Congratulations on your decision to enroll your child in a licensed child care program! High quality child care has proven benefits for your child, and makes it easier for parents like you to work, study and/or have time for other activities.
Finding child care in Manitoba is a challenge, since there are not enough licensed spaces in child care centres and regulated family homes (about 37,800 spaces in the whole province, with about 15,000 names currently on the waiting list.) Recent research shows a Winnipeg parent must wait an average of 15 months on a waiting list before getting a space. Childcare is expensive, with costs that vary depending on the age of your child. To help you locate a licensed child care program in your neighbourhood, you might want to visit the Province of Manitoba's Licensed Child Care Search site.
If your family income is low, you might qualify for a subsidy, which can pay a portion of your child care fees. To check your eligibility for financial assistance, you can visit the provincial government's on-line subsidy estimator.
To help you find high-quality child care, you might want to consult A Parent's Guide to Quality Child Care, published by the Manitoba government (and you can find out more about fee subisidies there, as well).
The Child Care Coalition of Manitoba has many parent members, and our mandate includes building a child care system that works for parents. If you are interested in joining our Coalition, you can fill in and return our Membership Application. If you'd like to share your story about using (or trying to use!) child care, please contact us.
|