It’s never a good time to raise fees, and the distress over doing so is certainly magnified against the backdrop of a wobbly state economy. But when a service or product is able to retain its value weighed against the hardship, it’s justifiable. So it is with the A+ afterschool program, which will start charging about 50 percent more per child come January.

On Thursday night, the state Board of Education approved raising the monthly fee by about $25: to $80 per child from $55; to $75 for a second children in the same family; and to $70 for a third or subsequent child in the family.

The fee increase, the first for the program since 1996, is needed to keep A+ solvent after lawmakers cut $2.1 million in general funds this past legislative session. Based on current enrollment, the program costs $18.56 million to run.

While not designed to be an extension of the school day and not required to be licensed, A+ is operated by the state Department of Education, so meets many of the state’s licensing standards. Striving to be more than mere child-sitting, blocks of time are set aside daily for enrichment activities such as physical fitness, arts and crafts, and study hall.

Certainly, A+ is not the only afterschool provider in town. It is, though, one of the best options, with many of the venues conveniently on public school grounds. In fact, when the program launched in 1989, some private afterschool providers complained that A+ was unfair competition. But for many working parents, the A+ program has turned into a much-needed safe and stable environment for their children during afternoon hours.

When the program started two decades ago to address the growing problem of latchkey kids, some 15,500 public school children statewide were enrolled; today, more than 22,500 are enrolled.

A+ started as a joint effort of the BOE, the DOE and former Gov. John Waihee’s Subcabinet on Early Childhood Education and Child Care, chaired by then-Lt. Gov. Ben Cayetano. Cayetano, who had been a latchkey kid growing up in Kalihi without regular adult supervision after school ended, saw the increasing need as more minors were being left home alone while parents or guardians worked due to economic necessity. Indeed, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children not be left home alone before the age of 12, and instead be supervised.

Paying an additional $30 a month for A+ will add up — but even at $85 monthly, it is a good deal, a belt-tightening largely doable by more home lunches and fewer smoothies and snack packs. This is, after all, the cost of raising a child — a need, not a want. Meanwhile, low-income families that get the service free now, thanks to a $6.3 million Department of Human Services annual subsidy, will continue to do so.

This fee increase is justifiable, granted — but going forward, the line needs to be held. Lawmakers and the DOE must budget prudently to keep costs at this affordable level. They should not leave 22,500-plus kids in a lurch — either by the loss of A+ entirely or by pricing the program out of range and risking a spike in the number of latchkey kids. Overall, in affordability and in function, keep A+ living up to its name.