Excerpts
On April 1 the Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) will launch a two-year pilot project to support the start up and operation of licensed family day homes in public housing units.
The pilot project, led by Housing NWT and the department of Education, Culture and Employment, is focused on non-market housing communities where no licensed early learning and child care programs currently exist. Non-market communities are those that do not have private rental options.
Communities participating in the pilot:
- Fort McPherson
- Colville Lake
- Fort Liard
- Wrigley
- Sambaa K’e
- Nahanni Butte
- Jean Marie River
- Dettah
- Lutselk’e
Access to child care spaces continues to be a challenge in the NWT, as well as across Canada. By amending public housing procedures to allow the operation of licensed family day homes in public housing in select non-market communities, the GNWT is working to increase access to child care for families across the territory.
Changes will be made to lease agreements for public housing units operating as licensed family day homes. Licensed family day homes that participate in the pilot will be able to continue operating once the pilot is complete.
Before starting a licensed family day home, public housing clients are encouraged to review the Public Housing Rent Rate Fact Sheet and reach out to their Local Housing Organization to assess how this may impact their monthly public housing rent calculation.
To learn more about starting and operating a licensed family day home, visit www.ece.gov.nt.ca/start-a-licensed-family-day-home, or contact the Early Childhood Consultant in your region.