Child Care Expansion and Replacement Loan
The purpose of the Child Care Centre Expansion and Replacement Loan is to provide financial assistance to both new and existing facilities enabling them to create additional child care spaces. The 2008 release of this program has been enhanced to include the replacement of existing facilities that may not be able to continue to offer child care services from their current facility.
The Expansion and Replacement Loan is a key part of the Early Learning and Child Care Initiative and is available to all licensed Family Home Agencies, full-day and part-day Child Care Centres.
The Child Care Centre Expansion and Replacement Loan will consist of repayable and forgivable portions for non-profit and commercial facilities.
Eligibility
If the application is from a licensed full or part-day centre or family home day care agency, the applicant must:
- Currently own the location of the proposed expansion/replacement, or
- In the case of a proposed expansion/replacement in leased premises, provide written documentation on the landlord’s letterhead granting permission for the proposed expansion/replacement. Additionally, the borrower must provide a copy of their lease showing a term of not less than five years if a formal lease agreement exists. In certain instances the Department of Community Services reserves the right to request security up to the amount of the loan. In the case of leased premises this will require consent of the landlord.
If the application is from a new full or part-day (start-up) centre, the applicant must:
- Have submitted a Notice of Intent to Apply for a License to Operate a Child Care Centre (See Child Care Centre License).
- In the case of new construction the centre must plan to utilize the funding to build/replace a child care centre of which they will be the owner/operator.
If the application is from a Family Home Day Care Agency, the applicant must:
- Be in compliance with the Family Home Day Care program and legislation.
Next Steps
The applicant must provide the documentation outlined in the Terms and Conditions (PDF) document, along with the appplication (PDF) for the Expansion and Replacement Loan.
Please provide feedback and/or comments to ELCC@gov.ns.ca.
Related information
previous page in this section: Child Care Stabilization Grant Program
next page in this section: Early Childhood Education Assistance Program