
August 9, 2024
Excerpt: "Over the course of the three-year plan, Newfoundland and Labrador鈥檚 ELCC Action Plan 2023鈥2024 to 2025鈥2026 outlines spending of more than $280 million in five areas: Affordability: More than $136 million towards enhancing affordability of regulated child care services for children aged 0鈥5. These funds help maintain Newfoundland and Labrador鈥檚 $10-a-day fee for regulated child care through the Canada-wide ELCC Agreement. Access: Over $43 million towards continuing the creation of 5,895 new regulated child care spaces by March 2026. This will be done through supporting expansion of the Pre-Kindergarten Program and through working with municipalities, not-for-profit and public child care providers to create new regulated child care spaces. Quality: More than $92 million towards ongoing support for the Early Childhood Educator wage grid implemented in April 2023, introducing a medical benefits program for Early Childhood Educators working in regulated child care services that participate in the Operating Grant Program, offering training and bursaries to support educators, and continuing the Quality Enhancement Program. Inclusion: More than $3 million to continue supporting the Child Care Capacity Initiative which provides funding to expand child care services for underserviced communities, including rural communities, linguistic minority communities, and Indigenous communities. Administration: Approximately $8 million to support the implementation and administration of the Canada鈥揘ewfoundland and Labrador Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement, including building targeted capacity and additional resources to support the implementation of initiatives, and enhanced data collection and reporting."