Campbell Cottage Child care Centre director Erin Cooper said families could expect to find the large play areas and improved nursery more comfortable for children, particularly infants.

"We want to move away from the very plastic and artificial centres to a place that feels more homelike," Ms Cooper said. "We've had a few comments walking into the nursery, 'it feels just like my living room at home' and I think that's certainly the direction the industry's going at the moment."

The child care centre now has room for an extra nine children bringing its capacity to 66.

The centre's expansion is an opportunity to meet the growing demand for local child care places, Ms Cooper said.

Campbell Cottage families were asked to share other daycare centres while builders took more than a year to complete the work.

Ruth Pitt, president of centre operator YWCA Canberra, said moving in and out of the building was no easy feat.

"I know a lot of people who have moved house before couldn't imagine moving house for 57 children and do it twice within a year," Ms Pitt said. "The staff have done an amazing job."

The centre will now meet new national quality standards which aim to improve care and training quality. The Federal Government introduced the standards last year.

Education and training minister Joy Burch said the Campbell Cottage upgrade was part of a broader plan to fix up ACT child care facilities.

"A number of existing services are many years old and need upgrading, they need expansions and they need refurbishment," Ms Joyce said.

"Over the last three budgets there's probably over $20 million for investment going in, to increase the availability of child care places in Canberra."