Submission to Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services First Call’s September 2021 budget submission, highlighted five priority areas for children, youth, and their families, with recommendations for next year’s budget: Poverty reduction measures and income security for families Investments in early childhood development and prevention services Support youth MORE
The BC Government’s 2022 budget consultations are underway and First Call has developed an overview of our key priorities for your reference. First Call’s submission reminds government that we have a long way to go in ending child poverty with 1 in 5 BC children still growing up poor and MORE
The BC Government’s March 20th news release announced supports for the child care sector during the COVID-19 crisis, followed by an FAQ document on March 25th. In response, the Coalition of Child Care Advocates BC (CCCABC) and the Early Childhood Educators of BC (ECEBC) have continued to raise important questions and concerns about MORE
Here is a story created by Child & Youth Mental Health Services in Vancouver to help young children understand COVID-19, what is happening in the world and how to stay safe. Social story to help children understand COVID-19.
This week’s CTV article highlights that struggles to maintain staff ratios and locate and buy necessary cleaning supplies are just two of the concerns being raised by childcare workers, operators and advocates regarding the B.C. government’s decision not to close daycares during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Early Childhood Educators of BC (ECEBC) MORE
Economic assessments estimate that the $10aDay Child Care Plan will pay for itself in just a few years by boosting the economy and improving parent work force participation. Not only is it good for parents, it’s good for the economy. The Provincial Government is currently running pilot programs across the province for MORE
Early Development Instrument (EDI) data are a long-term provincial indicator of children’s early developmental health and well-being in BC. HELP completed their seventh wave of EDI data collection in 2019, resulting in the publication of new provincial-level data. The resulting report, the BC EDI Wave 7 Provincial Report, summarizes trends and MORE
This week’s BC budget followed through on promises made in past budgets – including the BC Child Opportunity Benefit – but comes up short on new initiatives and investments that would assist children, youth and their families. “We need to invest more in upstream, preventative family supports,” commented Adrienne Montani, MORE
The $10aDay Campaign recently released a list of recommendations for effective expansion of licensed child care spaces in BC. The brief explains that the BC government is committed to creating 24,000 new licensed child care spaces by 2021. Consistent with $10aDay Plan recommendations, government is encouraging partnerships with public partners (school districts, MORE
Last month, Lucy Tully from Australia released a paper she wrote that aims to highlight the importance of engaging fathers in early childhood services, and to provide practical tips that practitioners can use to increase their knowledge, skills and confidence in engaging fathers. It finds that involving fathers (along with mothers) in MORE
The Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children (CCRC) recently released a new fact sheet on the right of children to equitable access to quality early learning and child care. The fact sheet points to the need for a greater focus on equitable access in early childhood. It also calls for action to make MORE
The Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP) recently released a report that provides a provincial overview of data from the Early Development Instrument (EDI) collected during Wave 7 (2016-2019). The data found that overall, EDI vulnerability on one or more scales in BC has increased to 33.4% – up from 32.2% just three MORE
The Province of British Columbia’s Ministry of Children and Family Development recently released an Early Years Indigenous Cultural Safety Resource Guide. The purpose of this guide is to help Early Childhood Educators who work with Indigenous children, families, and communities find appropriate and meaningful resources that will enhance their ability to MORE
This BC Dental Survey of Aboriginal Kindergarten Children report presents survey findings related to the early childhood dental health of Aboriginal children in British Columbia using data from the 2015/2016 B.C. kindergarten dental survey. Since 2009/2010, the oral health of Aboriginal kindergarten children in B.C. has improved at the provincial MORE
The Ministry of Education has recently published new resources: The revised Early Learning Framework and Play Today: B.C. Handbook. The Ministry of Education will provide a copy of these new publications to school districts, elementary schools, StrongStart BC Centres, First Nations schools, Aboriginal Head Start On Reserve programs, libraries, Child MORE