Locked-out parents struggle to find replacement daycare
Oct. 19, 2010
CTV

Dozens of parents continued to scramble in search of available childcare space Tuesday after being blindsided by the unexpected closure of a busy daycare this week.

Many, like Catherine Kim, say they'll be forced to miss work or class until they figure out who will take care of their children.

"How do you tell work that immediately, with no warning, that you're not going to be at work and you don't know when you'll be back?" she asked.

Trouble began Monday morning when parents arrived at the Charleson Park Children's Centre, located in the 900-block of West 6th Avenue in Fairview, to find the doors locked.

Signs posted on the walls read "Daycare permanently closed due to non-payment of rent."

Parent Leanne Ramer says she doesn't know who is at fault, but that the situation was "unacceptable on several fronts."….

And finding another daycare with space has been next to impossible. Ramer says her family is already on three different waiting lists.

Childcare advocate Sharon Gregson, a Vancouver city councillor, says the problem extends beyond Vancouver to the entire province.

"If you can find a childcare space, you probably can barely afford it," she said.

Gregson says the government, which acknowledges there is a problem, needs to invest as much money in preschoolers as it does in the public school system.

"We seem to have enough money for roofs on stadiums and convention centres," Gregson said. "We seem to have a lot of money for things if it's a government priority."

At the meeting, Matt Ramer, Leanne's husband, said parents are distressed and still have no word on what will become of their pre-paid daycare fees.

"We've paid for this month, we've paid a deposit to begin with and we don't know what's going to happen to that money," he said….