Child, Youth and Family Services
February 15, 2013
Child Care Strategy Supports Children and Families
Throughout
Newfoundland and Labrador
The 10-Year Child Care Strategy, Caring For Our Future: Provincial
Strategy for Quality, Sufficient and Affordable Child Care in Newfoundland
and Labrador was officially released today (Friday, February 15) by the
Honourable Charlene Johnson, Minister of Child, Youth and Family Services.
Along with the strategy, Minister Johnson announced over $329,000 in child
care investments during her visit to the Neighbourhood of Friends Family
Resource Centre in Clarenville.
“Our government is deeply committed to making advancements in child care
as we understand the key role child care plays in the development of
healthy, happy children, as well as the contribution it makes towards
creating a vibrant economy,” said Minister Johnson. “Implementation of the
10-Year Child Care Strategy is well underway and we will continue to
systematically improve child care by introducing new initiatives that
provide quality, sufficient and affordable regulated child care spaces to
families with young children.”
The 10-Year Child Care Strategy, which is in its first year of
implementation, details a fiscally responsible approach to creating
long-term improvement in regulated child care services by focusing on the
three key areas of quality, sufficiency and affordability. A complete
listing of the components and timelines outlined in the strategy are
included in the backgrounder below.
In addition to the release of Caring For Our Future, Minister
Johnson announced developmental and operational funding for a number of
child care centres under the department’s Child Care Capacity Initiative.
This initiative provides start-up and/or operating grants to non-profit
community-based organizations to aid in the creation of more regulated child
care spaces. Since its introduction in 2006, more than 380 spaces have been
created through this initiative which will continue under Caring For Our
Future.
Funding was announced for six child care service providers, including:
- Neighbourhood of Friends Family Resource Centre in Clarenville -
over $11,200 to help explore the development of additional child care
spaces in the Clarenville area;
- Straits Daycare Corporation in Flower’s Cove - over $121,700 to
establish a 19-space child care centre in the Flower’s Cove Recreation
Building;
- Tip-A-Vista Wellness Foundation in Bonavista - over $13,500 to
explore child care opportunities and aim to create a new medium-sized
child care centre;
- Exploits Valley YMCA in Twillingate - $24,700 to expand a child care
site and establish 15 additional child care spaces bringing the total
number of spaces in this centre to 29;
- St. Peter’s Academy in Benoit’s Cove - over $1,300 a month for its
first year in operation once the centre opens to assist with a new
16-space, school age child care program; and,
- Kilbride to Ferryland Family Resource Coalition in Bay Bulls - over
$140,900 to support the continued operation of a 60-space child care
centre.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors for the Neighbourhood of Friends
Family Resource Centre, I am pleased to share in today’s Child Care Capacity
Initiative funding announcement, as well as the launch of the 10-Year Child
Care Strategy,” said Garry Gosse, Vice-Chairperson of the Neighbourhood of
Friends Family Resource Centre. “Clarenville is a thriving community with
young families moving to our area; many of whom are in need of child care.
Our Board is excited to be a part of this initiative and we will continue to
provide quality programs and services to parents and children living in our
community.”
For more information on the 10-Year Child Care Strategy, Caring For
Our Future: Provincial Strategy for Quality, Sufficient and Affordable Child
Care in Newfoundland and Labrador, and the What We Heard consultations
summary report, visit
www.gov.nl.ca/cyfs/publications/index.html.
“As we continue to implement components of Caring For Our Future
over the next 10 years, we anticipate that regulated child care spaces
throughout Newfoundland and Labrador will increase by approximately 70 per
cent,” said Minister Johnson. “This strategy will not only increase the
number of spaces, but will also support labour force participation by
offering improved child care support to the many working parents with young
children across the province. We are looking forward to exploring child care
options with the business community to help further develop the labour
market.”
- 30 -
Media contacts:
Michelle Hunt
Director of Communications
Department of Child, Youth and Family Services
709-729-5148, 725-1593
michellehunt@gov.nl.ca
|
Garry Gosse
Vice Chairperson
Neighbourhood of Friends Family Resource Centre
709-466-1511
neighbourhood@nf.aibn.com
|
BACKGROUNDER
Components and Timelines of the 10-Year Child Care Strategy
The 10-Year Child Care Strategy, Caring For Our Future: Provincial
Strategy for Quality, Sufficient and Affordable Child Care in Newfoundland
and Labrador builds on three key pillars: quality, sufficiency and
affordability. Over the next 10 years, the strategy will build on existing
programs and services and introduce new initiatives as follows.
2012 – 13
- A comprehensive review of the Child Care Services Act and
Regulations (1999) will be conducted to provide a framework for safety
and quality of child care services in Newfoundland and Labrador.
- Post-secondary Early Childhood Education Program Standards will be
revised to enable post-secondary institutions to offer a restructured
diploma program with the ability to achieve Level I certification upon
completion of the first year of the two-year diploma.
- New early childhood education post-secondary programs based on the
revised Early Childhood Education Program Standards, will begin to be
offered by post-secondary educational institutions. Programs will be
offered via full-time training and distance learning.
- The service delivery model for monitoring, licensing and supporting
regulated child care services will be reviewed and processes for
licensees and program operators will be streamlined.
- A community-level needs assessment tool will be developed to support
growth in child care services in targeted areas. Ten targeted areas will
be identified for development.
- The Family Child Care Initiative Pilot Program will be continued and
will be evaluated to determine required modifications. The Early
Learning Child Care Supplement for family child care providers will be
included as part of this review.
- The Inclusion Supports Program will be reviewed to improve the
system of supports for children with diverse needs in programming in
child care centres and family child care homes.
- A promotional campaign will be developed to promote Caring For Our
Future with a particular focus on child care programs and services.
2013 – 14
- Revisions to the Family Child Care Initiative Pilot Program will be
implemented based on recommendations identified in the review.
- A voluntary operating grant program for commercial and non-profit
centres will be developed with clearly defined formulas for the
calculation of operating grants for child care centres, as well as a
process for application, assessment, monitoring and evaluation. It will
require regulated child care centres to set child care rates at the
subsidy rates.
- The development of child care spaces will be encouraged by providing
support to employers, municipalities, community-based organizations and
non-profit groups.
- Potential infrastructure available for the development of spaces
will be identified by engaging in community collaboration and work with
community groups, current child care program operators and licensees,
municipalities, major employers and school boards.
- The Child Care Capacity Initiative for start-up and/or operating
grants for non-profit community-based organizations will be continued
until 2014-15 when the new operating grant program is introduced. It
will then continue to provide start-up grants for non-profit child care
services.
- A centralized child care registry will be developed and maintained
to assist in determining and addressing the ongoing and future need for
child care throughout the province.
- A new or amended Child Care Services Act and Regulations will be
implemented and related standards and policies updated.
- The Early Learning Child Care Supplement will be paid based on
position worked as salary levels will continue to be the responsibility
of employers.
- Entry level certification will be eliminated and replaced with
trainee certification by requiring any staff person working in a
regulated child care centre who does not hold early childhood education
specific qualifications to upgrade to Level I within a specified
timeframe.
- A work place training program will be developed and commenced
including prior learning and assessment and recognition (PLAR) to
support upgrading of qualifications.
- A responsive, effective service delivery model will be implemented
to monitor, license and support regulated child care services throughout
Newfoundland and Labrador based on new legislation.
- The Inclusion Supports Program will be revised based on
recommendations from the review.
- A review of the Child Care Services Subsidy Program will be
initiated to ensure it is streamlined and effective for parents, program
operators and family child care providers.
2014-15
- The Child Care Services Subsidy Program will be revised based on the
review initiated in 2013-14.
- A voluntary operating grant program will be available for commercial
and non-profit child care services.
- Child care rates are set at the provincial subsidy rate for all
child care centres participating in the voluntary operating grant
program.
- Equipment grants will be integrated with the new operating grant
program and be available for participating centres.
- The Child Care Capacity Initiative will continue to provide start-up
grants for non-profit child care services when the new operating grant
program is introduced.
2015-16
- The Early Learning Child Care Supplement will be reviewed for
effectiveness in increasing the number of qualified early childhood
educators and program operators.
2017-18
- A comprehensive provincial needs assessment will be completed to
determine requirements for continued increases in regulated child care
spaces.
- An interim review of Caring For Our Future will be conducted in
consultation with key stakeholders. This review will include an
examination of the initiatives aimed at meeting the goals of quality and
affordability in order to set direction for the remaining years. The
review will also assess continued needs for sufficiency based on data
from the centralized child care registry and provincial needs
assessment.
2021-22
- An evaluation of Caring For Our Future will commence to evaluate the
performance of initiatives aimed at meeting the goals of the 10-year
Child Care Strategy.
Ongoing
- The two-year Early Childhood Education Diploma program will continue
to be available in the Newfoundland and Labrador through distance
education and full-time programming.
- The Early Childhood Education Bursary Program will continue for
graduates of a two-year diploma program in Newfoundland and Labrador who
agree to work in the province in regulated child care for two years
after graduation.
- An Early Childhood Education Trainee Bursary, formerly known as the
Entry Level Supplement, will continue to be offered. This bursary will
provide support for trainees taking courses (part-time/distance) to
upgrade their certification to Level I.
- The Summer Institute Bursary for Early Childhood Education on-campus
field placement will continue for students who are enrolled in the
summer institute as part of the distance education delivery of the Early
Childhood Education program at College of the North Atlantic.
- The licensing and monitoring of regulated child care services will
continue with the required standards set in the Child Care Services Act
and Regulations, as well as related standards and policies.
- Child Care Services Certification will continue to be administered
by the Association of Early Childhood Educators of Newfoundland and
Labrador (AECENL) and funded by the Government of Newfoundland and
Labrador.
- The Early Learning and Child Care Supplement will continue to
provide a benefit to early childhood educators working in regulated
child care services who meet eligibility requirements.
- Equipment grants will continue to be provided until 2014-15 to
regulated child care centres and homes, at which time they will become
part of the operating grant program.
- The Inclusion Supports Program will continue to provide additional
staff or funded spaces to accommodate all children in regular
programming.
- The Child Care Capacity Initiative for start-up and/or operating
grants for non-profit community-based organizations will continue.
- Infant care in high schools, currently in schools (located in
Stephenville, Bay Roberts and St. John’s), will continue to be funded to
support young parents in continuing their education.
- Family child care agencies will continue to be funded annually to
recruit, approve, license, support and monitor family child care homes
in their areas.
- The Family Child Care Initiative Pilot Program, which provides
start-up grants and infant stimulus grants to family child care
providers, will continue.
- The Child Care Services Subsidy Program will continue to assist
families with low incomes with child care rates.
2013 02 15
1:15 p.m.