Synopsis

In Saskatchewan, virtually all child care centres are not-for-profit. The Ministry of Education is responsible for childcare, kindergarten, and pre-kindergarten services, and, the Ministry of Social Services is responsible for the Child Care Fee Subsidy Program, which helps families offset the cost of licensed child care. These range from $330 to $570 per month. (1) In 2012, Saskatchewan was spending an average of $389 per child aged 0 to 12, whereas the national average* was $528. It also spend an average of $5104 per child-care space, compared to the national average* of $3513. In 2010, Saskatchewan had a caregiver-to-child ratio of 1:3 for children under one year of age, compared to the national average* of 1:4. For children aged five and under, this ratio was 1:10, which matches the national average. (2) *All figures for the national average exclude Quebec, which implemented a universal $7/day childcare policy and is an outlier in terms of most child care measures.

Will include 810 licensed child-care spaces in the nine joint-use schools under construction in Saskatoon, Regina, Martensville, and Warman (3) Has increased the number of licensed child-care spaces by 104%, or nearly 5000, since 2007 (3, 4)	Promises to double funding for Early Childhood Intervention Programs and Early Childhood Development Programs at a cost of $9.7 million over four years (5, 6) Will build 2,000 new child care spaces and establish an “early learning and child-care registry” to examine the need for child care (5)	The Saskatchewan Liberal Party has not articulated its plans for daycare or child care	The Saskatchewan Green party has not articulated its plans for daycare or child care

References

1. Finding Quality Childcare
2. Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, page 18
3. Saskatchewan Party Platform, page 24
4. Saskatoon Star Phoenix
5. Saskatchewan NDP Platform
6. CBC News