Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

BC Taxpayers to fund 5,000+ new child-care and after-school program spaces ... as well bursaries for early childhood educators



Investments under the Early Years Strategy will see the BC government -- NO, BC TAXPAYERS -- funding 5,000+ new child-care and after-school program spaces, as well as early childhood educator (ECE) bursaries for 2017-18.

Based on feedback the government has received from the child-care community, the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) will be launching a new two-stage application process to support the creation of up to 4,100 licensed child-care spaces. Details on program information sessions, applications and criteria will be available online beginning on Wednesday (March 15th, 2017)

According to a BC government media release last week, non-profit child-care providers will be able to apply for up to half a million dollars in funding, and private child-care providers will be able to apply for up to a quarter million dollars in funding, to help build new child-care spaces in communities across the province.

The release went on to say that priority for these new spaces will be given to organizations that will:


  • Create spaces for infants and toddlers, the type of spaces for which there is highest demand throughout the province.
  • Create spaces on school grounds, where children can smoothly transition from early years programs, to the classroom, to after-school care.
  • Create spaces that are co-located with other family-support programs in community-based settings, including BC Early Years Centres, recreation centres and family-resource programs.

Funding criteria has also been extended to applications for new spaces that:
  • Create child-care spaces in Indigenous communities.
  • Create spaces in the work place, where employers can support their employees by providing child-care resources on-site.
  • Create child-care spaces in child development centres that support children with special needs.

The process for the one thousand before, and after, school recreation spaces will be opened separately, with details to come shortly.

In the government media release, Minister of Children and Family Development, Stephanie Cadieux, was quoted stating, As we increase the number of child-care spaces in B, we need to ensure there are enough qualified Early Childhood Educators to work in these facilities. That’s why we’re investing in the ECE Bursary to help encourage new ECEs and increase the number of qualified staff who can work in the sector.”

Don't get me wrong, I am not critical of the child-care spaces being created -- get ready though for the avalanches of taxpayer paid for advertising, which will of course be self-congratulating and which will promote Christy Clarks' BC Liberal government, for this largesse.

In Kamloops ... I'm Alan Forseth

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

“4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block being salvaged?” ~~ Ward Stamer, Kamloops-North Thompson MLA

Today, BC NDP forest Minister Ravi Parmar made this pronouncement; ‘Removing red tape has sped up permitting, allowing for more wood to be salvaged, quicker’. 4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block?    ~~ BC Conservative Forests Critic Ward Stamer While acknowledging the NDP government has recognized improvements were needed in permitting and accessing burnt fibre in a timely fashion, the reality is, they are barely making a dent in the problem.  This government's recognition that only seven percent of pulp mill fibre came from burnt timber in 2024-25, quite simply put, is a failure. And the recent announcement, just three weeks ago, that the Crofton Pulp Mill would be permanently closing, is proof of that.     Instead of Premier David Eby’s government addressing core issues being faced by British Columbia’s forest industry, they are doing little more than manipulating the facts, ...

A message from BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer, and the Kamloops – North Thompson Riding Association

2025 was a busy first year. As a Caucus, we worked very hard to defeat Bills 14 and 15, legislation which allows the provincial government to move ahead without environmental assessments on renewable projects, and that also allows cabinet to build infrastructure projects without getting approval from local municipal governments. This is not acceptable to your BC Conservative caucus, and we will continue to press this government for open and transparent projects in the future.  Two things we had success in were having the first Private Members bill passed in over 40 years. The first was Jody Toors Prenatal and Post Natal Care bill, and then there was my private members Bill M217 Mandatory Dashcams in commercial vehicles (passed second reading unanimously and is heading to Committee in February). Regrettably, much of the legislation passed by the government was little more than housekeeping bills, or opportunities to strengthen the ability of Cabinet Ministers to bypass the BC legi...

Wildfire waste plan torched -- Forestry critic Stamer calls BC's wildfire salvage rate 'a failure'

Claims that BC is making progress salvaging wildfire-damaged timber are masking deeper problems in the forest sector, the province’s forestry critic says. Last week, BC’s Ministry of Forests said mills in the province processed more than one million cubic metres of wildfire chips in 2024-25, up from 500,000 cubic metres in 2023 and representing about seven per cent of all processed wood. Kamloops-North Thompson BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer said those claims of progress ignore the reality that only a fraction of burned timber is being used ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Labels

Show more