Text of the press release:
Parents and children will benefit from increased child care subsidies, more support for pre-school programs and child care staff, and more information for parents, as the province implements a new five-point early childhood development and child care plan.
"By making child care more affordable and increasing access to early childhood development opportunities, we are investing in our future," said Heather Forsyth, Minister of Children's Services. "This five-point plan will have a powerful impact on the quality of programs and services supporting Alberta's youngest children and their families."
By investing funding secured through recent negotiations with the federal government, Alberta will:
1. Increase the maximum child care subsidy and boost the income threshold to allow more families to be eligible, effective November 1. A two-parent family earning $39,600 with an infant and a toddler will now be able to receive the full subsidy. The same family earning up to $78,600 will now be available to receive a partial subsidy.
2. Introduce a new benefit of up to $100 per month to help eligible stay-at-home parents pay fees for licensed nursery school and other approved early childhood development programs, effective January 2006.
3. Increase funding to improve access to specialized child care for children with disabilities.
4. Increase funding for wages and training opportunities for individuals working in accredited day care and approved family day home programs, retroactive to September 1, 2005.
5. Provide parents with more information about parenting and available programs through a new toll-free Parent Information Line, 1-866-714-KIDS, now in operation.
Alberta's five-point plan was developed as a result of the feedback received from Albertans.
Children's Services consulted with Albertans through an online survey, a telephone survey and numerous stakeholder meetings.
During the consultations, Albertans also expressed interest in tax credits for stay-at-home parents. Although Alberta pushed the boundaries of the agreement with Social Development Canada, this particular option was outside the mandate of this federal ministry.
"We've been able to do more for stay-at-home parents with this agreement than any other province," said Forsyth. "I know Albertans would still like to see more done in this area. On behalf of stay-at-home parents, I'm going to strongly advocate for tax changes at the federal level."
Alberta will allocate $37 million in federal funding this year to implement this new five-point strategy, growing to $85 million for next year and over $100 million in following years. Alberta will push the federal government to ensure this funding is sustained in future years so that Albertans continue to benefit from these comprehensive programs.