EXCERPTS
The Métis community in Greater Victoria has now got a licensed child-care centre.
The recently opened Island Métis Child Care Centre at 1581 Church Ave. in Saanich will provide culturally safe and relevant child care for Métis and urban Indigenous peoples.
It was set up by the Métis Nation British Columbia and the Island Métis Family and Community Services Society, along with the Ministry of Education.
Funding was provided by Employment and Social Development Canada. The Rapid Renovation funding program was used to renovate a building for the new centre.
“Providing access to quality, culturally relevant child care is vitally important to the growth of our nation and a key strategic goal of our cabinet,” said Debra Fisher, the nation’s minister of education. “This project is a wonderful step in the right direction for Métis families in the Greater Victoria region.”
The nation signed a Métis Nation Early Learning and Child Care Accord with Canada in 2019, which supports a Métis-centred community early learning and child care model.
“I am so grateful that our children will have a child-care centre where they can be immersed in the culture and language so they can develop a strong sense of belonging and identity within the Métis community,” said Melanie Hudson, executive director of Island Métis Family and Community Services Society.