MCCA Provides Pre-Budget Submission

On Wednesday, October 11, 2017,  Pat Wege made a presentation to the pre-budget stakeholder roundtable and public community meeting held at the Manitoba Legislature.    Panel members included the Hon. Cameron Friesen, Minister of Finance, Andrew Smith, MLA for Southdale, and Colleen Mayer, MLA for St. Vital.

Key points raised on early learning and child care were:

1. Research tells us high quality, licensed child care has a positive impact on how children learn, supports families, benefits communities, reduces poverty, is key to women’s equality, helps establish newcomers,  and contributes to a strong economy.

2. Manitoba needs a comprehensive policy framework to strengthen existing child care services and improve the                      access and                  availability of affordable licensed child care

Some of our recommendations for investment of federal funds include:

•  improve access by increasing the number of not for profit licensed spaces
• ensure parent fees remain affordable by indexing subsidy levels
• support quality and financial viability of existing facilities by providing stable funding that reflects inflationary increases to operations including the need for fair remuneration for educators based on education and training
• ensure licensed child care facilities have the resources they need to provide full accessibility for children with additional support needs

Read the full submission:   Pre-Budget Submission

 

 

Pre-budget consultations give Manitoba families the opportunity to share their views on key issues for Manitoba’s future.  MCCA thinks that access to high quality, accessible, and affordable early learning and child care should be  a provincial priority and encourages families to speak up for more and better services.   Most modern families rely on child care to work to attend school, but the  supply of spaces is far short of the demand.  As of  August 31, 2017, there are 16,702 children on the online child care waiting list, with a wait time of 14-15 months.  (MCCA/Probe Research survey 2016)

According to the 2016 Canadian census, there are 164,440 children in Manitoba ages 0-9.   There are around 35,469 licensed child care space, enough for 18.5% of Manitoba children age 12 and under.

To participate, you can complete an online survey, or attend one of the consultation meetings in Brandon, Winnipeg, The Pas, Dauphin, Winkler, and in the Dawson Trail and Interlake regions. Telephone town halls will be held in Ocotber.

For more information on the survey or dates of the town hall, go to  Manitobans Making Choices.

Categories: News

Posted by Jodie Kehl at 3:02 pm