---
title: CASE STUDY | District of Tofino Provides Innovative Solution to Local Child Care Shortage
description: This case study explains how the District of Tofino in BC resolved its 2022 child care shortage crisis as a small, rural community.
image: https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hubfs/thomas-lardeau-tofino-kid-surfing.jpg
---

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![CASE STUDY | District of Tofino Provides Innovative Solution to Local Child Care Shortage](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hs-fs/hubfs/thomas-lardeau-tofino-kid-surfing.jpg?width=2432&name=thomas-lardeau-tofino-kid-surfing.jpg "CASE STUDY | District of Tofino Provides Innovative Solution to Local Child Care Shortage")

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# CASE STUDY | District of Tofino Provides Innovative Solution to Local Child Care Shortage

[Community Engagement](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/community-engagement), [Case Studies](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/case-studies), [Poverty Reduction](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/poverty-reduction), [British Columbia](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/british-columbia), [Jill Zacharias](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/jill-zacharias), [CRP Publications](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/crp-publications), [Homepage Resources](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/homepage-resources), [Communities Ending Poverty](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/topic/communities-ending-poverty)

Faced with a critical shortage of child care, the [District of Tofino](https://tofino.ca/), British Columbia, broke new ground by offering direct incentives for early childhood educators (ECEs) and ECE assistants.

The result is a gradual reopening of local child care centres that had closed or reduced hours due to lack of staff and an ongoing program to build ECE capacity into the future.

This case study by Jill Zacharias includes Tofino’s response to a child care needs assessment, details on local government support and action, and a description of the District’s strategy to attract and retain ECEs.

### Deepen Your Learning:

- Read about [the Cascading Effects of Childcare](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/the-cascading-effects-of-childcare?hsLang=en-us)

- See our case study about [Revelstoke's Long-Term Strategy Offsets Child Care Shortages](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/revelstokes-long-term-strategy-offsets-child-care-shortages?hsLang=en-us)

- Learn more about [Quebec’s Universal Access to Low-Fee Child Care: Les Centres de la Petite Enfance](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/latest/quebecs-universal-access-to-low-fee-child-care-les-centres-de-la-petite-enfance?hsLang=en-us)

- [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share)

![Jill Zacharias](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/hubfs/Administration/Team%20Headshots/Jill%20Zacharias.jpeg)

### By [Jill Zacharias](https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/author/jill-zacharias)

Jill has recently joined the Vibrant Communities team as the BC Manager of Growth and Impact, Cities Reducing Poverty. Jill brings extensive experience in municipal government, social planning and poverty reduction, and has worked closely with Tamarack as a CRP member and as chair of the BC Community of Practice on Poverty Reduction.

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