Message from the Minister of State for Child Care and Accountability Statement

I am honoured to be British Columbia's first Minister of State for Child Care. The Government of British Columbia recognizes the important role that quality child care plays in ensuring long term positive outcomes for children. B.C's children are our future and I am pleased to lead the child care initiative.

Research confirms that collaborative planning and community-based integrated service delivery, will serve communities well and maximize positive, effective results for children and their families. Government is committed to promoting quality child care and is providing increased supports for low-income parents.

Quality child care contributes to improved child development and increased school readiness, key factors in supporting one of government's Five Great Goals, making B.C. the best-educated, most literate jurisdiction on the continent. Establishing a baseline of school readiness for kindergarten-aged children in British Columbia has been a priority of government and is presented in this service plan. British Columbia is the first jurisdiction that has tracked this measure at a provincial level. This will inform future planning and help target new investments in early learning and child care.

It is my pleasure as Minister of State for Child Care to lead collaborative efforts to advance government's long term plan to increase affordable and quality child care, including enhanced supports for low-income parents. Government will be consulting with a number of stakeholders, including the Provincial Child Care Council, in the development of a long term child care plan. Making strategic investments in supports for low-income families supports government's goal of leading the way in North America in healthy living.

Government aims to build the best system of support in Canada for children with special needs. To that end, my responsibilities also include providing leadership in cross-ministry coordination of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) initiatives, disorders that have profound and lifelong effects on children and their families. Accordingly, it is important to focus on prevention as well as services and supports for those children, and their families, who are affected. With my colleagues in other ministries and within the Canada Northwest FASD Partnership, I will be working to increase public awareness and provide an integrated system of supports for those families affected by FASD.

I am confident that families, communities, service partner organizations and government working together can ensure that our young children — our most precious citizens — have every opportunity to succeed.

I am the Minister of State for Child Care and under the Balanced Budget and Ministerial Accountability Act, I am accountable for achieving the following results for 2005/06:

• In consultation with the Minister of Children and Family Development and the Minister of Education and the Minister Responsible for Early Learning and Literacy, develop and present a plan to the Government Caucus Committee (GCC) on Social Development which outlines actions to strengthen linkages and build better partnerships between child care, early childhood development, and early learning initiatives, and to increase public awareness of the array of services available.
• Produce a draft Family Friendly Workplace strategy and action plan for consultation and present it to the Provincial Child Care Council.
• With other ministers and as a member of the Canada Northwest Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Partnership, develop a plan for BC's role in the promotion of research and evaluation in FASD prevention and support which is consistent with priorities identified in the provincial FASD Strategic Plan, and present it to the GCC on Social Development.
• Develop a plan in collaboration with the Ministers of Advanced Education and Health to increase the number of skilled and qualified behavioural interventionists for children with autism in B.C. and present the plan to the GCC on Social Development.

Honourable Linda Reid
Minister of State for Child Care

August 31, 2005