First Call sent letters to federal party leaders this week to echo the Coalition for Healthy School Food’s calls for a universal, healthy school food program for Canada. The letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asks that the government include the development of a national school food program in the MORE
Media Release November 20, 2018 First Call’s Annual 2018 Child Poverty Report Card Finds One in Five Children Still Poor (Vancouver BC) Today, First Call: BC Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition released its annual BC Child Poverty Report Card finding that not much has changed for poor children and their families. MORE
Welcome to our monthly update about First Call’s advocacy work and key developments in child and youth policy in BC. Highlights this month include: We’re Hiring! Living Wage Campaign Hiring Research Coordinator BC Poverty Reduction Strategy Act introduced Policy Solutions Lobby Day 2018 BC Child Poverty Report Card Release Date MORE
On September 28, 2018, First Call submitted recommendations to The Advisory Council on the Implementation of a National Pharmacare Program. The submission recognizes that socioeconomic position is one of the most important social determinants of health. Our submission highlights five recommendations: Recommendation 1: Implement a national pharmacare program with a high-level focus MORE
Welcome to our monthly update about First Call’s advocacy work and key developments in child and youth policy in BC. Highlights this month include: First Call Submission to Federal Budget Tent Cities: Open Letter Calls For Public Health Approach To Reducing Health And Safety Risks Welcome Nadine Gagné-L’Hirondelle Living Wage MORE
Today in Ottawa, advocates released an open letter urging the Prime Minister to make good on his commitment to the right to housing by enshrining that right in upcoming National Housing Strategy legislation. The letter has been signed by over 150 organizations and prominent Canadians, including First Call. It was MORE
On June 27, 2018, First Call sent a package to all MPs in BC with ranked child poverty in BC’s federal electoral ridings based on new research from our partner, the national Campaign 2000: End Child and Family Poverty in Canada. First Call endorses Campaign 2000 recommendations including legislation with targets MORE
Canada’s first federal Poverty Reduction Strategy is expected to be released within the next few weeks. Campaign 2000’s newly released child poverty data reveals a disturbing picture of the magnitude of child poverty in every federal riding. The ridings with the worst child poverty rates are home to the highest MORE
This spring the Government of Canada invited responses to a proposed new framework for a human rights-based approach to housing. First Call’s submission recommended the federal government focus on four areas of action: ensure access to safe and affordable housing for children and youth who live in households struggling with MORE
In March 2018, Peter Julian, MP, responded to First Call’s letter regarding the Canadian Poverty Reduction Strategy (CPRS). He notes his appreciation for sharing the submission with the MPs and agreed with First Call’s comprehensive policy approach to eliminate poverty. He says in the letter: “Poverty in Canada is the MORE
February 2018 Highlights this month include: MCFD reps at upcoming First Call Coalition Meetings to discuss BC Budget Living Wage petition for Capilano University cleaners Update: Review of the Representative for Children and Youth Act New team members join First Call and Living Wage Campaign Don’t miss the award-winning Liyana MORE
Each year First Call publishes a BC Child Poverty Report Card, analyzing the latest federal and provincial data to accurately portray the extent of child and family poverty in our province. In 2017, using the most recent available data, we found that 153,300, or 1 in 5, BC children are MORE
Published November 21, 2017, in The Province By Adrienne Montani A generational opportunity to change the child-poverty story in B.C. is knocking. The provincial NDP government and the B.C. Green party have committed to work together to design and implement a province-wide poverty reduction strategy. The new cabinet includes a minister MORE
Media release: November 21, 2017 Looking for Action to Change BC’s Child Poverty Story Data in the 2017 BC Child Poverty Report Card, released today by First Call: BC Child and Youth Advocacy Coalition, highlights the income inequality that leaves far too many British Columbia families struggling to cover basic MORE
On July 11 2017, First Call sent a letter to the BC Members of Parliament to accompany our formal submission on the Canadian Poverty Reduction Strategy (CPRS). The letter outlines the call for a CPRS that has targets and timelines secured in legislation, specifically: To reduce Canada’s child and poverty rate MORE