Frequently Asked Questions

Although our centre is licensed to accept children under 18 months old, we choose to start them at 18 months old, as our program has a huge educational component that requires the child to be able to participate in group activities, sit in a circle with other children and listen to the teachers’ instructions.  We also have a very set routine, (i.e. nap time between 1-3pm) so if the child is too young and needs to nap earlier, we won’t have an extra staff member to take him/her to nap.  We are a multi-age centre that has one teacher to 8 children per class.  So the young children will have to participate in the same activities as the older ones.

Yes, we provide part time care of 2, 3 or 4 days a week, depending on the parents’ needs.

We recommend to parents to have their child come to our centre at least 2 days a week.  Children thrive on routines.  If the child comes only once a week, we find that he/she usually has a harder time adjusting to the routine of coming to daycare.  We do however make the exception of one day a week for families that are requiring more days of care, but we are unable to provide it due to lack of available spots.

Yes, we do drop ins, but only for our current families who are needing an extra day of care on top of their regular schedule.  We do not do drop ins for children who are currently not registered in our centre.

No, our centre only provides care for children that have not gone to kindergarten.

We are unable to change the schedule of care every week as once you pay for the month, you have the days you selected set for the whole month.  You can however try to request for some drop in days if you need extra days of care on top of your regular schedule.  If your shift changes on a month to month basis, we can try to accommodate the change of schedule if there are any spots available.  However, we will need 30 days notice prior to any change in schedule.

Yes, we have decided to opt-in to the Child Care Fee Reduction Initiative and has been passing on the fee reduction to parents since May 2018.  The government will require us to apply for this program every year.  This fee reduction will only be available for as long as the provincial government continues with the program, as well as our application being approved annually.

Yes, our centre participates in the Affordable Child Care Benefit program.  Households with earnings upto $111,000 may be eligible for savings of up to $1,250 a month per child.  Benefit amounts are determined by factors like family size, type of child care & income.  You will have to send in your application form for this program and we will receive the documents from the government if you have been approved.  You can use the online estimator to see if you are eligible for savings, as well as apply online at http://www.gov.bc.ca/affordablechildcarebenefit

No, however, Licensing requires that each child should have at least half an hour of quiet time.  So they have to lay on their beds and rest for at least that amount of time.  If they are still awake after then, they are allowed to get up and do quiet table top activities or go outside with one of our Early Childhood Educators (when the weather is nice) while the other children nap.

No, your child does not have to be potty trained before he/she starts at our centre.  We request parents to bring the appropriate size diapers and we have individual diaper bins for each child.  However, whenever you are ready to potty train your child, our teachers will work together with you to provide consistency at home and at daycare to ensure success.

Our centre does not provide regular lunch and snacks.  Parents will be responsible for bringing lunches and snacks for their children.  However, in the event that a parent forgets to bring a lunch/snack, we have some snack bars and applesauce that your child can have in the meantime.

We are a nut free facility and do not allow food containing nuts be brought in or consumed in our centre.

We are full most of the time.  The only time we have a spot available is when a family gives us notice to withdraw their child from our centre.  However, we usually do not know until 30 days prior to the withdrawal date.  As soon as we receive the withdrawal notice, that is when we start to contact the parents on our waiting list.

Although we are a multi-age centre, each of our classrooms are only licensed to have 3 children that are under 3 years old in any given day.  Therefore, even though we are licensed for 31 spaces, the maximum number of children that are under 3 years old in any given day is only 12.

No, you do not need to make a deposit.  In order to get on the official waiting list, please fill out the Enrollment Form on our website.  This is how we track our waiting list.

It is hard to tell.  Although we do it on a first-come, first-served basis, a family ahead of you may require a full time spot, while the spot that came available is only part time.  Therefore, whoever is next on the list that requires the days that we have available will be called.  The more flexibility you have on the days you require, the better chance of getting in sooner.  If you require full time care, but are flexible enough to start part time, please indicate that on the Enrollment Form.

We receive multiple phone calls and inquiries every day.  We try our best to respond as soon as possible.  However, the current owner / manager is also caring for a new baby and is working less than full time hours.  But rest assured that if you fill out your Enrollment Form, it will be added to the waitlist in order of receipt.