News & Stories: Policy Monitor

Excerpt: "The Manitoba government is increasing annual operating grants for licensed, home-based child-care providers by $245,000 this fiscal year with additional increases in future years, Families Minister Scott Fielding announced today. “These funds will benefit more than 300 home-based, licensed child-care providers throughout the province with increases based on their licenced number and type of spaces,” said Fielding. “This will help strengthen the stability of home-based operators and better support the creation of new spaces in homes in the future.”"

Excerpt: "Our Government will launch a new Early Learning and Child Care strategy with initiatives to create new child care spaces, reduce wait times, eliminate red tape and foster better outcomes for families with young children. Legislation will reduce red tape for early childhood educators focus on partnerships with other levels of government, traditional and home-based service providers, businesses/employers, schools, rural and northern communities. It will introduce new incentives for private investments in child care spaces."

Excerpt: "The agreement, which allocates close to $47 million over three years and aims to create an estimated 1,400 new and newly subsidized early learning and child care spaces in Manitoba, supports investments in: creating affordable child care spaces through enhanced capital funding and operating subsidies to support lower-income, French language and newcomer families as well as underserved communities; building sector capacity through education, training and skill development; developing a rural and Northern strategy to improve access to high-quality and affordable child care services; developing a new service and funding approach to support inclusive, active and meaningful participation of children with varying abilities and providing grants to community service organizations offering supportive family services to hire early childhood educators; and undertaking community engagement to successfully implement bilateral initiatives and support public reporting."

Excerpt: "Budget 2018 supports more than 700 new and newly funded spaces, including funding for new child care construction in communities and schools across Manitoba. This leverages $47 million over three years in federal child care support under the recently signed Bi-Lateral Agreement on Early Learning and Child Care. Budget 2018 also includes more than $2 million in funding for a refundable tax credit – the Child Care Centre Development Tax Credit – to encourage private businesses to create new child care spaces in the workplace. A strong education system today means a stronger Manitoba tomorrow."

Excerpt: "A strategy document outlines the transformation agenda that affects every area within the department, and which will continue to influence its work in the years to come. Some priority areas include: improving early learning and child-care options for Manitoba families, by supporting the creation of new child-care spaces and more child-care options for families, while also reviewing the current funding model to ensure sustainability."

Excerpt: "Canada and Manitoba agree that the long term vision, principles and objectives for early learning and child care, which are set out in the Framework that is attached as Annex 1, will guide the investment of funds provided under this Agreement."

Excerpt: "The agreement allocates over $15 million in 2020–21 for early learning and child care investments in Manitoba. In particular, the province will continue to invest in creating inclusive child care spaces, maintain its free online Science of Early Development living textbook, expand its core professional development program and mentorship program for at-home providers, and create a one-time, $1.5 million COVID-19 Response Grant for facilities that have re-opened during the pandemic."

Excerpt: "Canada and Manitoba agree that the long term vision, principles and objectives for early learning and child care, which are set out in the Framework that is attached as an annex (Annex 1), will guide the investment of funds provided under this Agreement."

Excerpt: "Your government will develop a modern child care system and funding model that will enable and support the child care sector to grow in line with demand from Manitoba families, provide greater equity in the type of support given to families, and offer choices and flexibility that reflects the needs and challenges today’s parents face."

Excerpt: "The Manitoba government will provide $10 million for a new Pandemic Staffing Support Benefit to help address urgent staffing needs in the disability services, child-care and child welfare sectors, Families Minister Heather Stefanson announced today, while also highlighting a number of other initiatives in place for agencies that provide services to adults with disabilities."

Excerpt: "The regulations set out under Bill 9, the Community Child Care Standards Amendment Act (Enhanced Powers Respecting Governance and Accountability), will streamline the licensing process for child-care centres, strengthen provisions related to health and safety, better support inclusion and accessibility for children, and ensure financial accountability for child-care subsidies."

Excerpt: "The Manitoba government is investing an additional $50 million in school capital funding above the Budget 2020 commitment of $160 million for total funding of $210 million in kindergarten to Grade 12 school capital projects across the province, Education Minister Cliff Cullen and Central Services Minister Reg Helwer announced today."