Richmond’s first City-owned Early Childhood Development Hub, Sprouts, opens in Capstan area

31 May 2022

Child care spaces and supports for families in the Capstan area are increasing with the opening of Sprouts Early Childhood Development (ECD) Hub. This innovative, purpose-built facility provides 92 spaces of licensed child care for infants, toddlers and children up to 12 years old, and has space for community-based family strengthening and support programs. While operations began in January, Sprouts ECD Hub had its official opening ceremony on Monday, May 30, 2022.

“The creation of the City’s first Early Childhood Development Hub is a significant achievement and shows the City’s long-term commitment to building a system of accessible, affordable and quality child care and supports for families in Richmond,” said Mayor Malcolm Brodie. “The City continues to be a leading municipality in creating child care spaces for children up to 12 years of age, and is committed to being an active partner with senior levels of government, parents, the private sector and not-for-profit agencies to develop and maintain a comprehensive child care system in Richmond.”

Sprouts ECD Hub, located at 3368 Carscallen Road, is the 11th City-owned facility providing licensed child care and the first Early Childhood Development Hub of its kind in Richmond. It offers approximately 2,285 m² (24,597 sq. ft.) of indoor and outdoor space, which includes space for community-based child development and family strengthening services, a toy and resource library, a commercial kitchen, and an outdoor amenity space.

Pinnacle Living (Capstan Village) Lands Inc. provided the ECD Hub as a community amenity contribution to the City as part of the Torino - Pinnacle Living at Capstan Village development. The City of Richmond took ownership of the facility in August 2021.

Sprouts ECD Hub is operated by the YMCA of Greater Vancouver. “The YMCA is thrilled to continue its partnership with the City of Richmond and Province of BC to help bring more valuable child care services to the families in this community,” said Cathy Poole, Vice President, Children and Youth Services, YMCA of Greater Vancouver. “As the proud operator of the child care centre at Sprouts Early Childhood Development Hub, our professional and passionate child care educators are excited to support more families, and provide their children with a safe, engaging environment where they can learn, grow, and thrive.”

Child care applications are currently being accepted and enrolment continues for infants and toddlers, three to five year olds and school age children attending Talmey Elementary School. The YMCA of Greater Vancouver also received $98,000 to purchase furniture and equipment for the child care programs through the Province of BC’s New Spaces Fund.

“This is terrific news for Richmond families who will benefit from this new centrally located, innovative Sprouts Early Childhood Development Hub that includes 92 licensed child care spaces,” said Katrina Chen, Minister of State for Child Care. “This partnership demonstrates how we are achieving our ChildCareBC plan together to make child care a core service available to any family that wants it, when they need it, at a price they can afford. Since 2018, we’ve funded 1,408 new licensed childcare spaces at 32 child care centres in Richmond.”

In Richmond, 10 City-owned child care facilities and two ECD Hubs are currently in operation and were secured through rezoning, providing a total of 583 licensed child care spaces. An additional City-owned child care facility is under construction and will be complete later this year.

The 2017–2022 Richmond Child Care Needs Assessment and Strategy recognizes the importance of creating child care spaces for young children that support their early development and growth. Working together with other levels of government, it is part of the City’s vision to continue to develop a comprehensive child care system, providing high-quality licensed care in Richmond’s neighbourhoods and supporting the needs of Richmond families.

For more information on child care in Richmond, please visit www.richmond.ca/services/communitysocialdev/childcare/overview.

For a quick link to finding child care in Richmond, please visit www.richmond.ca/services/communitysocialdev/childcare/FindingChildCareinRichmond.