Policy Monitor

Excerpt: "A one-time $49.2-million investment by the Government of Canada through the 2021-22 to 2024-25 Canada-British Columbia Early Learning and Child Care (ELCC) Agreement will better support workforce development in the child care sector. This includes $25.5 million to help provide ECE bursaries for three academic years, which began in September 2021. Since the launch of ChildCareBC in 2018, the ECE Education Support Fund has provided 12,300 bursaries to support more than 6,500 students pursuing a career in early childhood education."

Excerpt: "Funding of $5.2 million is being provided to the Association of Early Childhood Educators of Alberta (AECEA) and the Alberta Resource Centre for Quality Enhancement (ARCQE) that will give early childhood educators opportunities to enhance their understanding of early childhood brain science and childhood development. These organizations will use the funding to train educators and reimburse them for their training time."

Excerpt: "Newfoundland and Labrador reduced their parent fees from $39 a day in 2019 to $25 a day in 2021, and through the Canada–Newfoundland and Labrador Canada-wide agreement introduced a further reduction to $15 a day in 2022. With this milestone reduction, the province is exceeding the shared goal to reduce 2019 parent fees by an average of 50% by the end of 2022. This is one of the milestones to achieving an average of $10-a-day early learning and child care in the province in 2023, two years ahead of schedule. The province is also supporting critical services, including new infant, toddler and preschool spaces and a pilot of a new full-day, year-round pre-kindergarten program for 4-year-old children in 2022–2023, with the goal that every child in the province has access to pre-kindergarten by 2025–2026, no matter where they live."

Excerpt: "Through the Canada–Prince Edward Island Canada-wide agreement and its investments, the Province has reduced child care fees to $25 a day as of January 1, 2022, representing a meaningful step in reaching an average reduction in fees of 50% by the end of 2022. This is one of the milestones toward achieving an average of $10 a day for early learning and child care within Prince Edward Island’s designated Early Years Centres and Family Home Centres by the end of 2024, two years ahead of schedule. To increase the supply of early learning and child care spaces, the Province will create 452 new licensed child care spaces by the end of fiscal year 2022–23 to ensure more families can access child care. The Province will create these new child care spaces predominantly in publicly managed early years centres, as well as in family home child care."

Excerpt: "After two years of pandemic disruptions, Ontario today launched its Plan to Catch Up for the 2022-23 school year. The plan, which is supported by the government’s historic investments in education, starts with students back in classrooms, on time, with the full school experience including extracurriculars like clubs, band and field trips. “Our government is looking ahead as we remain squarely focused on ensuring students receive the best stable learning experience possible, and that starts with them being in class, on time, with all of the experiences students deserve,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education. “We have a plan for students to catch up, including the largest tutoring program in Ontario’s history, a modernized skills-focused curriculum to prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow, and enhanced mental health supports.”"

Excerpt: "With support through the Canada-Yukon Canada-wide agreement, the Yukon has already surpassed its commitment to create 110 new licensed early learning and child care spaces within five years, to help provide Yukon families with access to early learning and child care. The territory focuses on supporting the creation of spaces in licenced non-profit, for-profit, family day home and First Nations government-operated centres. The governments of Canada and Yukon have created an implementation committee to monitor progress on early learning and child care commitments in consultation with partners and stakeholders. The Government of Canada is represented on the committee by the Federal Secretariat on Early Learning and Child Care."

Excerpt: "The Government of Canada remains committed to supporting families and children as we weather the lasting impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. Today, on its 6th anniversary, the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Karina Gould, highlighted that the maximum annual Canada Child Benefit will increase to help families cope with the rising cost of living. For the 2022–23 benefit year, families most in need can receive up to $6,997 per child under the age of six and $5,903 per child aged six through 17."

Excerpt: "Through the Canada-Nova Scotia Canada-wide agreement, the province has reduced average child care fees for licensed centres that are part of the Canada-Wide and Early Learning Childcare System in Nova Scotia by 25 per cent, retroactive to January 1, 2022, representing a significant step in reaching a 50 per cent reduction in average fees by the end of 2022. The province has also recently announced that 1,500 new licensed early learning and child care spaces will be created across Nova Scotia by December 31, 2022. These spaces are part of the plan for 9,500 new licensed child care spaces expected to be created across Nova Scotia by March 31, 2026."

Excerpt: "To meet the growing demand for qualified early childhood educators in Newfoundland and Labrador, a new Early Childhood Education Needs-Based Incentive Grant will provide eligible students in approved programs with non-repayable grants of up to $10,000. Students enrolled at an approved post-secondary institution in Newfoundland and Labrador, pursuing either a full-time Early Childhood Education Certificate or an Early Childhood Education Diploma, are eligible for this grant. This includes students who are entering the second year of a Diploma Program. Currently there are approved programs at College of the North Atlantic, Keyin College and Academy Canada. Students who apply and qualify for the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Student Financial Assistance Program, and who have assessed unmet financial need of at least $100 under that program, will qualify automatically for the new grant without requiring a separate application. The value of the grant for each individual will range between $100 and $10,000, depending on their assessed need."

Excerpt: "The University of British Columbia is receiving a total of $1,294,439 in federal funding over 24 months, starting in April 2022, for their project titled PROmoting Early Childhood Outside (PRO-ECO). In partnership with 10 early learning and child care sites in Greater Vancouver, the University of British Columbia will research the effectiveness of outdoor play intervention. This project aims to create a locally guided and sustainable method for enhancing outdoor play environments that will be scalable to other early learning and child care centres across Canada."

Excerpt: "The $50 million is being invested to increase the number of non-profit child-care spaces especially in communities with limited or no licensed child care, or in communities where there is a high demand for service. This funding is provided through the Alberta Canada Early Learning and Child Care agreement. The made-in-Alberta agreement invests $3.8 billion of federal funding over five years to strengthen child care for families by improving access to quality child care and lowering fees for parents with children kindergarten-aged and younger who access licensed child care."

Excerpt: "Nunavut agrees to use funds provided by Canada under this Agreement to support the expansion of regulated child care, and prioritize not-for-profit (including publically delivered) early learning and child care programs and services, for children under the age of 6, where: regulated programs and services are defined as those that meet standards that are established and/or monitored by provincial/territorial governments and Indigenous governments and authorities; not-for-profit providers and operations, which includes publically delivered operations, are defined as those that provide child care services to a community for a purpose other than generating a profit, typically improving family and/or child well being and/or development. Providers may generate a profit, but the surplus earnings, or other resources, are directed towards improving child care services rather than distributed for the personal benefit of owners, members, investors or to enhance asset growth. Early learning and child care programs and services are defined as those supporting direct care and early learning for children in settings including, but not limited to, regulated child care centres, regulated family child care homes, early learning centres, preschools and nursery schools."