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Policy Monitor

The Policy Monitor tracks Federal, Provincial and Territorial early childhood policy initiatives, developments and announcements.

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Manitoba
Excerpt: "The 24 child-care facilities will each receive grants between $5,000 and $25,000, depending on the number of infant and preschool spaces offered. These facilities applied for grants during the 2020-21 Indigenous Programming Grant intake. “This grant will be used to enhance Indigenous-focused curriculum and programming in our centres,” said Fernanda Hodgsons, executive director, Day Nursery Centre. “It provides us with a step in the right direction toward reconciliation and a greater understanding of our Indigenous families and community.”"

British Columbia
Excerpt: "The Province is directly funding licensed child care centres so families will not need to apply for these savings. This funding will lower fees for children, kindergarten-aged and younger. These additional savings, which build on earlier fee cuts introduced as part of the Province’s $2.7-billion investment in ChildCareBC since 2018, are being funded through the five-year, $3.2-billion Canada-British Columbia Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement."

British Columbia
Excerpt: "The Province is making education accessible by working with Capilano University (CapU) on a new centre for childhood studies that will more than double the available child care spaces on campus. Slated to open late 2024, the centre will add 74 affordable new child care spaces for a total of 143 on-campus spaces for infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers. Students, employees and community members are all eligible to apply for space for their children at the new centre."

Saskatchewan
Excerpt: "The Governments of Saskatchewan and Canada are investing $5.4 million to provide up to $2 an hour increase for Early Childhood Educators (ECEs). This is in recognition of the important services they provide in supporting families who require child care. The investment will assist child care centres in providing improved wages in the recruitment and retention of ECEs. This Wage Enhancement Grant will be funded through the Canada-Saskatchewan Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, which also supports future ECEs with free post-secondary training, professional development opportunities and many other programs."

Yukon
Excerpt: "The Ready-to-Learn Schools program was first launched as a pilot project at Takhini Elementary School in 2019 and was adopted by Selkirk Elementary School in 2021. This school year the program will be implemented at St. Elias Community School in Haines Junction, Nelnah Bessie John School in Beaver Creek and Grey Mountain Primary School and Jack Hulland Elementary School in Whitehorse. Responsive instructional approaches will eventually be implemented in all Yukon schools."

British Columbia
Excerpt: "The Ministry of Education and Child Care is investing $8.2 billion to support students, invest in schools and support the transition and delivery of child care. Of this total, there is $7.4 billion for kindergarten to Grade 12 education this year, which is $1.8 billion more than in 2016-17. This is a total increase of 32%."

Ontario
Excerpt: "This addendum to the Ontario Child Care and EarlyON Child and Family Centres Service Management and Funding Guideline (2022) (“CWELCC Guidelines”) will provide CMSMs/DSSABs with information on recent changes arising from the new investments through the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) Agreement."

Manitoba
Excerpt: "As part of the new Family Affordability Package, Manitoba families with children and a household income of less than $175,000 in 2021 will receive a Family Affordability benefit cheque of $250 for the first child and $200 for each additional child. An estimated 145,000 families with approximately 282,000 children will benefit with an average cheque of approximately $440 per family, totalling $63 million in benefits."

Alberta
Excerpt: "The Alberta Home Visitation Network Association will use $1.5 million in federal funding for in-person and virtual workshops to provide opportunities to early childhood educators working in licenced child-care centres to enhance their knowledge of the social and emotional needs of children up to 12 years old. The workshops will include an introduction to infant and early childhood mental health that focuses on the importance of understanding behaviours and cultural self-awareness. Training for educators working with children aged 6 to 12 will also include mental health first aid for helping kids in crisis, and youth mental health supports."

Saskatchewan
Excerpt: "Saskatchewan is committing nearly $9 million for training and professional development grants for the early learning and child care sector. This is part of Saskatchewan’s commitment to improve quality in the early years and child care sector, and is just one of many programs delivered through the Canada-Saskatchewan Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement. The province has partnered with Collège Mathieu, Saskatchewan Indian Institute of Technologies (SIIT) and Saskatchewan Polytechnic (Sask Polytech) to make Early Childhood Education (ECE) training opportunities available at no charge. The three post-secondary institutions have programming available beginning in 2022-23."

Saskatchewan
Excerpt: "Through the Canada-Saskatchewan Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, Saskatchewan has already achieved a 50% reduction in average parent fees for regulated child care spaces for children under 6 years of age, retroactive to July 1, 2021. Starting September 1, 2022, parent fees for regulated child care will be further reduced, to an average of 70% compared to March 2021 levels. These fee reductions means families in Saskatchewan are already saving up to an estimated average of $3,910 annually per child, and could save an average of approximately $5,220 a year per child once fees reach an average of $10-a-day. These are significant milestones, and the province is on track to reach an average of $10-a-day early learning and child care fees by March 2026."

Saskatchewan
Excerpt: "The governments of Saskatchewan and Canada have taken another important step to improve affordability and further reduce regulated child care fees for families with children under six. Starting September 1, 2022, parent fees for regulated child care will be reduced by an average of 70 per cent compared to March 2021 levels. This fee reduction, the second announced this year, is part of close to $1.1 billion being invested to transform child care in Saskatchewan through the 2021-22 to 2025-26 Canada-Saskatchewan Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement by making regulated child care more affordable for Saskatchewan families. Parent fee reductions represent spending of $13.4 million over the last fiscal year and a total of $74 million for 2022-23."