The YMCA Child Care Centre gets to enjoy its new location at St. Anthony's Catholic School as of November 1, 2023. (photo provided by YMCA Child Care - Kincardine)
The YMCA of Owen Sound Grey Bruce is happy to announce that their child care centre at St. Anthony’s Catholic School is now open.
The YMCA’s Director of Child Care, Cyndy Jefferson, says that after five years of waiting through COVID and building renovations, it’s a welcome change of venue for the child care centre.
“It is absolutely amazing,” she says. “Our children, our families, our educators are really excited about this new move to a brand new space that is truly built for child care.”
St. Anthony’s was able to open a newly renovated school in September, and now that the child care centre is complete, preschool-aged children are now able to enjoy their own new facility on the school grounds.
“We’ve got a great indoor space with lots of natural lighting. We have huge windows in our classrooms that look out onto our wonderful playground that we have outside. It’s just nice to be part of a whole school community as well,” says Jefferson.
The YMCA will have age-appropriate programming for all of the children who attend St. Anthony’s as well.
Aside from the child care centre, they also have a play-based learning curriculum that supports the learning and development of children from all ages and stages of growth.
For school-aged children, they also have a curriculum that supports a place to connect.
The YMCA is licensed for 78 children, which includes 30 toddlers and 48 pre-schoolers.
They also have the Before And After School program, which operates out of St. Anthony’s and is licensed for 26 junior and senior Kindergarten students, as well as up to 60 children from Grades 1 through 6.
The YMCA Child Care Centre is moving from their previous home on Queen Street, where they had operated for 20 years.
Wednesday is the official opening day for the new child care centre, and there is a plan in place for a Grand Opening celebration in the new year.