at ways to try and do that. I myself am looking at possibly not serving snacks anymore and having families bring that because the cost of food is going up and we can’t increase our fees.”

Association of Alberta Childcare Entrepreneurs chair Krystal Churcher said that due to costs, some parents are deciding to forego preschool and kindergarten entirely, enrolling their children straight into Grade 1.

Churcher said that these decisions are hindering childhood development and that government restrictions are leading to further staffing issues.

“We’re already struggling with staffing. So anytime you reduce staffing and support for your team, you’re going to add more burnout and more stress to an already exhausted sector,” Churcher said.

“There’s some major concerns around that, but I think it all goes back to quality and support for children.”

Churcher said that parents and childcare workers are stuck in a no-win situation, saying that parents are right to look for lower costs but that it shouldn’t be blanket solutions that comes at the expense of programs.

“Child care was not affordable prior to this, but now it’s not accessible. So it’s lose, lose, right? But we need to do it in a way that actually shows we understand how our child care system works.It’s very diverse,” Churcher told CHAT News.

“It’s different from province to province and we need to respect the people who are already in this space.”

Schaaf said that there is a definite need for lower costs, but that there’s a better way of rolling out cost-cutting measures than budget restrictions.

“It’s really hard to sit here and just having the government take control of everything with wages, with what we can and cannot spend,” Schaaf said.

“If we want some more markers one month and the governments like ‘no that’s not in your budget’ what do you do with that,” she said.

“It’s a great program for families but I think there needs to be a better way to roll it out.”

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now

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