Thanks to Kate Santacaterina for preparing this useful information for those interested in working in childcare in Vancouver
Note: Article is written for Vancouver (British Columbia) but advice is applicable to all provinces in Canada
Early Childhood Educator (ECE)/Assistant
To become an early childhood educator, or early childhood educator assistant you need to register with the ministry of children and families all of the information can be found at the following website: http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/childcare/ece/index.htm. They do require applicants to have a BC registered ECE (or equivalent from another Canadian province) to vouch for you having 500 hours ‘work experience’ with preschool aged children, and may ask for an ICES (International Credential Evaluation Service) report in order to convert qualifications from other countries. If you’ve found a good centre who really want to put the time into taking you on full-time they might help pay for some of this – although it’s not common.
Another helpful organization is ECEBC. http://www.ecebc.ca/. They are quite good at answering questions and supporting ECE’s, although they cannot help you with any Ministry related problems. There is a job board on this site for ECE related work.
A quick place to find a list of all of the day cares in your area (for sending resume’s etc) is by contacting the west coast child care resource centre: http://www.wstcoast.org
Nannies
If you are looking for work as a child miner or nanny then the two websites below should help you find a family:
NanniesOnCall.com
CanadianNanny.ca
There are more and more families coming over and if you’re interested in getting out on a “date” with your partner and getting a babysitter, a good tip would be to put a wall post request on the Irish Women’s Network Facebook Page. There are lots of Irish girls on there only too happy to do a bit of babysitting. You can also email me ikwilson@telus.net for a recommendation as well.
Nannies on Call would be happy to help if you are looking for help with your children while you are in Vancouver.
Nannies on Call is a bi-coastal boutique nanny agency. We provide Extraordinary on call babysitting services and Full-Time, Part-Time and Short Term Extraordinary Nanny Placements at the request of prestigious hotels, film industry, and private families in Calgary, Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria and Whistler. From coast to coast, Nannies on Call works with over 400 pre-screened, safety-certified Extraordinary Nannies.
We only recruit the most devoted, experienced childcare professionals to nurture and inspire your little ones.
Ready for a whole new mindset? It’s time to relax while your children delight. This is high end childcare. (We’re so much more than the babysitter next door!)
http://www.nanniesoncall.com
604-734-1776