A Yukon government grant will make day care free for the next three months, according to a Whitehorse day care operator who says his business is in dire need of the funding.

“Daycares, at this point, would not survive without the grant because we have around 80 to 90 per cent reduced income from parents’ tuition fees,” said Nick Kim, owner and operator of Happy Hearts day care and preschool.

The Direct Operating Grant was communicated to some day care operators through a conference call on March 25, Kim told the Star this morning.

The Yukon government announced in a press release this afternoon that the grant will cover 100 per cent of eligible billing costs and staff wages for March, April, May and June, making day care free for parents and caretakers.

If a child care centre is closed, the grant would suspend until it reopens.

Child care operators may be eligible for additional financial support for supplies or services required to operate during COVID-19.

Parents and guardians are urged to keep their children home from daycare if they’re able, to make spaces available for the children of essential service workers.

Families who have pulled their children from day care will see their spots reserved until the end of the pandemic, Kim said.

Kim is the owner of three childcare locations in downtown Whitehorse and Riverdale. He said child attendance has steadily declined in the last month, with the majority of clients leaving in mid-March.

Two of his day cares have a capacity of approximately 50 children, but only five to 10 are currently attending.

At the third day care, there are only two children attending of the 20 previously enrolled.

Kim said day care is an important service for Yukoners and he has worked to ensure his locations are a safe environment for children during the pandemic.

“We have to keep the day cares open, because the social impact of the day cares closing is far different from closing other small businesses,” Kim said.

“We are the support service for keeping those essential workers on the floor.”

He noted that day care services are important not only for essential workers, but also for parents who face last-minute situations necessitating emergency care for their children.

All Yukon day care centres were provided with a six-page enhanced measures guide with instructions for maintaining a safe care centre.

The guidelines include occupancy requirements and recommendations that children be split into groups of two to five children, use separate toys and be taught safe spacing.

It notes that children, staff and parents are not allowed to enter facilities while sick.

Parents are instructed to take their children’s temperature daily before bringing their child to a day care, and ensure their temperature is within the normal range.

The government guidelines include a daily screening questionnaire for children. It asks parents to check for symptoms of sickness or travel history in the household before bringing the child to day care.

Kim said that Happy Hearts has had safety measures in place since December 2019, including a policy of 14 days’ self-isolation after travel.

He has also been in contact with Yukon Communicable Disease Centre.

“We have been taking our measures to even more than what the government is telling us,” Kim said.

Kim said he laid off Happy Hearts employees aged older than 50, who are at an increased risk of the virus.

Children at his day care are split into small groups, with one staff member assigned to sanitization and disinfection of spaces and toys throughout the day.

Last month, Dr. Brendan Hanley, the chief medical officer, said that day cares would remain open because they are different environments from schools.

Kim explained that day cares, which generally host 20-50 children, are more isolated environments than schools, which host hundreds of students.

This is particularly true now that attendance is down, children are split into smaller groups and the majority are staying home with parents.

“Unlike the schoolchildren, the day care children do not go out and make social contact with others, or go out in the street; the risk is contained to the risk of parents getting COVID-19,” Kim said.

He noted that at one of his day cares, there are 10 children occupying 5,000 square feet.

“That is even lower population density than their home, or any public place, or grocery store, at the moment,” he said.

“For me as long as the parents are educated and aware of COVID-19, I think the possibility of the infection (spreading in daycares) remains very low.”

Parents of Happy Hearts received communication of the soon-to-be-free service last week, but some parents and day care operators have complained they are still in the dark about this government funding. (see story at left).

The Department of Health and Social Services failed to respond to the Star’s inquiries before press time this afternoon.