Excerpt: "Other measures, including the federal government’s new Canada-wide system of affordable early learning and child care, are also helping to make life more affordable for Canadians today (Chart 7). Already, six provinces and territories—Québec, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon, and Nunavut—have delivered $10-a-day or less regulated child care, and the remaining provinces and territories have reduced fees by at least 50 per cent and are on track to reaching fees of an average of $10-a-day by March 2026. These investments have also supported Québec to further improve its existing child care system through the creation of new spaces. Provincial estimates across Canada place annual per-child savings from between $2,000 (P.E.I.) to $14,300 (Nunavut), making life more affordable for families and supporting the achievement of a record 85.7 per cent labour force participation rate for Canadian women in their prime working years."
Excerpt: "High quality early learning and child care environments support improved outcomes for Yukon children, which is key for later success in school and life. The Government of Yukon is working to update the Child Care Act, which came into force on July 1, 1990. Changes to this legislation will consider the key principles of quality, affordability, inclusivity and accessibility. The public engagement process will begin next week. Over the following two months, meetings will be held with partner and stakeholder groups including Yukon First Nations governments, early learning educators, non-profit groups and operators of family day homes and child care centres. The public will be able to complete a short survey online and provide more detailed feedback about the topics most important to them."
Excerpt: "After extensive consultation, the province has developed a workforce strategy that responds to the issues and priorities of the sector. Starting in 2024, initiatives in the strategy include: Increasing the starting wage for RECEs employed by child care operators enrolled in the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system to $23.86/hour in 2024 from the planned $20/hour; Extending the eligibility ceiling for a $1/hour increase so more RECEs can benefit; Supporting entry into the profession and career development; Cutting red tape for employers and providing more flexibility in staffing their programs; Launching a promotional campaign to bolster awareness and value of the child care profession"
Excerpt: "Central Okanagan school district received approximately $29 million through the ChildCareBC New Spaces Fund to build new child care facilities on school grounds. Nearly 600 new child care spaces located at seven schools throughout Kelowna, West Kelowna and Lake Country have been funded, with approximately 250 open and 350 opening this winter and next spring."
Excerpt: "Three sites are under development and will be operational in St. John’s, Bonavista, and Corner Brook. These sites will create approximately 160 child care spaces and will be developed over the next six months. All sites will be operated by YMCA, and will consider hours of operation to ensure the child care services meet the needs of health professionals."
Excerpt: "Today, the Governments of Saskatchewan and Canada announced $23. 5 million for the creation of 2,349 new regulated child care spaces across the province. Métis Nation-Saskatchewan hosted the announcement as its government is being allocated funding for child care spaces through the provincial and federal agreement. “This investment of $23.5 million will provide Saskatchewan families greater access to affordable, high-quality early learning and child care opportunities,” Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill said. “These spaces will support positive child development, early literacy and student achievement.” Funding for the newly announced spaces has been allocated to 51 organizations in 41 communities that will either build new facilities or add new spaces within their existing facilities."
Excerpt: "The Governments of Canada and Nunavut today announced a three-year plan to improve and expand early learning and child care (ELCC) services in the territory. This is part of the Canada-Nunavut ELCC Agreement for 2021-2026. This plan, rooted in Nunavut’s strong partnerships with Inuit organizations, sets a road map for strengthening and expanding Nunavut’s child care sector, improving access to high-quality, affordable, flexible, and inclusive child care for the territory’s families."
Excerpt: "Making schools in Ontario modern, safe and accessible is key to helping students learn and develop. To support student success, the government is investing $22 billion over the next 10 years, including close to $15 billion in capital grants, to build new schools, add child care spaces and modernize school infrastructure. This includes $1.4 billion for the current school year to support the repair and renewal needs of schools. For the 2023–24 school year, 21 new schools and additions have opened, creating over 7,000 new student spaces, including six French‐language school projects."
Excerpt: "The purpose of the Strategic Action Plan is to provide guidance and direction on inclusion and equity to all early learning and child care stakeholders in Nunavut for three years from 2023-2026. Its scope includes enhancing inclusion and equity for children with disabilities, children needing enhanced or individual supports, Indigenous – in particular Inuit – children, Black and other racialized children, children in foster care, and official language minority children. This Strategic Action Plan also aims to ensure that vulnerable children and children from diverse backgrounds have access to licensed child care spaces. To achieve this, the Government of Nunavut is committed to work together with all partners and stakeholders, while also taking a leadership role in its sphere of responsibility."
Excerpt: "Early childhood educators (ECEs) will receive another hourly raise, starting on Jan. 1, 2024, to support the essential work they do to educate and care for young children. New annual grants recognizing ECEs with specialized training will be available in the new year. Eligible ECEs working at participating licensed child care facilities will receive a $2-per-hour raise in January 2024, based on hours worked in December 2023, on top of the existing $4-per-hour raise. This government-funded raise is the most recent in a series of increases to the ECE Wage Enhancement, bringing the total raise to $6 per hour and increasing the median wage for ECEs up to approximately $28 per hour."
Excerpt: "This transition, supported by the CSFY school community and the society previously managing the program, was implemented to help ensure Garderie's sustainable future. This change is the result of collaboration between the Government of Yukon and CSFY to establish a process for CSFY to manage French child care centres in the Yukon. To support this shift from a society-run initiative to a school board program, the Government of Yukon's Early Learning and Child Care Branch collaborated with CSFY and the Garderie to create a new policy framework and guidelines. This represents a first for any school board in the territory, involving the development of innovative policies within the scope of the Education Act and the Child Care Act."
Excerpt: "Your government has amended the Early Childhood Services Act and implemented the Federal-Provincial Early Learning and Childcare Action Plan to create 550 new designated childcare spaces this year and reduced out-of-pocket fees for families on average by 50 per cent. The funding agreement aims to provide New Brunswick families with an average fee of $10 per day childcare by 2025-26. Your government has also increased early childhood educator wages by 24 per cent and increased retention by 46 per cent."
