September 15, 2015
Manitoba Builds on Commitment to Families With Plans for New Child-care Spaces
The Manitoba government will build a new child-care facility at the King Edward Community School, resulting in 40 new high-quality, licensed spaces for families living and working in northwest Winnipeg, Family Services Minister Kerri Irvin-Ross and Education and Advanced Learning Minister James Allum announced today.
“We continue to follow through on our commitment to create a universally accessible child-care system for Manitoba families,” said Minister Irvin-Ross. “This new child-care centre will be a special place in the community for years to come, where some of our smallest citizens play, learn and laugh together.”
The new centre will be located on the school grounds and operated by KEEP (King Edward Extension Program) Child Care Inc. Once complete, the 3,300-sq-ft. building will include 32 preschool and eight infant spaces. Another 15 spaces for older children will continue to be offered at the school.
“Early childhood education helps set children on the right path, with the love of learning,” said Minister Allum. “We believe that schools are the ideal setting for new child-care facilities, resulting in more convenience for parents and familiar surroundings for children as they grow up.”
The design of the facility has been approved and Winnipeg School Division is now moving forward with a request for proposals. Construction is expected to begin in 2016, Minister Allum said.
In 2015-16, Manitoba will invest $162.9 million in early learning and child care, which will support year two of Family Choices: Manitoba’s Plan to Expand Early Learning and Child Care. The goal of this multi-year plan is to create a universally accessible system and fund 5,000 spaces, Minister Irvin-Ross said.
Over the course of Family Choices, investments will be made to support 5,000 new and newly funded spaces. In 2015-16, Manitoba committed funding for 900 licensed spaces.
Earlier this year, the Manitoba government established a commission on early learning and child care to ensure the province’s system reflects the future needs of families and to guide future plans for licensed child care. Minister Irvin-Ross noted the commission’s work began in March and a final report is expected in early 2016.
Since 1999, the Manitoba government has:
- more than tripled annual funding for child care to more than $162 million;
- established a capital building fund to build new or expand existing licensed centres;
- funded more than 14,300 child-care spaces;
- increased wages by more than 60 per cent and introduced a provincewide pension plan for child-care workers;
- introduced age-appropriate curricula and enhanced quality programming; and
- maintained Manitoba’s child care as the most affordable in Canada outside of Quebec.
For more information about early learning and child care, visit www.gov.mb.ca/childcare.
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