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News & Stories: Policy Monitor

December 15, 2017

Excerpt: "The agreement allocates just over $22 million, over three years, to Newfoundland and Labrador for early learning and child care investments. The funding will support the existing 10-year child care strategy Caring for Our Future: Provincial Strategy for Quality, Sufficient and Affordable Child Care in Newfoundland and Labrador 2012-2022 which will develop and implement innovative approaches to address early learning and child care challenges through subsidies, grants, bursaries and professional learning opportunities."
April 8, 2019

Excerpt: "The Honourable Al Hawkins, Minister of Education and Early Childhood Development, announced today that $6.5 million in Capital Renovation Grants has been allocated to 59 child care service providers. The grants are being provided through the $22 million three-year bi-lateral agreement with the Federal Government for early learning and child care investments."
July 31, 2020

Excerpt: "The capacity initiative provides developmental, capital and start-up funding to not-for-profit community groups who want to develop child care centres. Enhancements (including an innovative expansion to include family child care) will increase the number of regulated child care services particularly in underserviced areas, with a focus on rural communities, linguistic minority communities, and Indigenous communities. These enhancements will increase the grant available for non-profit organizations, which is anticipated to develop up to five new or expanded licensed child care centres with approximately 180 new spaces over three years."
September 17, 2020

Excerpt: "Today, the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, announced $10 million in federal support for Newfoundland and Labrador’s child care sector to help ensure that safe and sufficient child care spaces are available to support parents’ gradual return to work."
September 30, 2020

Excerpt: "Affordable and accessible child care, coupled with investments in education and skills development, is paramount in a modern economy. These investments, and collaboration with our education partners, will contribute to a stronger economy today and into the future. To help ease the financial pressures on families, especially on women, in Budget 2020 we are committed to $25 a day child care in 2021."
October 14, 2020

Excerpt: "The program will be delivered through the already established Operating Grant Program. Regulated child care services that participate in the program are provided a grant to offset the reduced fees they charge families. That grant amount will be increased to allow them to reduce their fees further and charge just $25 a day."
January 7, 2021

Excerpt: "Today the Honourable Tom Osborne, Minister of Education, announced the allocation of the $10.2 million from the COVID-19 Safe Restart Agreement funding for child care operations in Newfoundland and Labrador. This Federal Government investment will support child care operators and Early Childhood Educators (ECEs) for their important roles in providing child care amidst the COVID-19 pandemic."
July 28, 2021

Excerpt: "The plan features targets to achieve several shared priorities between the Federal and Provincial Governments."
December 15, 2021

Excerpt: "With the upcoming reduction to $15 per day for families using regulated child care services under the Operating Grant Program (OGP), today the Honourable Tom Osborne, Minister of Education, announced corresponding changes to the Child Care Subsidy net income threshold for all child care services. As well, Minister Osborne announced the elimination of parental contributions under that program to support lower-income families in accessing regulated child care at a reduced or no cost. This change will also result in the elimination of parental contribution for all eligible Child Care Subsidy clients and free child care for eligible families using a child care service participating in the Operating Grant Program."
March 9, 2022

Excerpt: "A Pre-Kindergarten pilot program will launch by September of this year that will create additional regulated child care spaces. At full implementation, the province-wide Pre-Kindergarten program will create approximately 3,100 regulated spaces for four-year olds by 2025-26, which will open up existing child care spaces for younger children."
April 30, 2022

Excerpt: "Infant, toddler and preschool spaces are limited across the province increasing demand for spaces. As of 2021, there are 5,498 regulated infant, toddler and preschool spaces. By working with municipalities, and not-for-profit organizations under the Child Care Capacity Program through work with the soon to be created Early Learning and Child Care Evaluation and Research Team, communities most in need of infant, toddler and preschool spaces will be identified."
April 30, 2022

Excerpt: "Readily accessible and affordable early learning and child care gives children a strong foundation, allows parents to participate in the workforce and leads to stronger families. Building on hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to date, Budget 2022 includes $94.7 million through the Provincial-Federal Action Plan, including: Almost $46 million to continue the reduction in daily fees to $10 per day by 2023; $16 million for the creation of new regulated early learning spaces, including the launch of a pre-kindergarten pilot program. Supports plans to create nearly 6,000 new regulated early learning spaces by 2026; $3 million to increase seats in post-secondary Early Childhood Education programs; $400,000 to support a wage grid analysis and implementation that will ensure early childhood educators are paid a wage that reflects their important work."