---
title: "Vote Vancouver Releases Childcare Plan Three Days Before the Election"
description: "Vote Vancouver published a childcare plan on October 14, committing to set space-creation targets and mandate childcare in new public-land housing."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/news/vote-vancouver-childcare-plan-october-14"
last_updated: "2026-10-17T19:03:20.549Z"
---

Vote Vancouver published a childcare plan on October 14, three days before the October 17 municipal election. Mayoral candidate [Rebecca Bligh](/candidates/rebecca-bligh) and the party say they would set space-creation targets tied to what the party describes as Vancouver's estimated 4,200-space shortfall, with annual public reporting on progress.

The announcement frames childcare as both an economic and a social issue. Bligh is quoted in the press release: "When I was raising my two kids, childcare cost me about as much as housing did, and for too many families in Vancouver that's still true today."

## What the plan commits to

Vote Vancouver says it would mandate not-for-profit childcare in new public-land housing, community centres, libraries, and major redevelopments, and direct the City to audit existing City-owned buildings for conversion. The party also commits to fast-tracking permits and reducing fees for licensed childcare operators, with priority for small and home-based providers.

The plan includes expanding before and after school care to 15 elementary schools that Vote Vancouver says currently lack it, with coverage extended to professional development days and summer breaks. Vote Vancouver also says it would work with the province and regional partners to expand the $10-a-day childcare program across Metro Vancouver.

## Funding figures the party is using

Vote Vancouver's press release states that the City's 2027-2030 Capital Plan includes less than $4 million in direct City childcare funding, compared to $119 million in the 2023-2026 Capital Plan, a reduction of more than 95 per cent, by the party's own accounting. These are Vote Vancouver's own figures; voche.me has not verified them against City budget documents.

The press release does not include a cost estimate for the commitments it proposes, and Vote Vancouver has not published a breakdown of how the plan would be paid for.

## About the candidate

Rebecca Bligh is Vote Vancouver's mayoral candidate and a two-term Vancouver City Councillor. You can read more about her at [/candidates/rebecca-bligh](/candidates/rebecca-bligh) and about her party at [/parties/vote-vancouver](/parties/vote-vancouver).

Voting day is Saturday, October 17, 2026. Advance voting is now closed; voters who have not yet cast a ballot can vote at polling stations on election day.

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