The P.E.I. government launched a new tool Friday to help parents of young children find a daycare spot.

The provincial child care registry will allow parents to search online by community and by the type of facility they want.

Parents can search more than 100 licensed day cares across the Island.

If they find one they like, they can put their name on a list and will be able to register their child at as many daycares as they want.

The centre will call when there's a space available to see if a parent wants it, and as soon as parent accepts the spot, their name is automatically taken off the waiting lists at all the other centres.

"In the past when parents asked about our spots and where they are on our waiting list, we would almost have to answer as undetermined or 'we're not sure - there could be eight people ahead of you that aren't looking for spots anymore'. But now with this new waiting list registry we'll have a more accurate view of what our waiting list looks like," said Rosita Harris, the director of the Holland College Child Development Centre.

Day cares say the online registry doesn't replace parents visiting a centre to see it for themselves and ask staff questions.

But it should eliminate a lot of phone calls to find out basic information about a day care and its waiting lists.