Â鶹´«Ã½

Excerpt: "The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, and the Premier of Alberta, Jason Kenney, today announced that both governments have reached an agreement that will support an average of $10 a day care in the province, significantly reducing the price of child care for families. The agreement includes creating 42,500 new regulated early learning and child care spaces by the end of March 2026. With federal funding of almost $3.8 billion over the next five years, Alberta will also see a 50 per cent reduction in average parent fees for children under the age of six in regulated child care by the end of 2022."

Excerpt: "Following through on child care: Budget 2022 provides $666 million in operating expense funding in 2022-23 for a total of over $2.6 billion dollars by 2024-25 in support of the child care agreement with the federal government; Since the program was announced, Alberta parents are already experiencing lower costs, with the price of child care targeted to average $10 per day by 2026; To ensure families can choose the child care that works best for them, 42,500 new licensed child care spaces will be added over the next five years; The Alberta Child and Family Benefit also provides up to $5,120 annually to lower income families."

Excerpt: "In response to the learning loss identified in a pilot during the 2021-22 school year and the Child and Youth Well-being Review Panel recommendations, school authorities will now be required to administer literacy and numeracy screening assessments, selected from an approved list, starting in September 2022. The implementation of language and math assessments for students in grades 1 to 3 was one of the Alberta government’s key platform commitments. Fulfilling this commitment, while also addressing COVID-19-related learning loss, will ensure both parents and teachers understand and assess progress in the critical early years to help struggling learners. Many other provinces already collect assessment information about students at this age."

Excerpt: "As part of Alberta’s approach to supporting inclusive child care, an additional $3.6 million in funding is being provided through a bilateral agreement with the federal government, bringing the investment to $7 million. Funding will go to five regional partner agencies across Alberta. These agencies will work with licensed child care operators so they can better support children with special needs. Continuing on the work they have done over the past few years, $2.7 million is also being invested into GRIT to continue training on their inclusive child care model across the province."

Excerpt: "Alberta agrees to use funds provided by Canada under this Agreement to support the expansion of licensed child care, and prioritize not-for-profit (including publically delivered and family day home child care) early learning and child care programs and services,for children 0 to K, where: licensed programs and services are defined as those that meet standards that are established and/or monitored by Alberta; not-for-profit providers/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."

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: "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: "The Alberta Home Visitation Network Association will use $1.5 million in federal funding for in-person and virtual workshops to provide opportunities to early childhood educators working in licenced child-care centres to enhance their knowledge of the social and emotional needs of children up to 12 years old. The workshops will include an introduction to infant and early childhood mental health that focuses on the importance of understanding behaviours and cultural self-awareness. Training for educators working with children aged 6 to 12 will also include mental health first aid for helping kids in crisis, and youth mental health supports."

Excerpt: "Alberta’s government has expanded the paid hours that are eligible for existing wage top-ups for front-line certified ECEs. As of Oct. 1, all paid hours are now eligible for the existing wage top-ups, including indirect time and employer-paid vacation time. These measures represent an investment of nearly $90 million in federal and provincial funding through to the end of fiscal 2025-26. Provincial funding will support this enhanced wage top-up for certified ECEs working in out-of-school care programs."

Excerpt: "Alberta has already reduced average child care fees for regulated spaces that are part of the Canada-wide early learning and child care system, and is working towards creating 42,500 new child care spaces among regulated not-for-profit, public and family-based child care providers by the end of March 2026. Alberta is also supporting the valuable work of the early childhood educator workforce, who are at the heart of the Canada-wide early learning and child care system, by providing them with higher wages as well as new training and development opportunities."

Excerpt: "Under this legislation, households earning under $180,000 will be provided with a tax-free payment of $600 over six months starting this January for each senior, to parents for each dependent child under 18, and to each vulnerable Albertan collecting AISH, PDD and Income Support."

Excerpt: "All employed ECEs with claimed hours in October and November 2022 who worked an average 30 hours-plus per week and continue to work in December will also be eligible to receive a one-time payment of $900. Those averaging fewer than 30 hours per week will be eligible for a $450 payment. The one-time payment and wage top-up represents an investment of over $174 million in federal and provincial funding through to the end of the fiscal year 2025-26."