Riverside Daycare in Thompson will get up to 10 additional spaces as part of the provincial government's investment in capital projects to created 739 new licensed childcare spaces, combined with reducing regulatory barriers for operators, it was announced March 9.
"There are many opportunities for us to improve and modernize the system to ensure it is meeting the needs of Manitobans," said Families Minister Scott Fielding in a news release. "This first step will reform the licensing process and build a service-oriented system that focuses primarily on the needs of children, parents and childcare professionals, rather than on the administrative procedures that place an excessive burden on operators."
The government plans to expedite licence renewals for daycares with a track record of complying with regulations and to implement a pilot project to have the licensing history of childcare centres factored into their licence application renewals to ensure that inspection visits focus on centres where they are more needed. Other plans include streamlining applications of certified early childhood educators who wish to open licensed family childcare facilities, expediting the process for age exemptions to ensure uninterrupted care for children approaching preschool to move to vacant spaces within the same centre, and to improve access to information regarding the steps required to open a childcare centre. The province also intends to complete a review of childcare legislation, regulations and procedures that began last fall.
Province-wide, the government will spend $6,181,500 for 15 community-based capital projects in Winnipeg, Morden, La Salle, St. Adolphe, Thompson and Anola.
