Primary Country (Mandatory)

United States

Other Country (Optional)

Set News Language for United States

Primary Language (Mandatory)
English
Other Language[s] (Optional)
No other language available

Set News Language for World

Primary Language (Mandatory)
English
Other Language(s) (Optional)

Set News Source for United States

Primary Source (Mandatory)
CNN
Other Source[s] (Optional)

Set News Source for World

Primary Source (Mandatory)
AajTak
Other Source(s) (Optional)
  • Countries
    • India
    • United States
    • Qatar
    • Germany
    • China
    • Canada
    • World
  • Categories
    • National
    • International
    • Business
    • Entertainment
    • Sports
    • Special
    • All Categories
  • Available Languages for United States
    • English
  • All Languages
    • English
    • Hindi
    • Arabic
    • German
    • Chinese
    • French
  • Sources
    • India
      • AajTak
      • NDTV India
      • The Hindu
      • India Today
      • Zee News
      • NDTV
      • BBC
      • The Wire
      • News18
      • News 24
      • The Quint
      • ABP News
      • Zee News
      • News 24
    • United States
      • CNN
      • Fox News
      • Al Jazeera
      • CBSN
      • NY Post
      • Voice of America
      • The New York Times
      • HuffPost
      • ABC News
      • Newsy
    • Qatar
      • Al Jazeera
      • Al Arab
      • The Peninsula
      • Gulf Times
      • Al Sharq
      • Qatar Tribune
      • Al Raya
      • Lusail
    • Germany
      • DW
      • ZDF
      • ProSieben
      • RTL
      • n-tv
      • Die Welt
      • Süddeutsche Zeitung
      • Frankfurter Rundschau
    • China
      • China Daily
      • BBC
      • The New York Times
      • Voice of America
      • Beijing Daily
      • The Epoch Times
      • Ta Kung Pao
      • Xinmin Evening News
    • Canada
      • CBC
      • Radio-Canada
      • CTV
      • TVA Nouvelles
      • Le Journal de Montréal
      • Global News
      • BNN Bloomberg
      • Métro
MoreBack to News Headlines
Sask. mother calls for action to address daycare shortage for neurodivergent children

Sask. mother calls for action to address daycare shortage for neurodivergent children

CBC
Sunday, September 15, 2024 1:41 PM GMT

A Saskatoon mother and the owners of a daycare for neurodivergent children are calling for the provincial government to do more to increase child care spaces for children with complex needs.

Alicia Mann said she was "bogged down with worry" for four months searching for child care for her eldest son after his previous daycare terminated his spot. When they found out four-year-old Felix has autism, they would tell her they couldn't accommodate him, she said.

"It was crushing," Mann told CBC's Saskatoon Morning last week. "It makes you feel as if your child is a burden and not someone who should be celebrated."

Then she found Lavender Smiles Daycare and enrolled Felix in April 2023, and then his younger brother Linus later that year. She said the specialized care has transformed the two boys.

"They are so confident, they are so happy. You just see a change in them that they are getting their needs met," Mann said.

"It is absolutely freeing. You can just be a person outside of being a caregiver for your child."

Many parents of kids with complex needs are in the same boat as Saskatchewan struggles to open enough regulated, $10-a-day daycare spaces to meet demand, said Lavender Smiles co-owner Brianna Dodd. According to a report for the Canadian Child Care Federation, 238 children of more than 8,500 enrolled in licensed child care received special needs or disability support funding as of March 2023.

Dodd said she and her business partner Nami Sharma opened the dayhome, which is believed the be the city's only specialized centre for neurodivergent children, in 2021 because they saw many families like Mann's struggling to find a space, let alone one that would accept their child.

The daycare now has 12 spots and four full-time staff members trained to work with children with autism, Downs syndrome, ADHD symptoms or other behavioural challenges. Dodd said this allows them to give specialized attention and care to each individual child.

The space is filled with sensory walls, toys that can be adapted or hung on wheelchairs, communication aides and a large changing table for older children as well as toddlers.

"We are like any other daycare. We have a home, we have toys, we have elements of play, we have elements of exploration," said Dodd. "I think the biggest difference at our daycare is our mindset and our acceptance.

"I think that's really important for us, is to make our daycare as diverse as possible and have as much open space for the children to just be themselves."

But the daycare has a long waitlist, and Dodd and Mann say the province needs to do more to expand child care spaces for children with complex needs.

Dodd said the Ministry of Education's grants for specialized or one-on-one child care for children with complex needs should be increased, because the current maximum of $2,000 per month doesn't cover minimum wage for a full-time staff member to provide that care.

Read full story on CBC
Share this story on:-
Run 3 Space | Play Space Running GamePlay Run 3, the ultimate space tunnel running game with 300+ challenging levels!Adv.
Traffic Jam 3D | Online Racing GameTraffic Jam 3D is a game where you’ll be driving through heavy traffic.Adv.
Duck Hunt | Play Old Classic GamePlay the classic 1984 light gun shooter game Duck Hunt on your browser.Adv.
More Related News
Man dead after house fire in Scarborough: police

A man is dead after a house fire in Scarborough on Friday morning, Toronto police said. 

Grab your popcorn! A microcinema just opened in Cambridge

They call it the big screen, but this movie theatre experience is pretty small.

Charlottetown high school's rock concert puts musical talent and Canadian pride on display

Students at Charlottetown Rural High School are preparing to take the stage at the P.E.I. Brewing Company on Friday for their School of Rock 2025 Showcase. 

Fire at Yellowknife apartment that displaced public housing tenants caused by smoking

Improper disposal of smoking materials was found to be the cause of a fire that displaced tenants of public housing from a Yellowknife apartment building in March. 

Man who considered assisted death after bedsore tells coroner's inquiry 'you have to fight' for care

Among the dozens of people who testified at a coroner's inquiry into the death of Normand Meunier, Claude Labelle may be the only one who really understands what he went through. 

Toronto's getting hotter. Experts say a chief heat officer could help the city adapt

As Toronto braces for another hotter than usual summer, some climate policy experts and advocates say a chief heat officer could help the city adapt to extreme temperatures faster. 

Western University to get 200 of province's new teacher college spaces

The Ontario government's move to add 2,600 teacher college spaces will open 200 new entry slots to Western University's education program over the next two years. 

Toronto man had to fight GoFundMe to get paid after organizer gambled away funds for his brother's funeral

In the aftermath of his younger brother's sudden death last year, Allan Oliver says he was surprised when a family friend set up a GoFundMe to help pay for the funeral.

Bay du Nord FPSO contract will be awarded in months but future undecided, says Equinor

While the future of the stalled Bay du Nord project has yet to be decided, an Equinor Canada representative says there are positive signs for the project's future, including a major contract that the oil giant will award in the next few months.

Mining, energy companies say hydro storage project could be template for N.S. mines

Halifax councillors have heard new details about a proposed hydro energy storage project at a former gold mine in the municipality.

Wildfires in West cast smoky — and potentially risky — haze over N.B.

New Brunswickers might have noticed a haze in the sky over the last couple of days.

Quebec floats cutting services for non-permanent residents

Quebec Immigration Minister Jean-François Roberge said he isn't ruling out the possibility of cutting services for non-permanent residents in the province if the federal government fails to halve its annual immigration targets.

Sask. wildfires have already burned 900K hectares of forest so far this year: SPSA

Wildfires continue to rage out of control in northern Saskatchewan, and have now burned almost 1,000,000 hectares of the province's forest so far this year and forced thousands of people from their homes.

Parking Slot | Free Parking GamePlay Parking Slot, the best online 3D car driving and parking game.Adv.
Slope Ball Run - Play OnlineSlope Game takes you on an exciting journey of a ball on special paths.Adv.
Speech from OPEC head to kick off Global Energy Show in Calgary

More than 30,000 people from 100 countries are expected to descend on the white-collar heart of Canada's oilpatch next week for the Global Energy Show, which is to kick off with a keynote address from the head of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

First case of dermo disease detected in N.L. oysters

Federal food safety officials say they've confirmed the first case of dermo disease in oysters from Newfoundland and Labrador.

2 former athletes from Garden River First Nation to be inducted in Canada Sports Hall of Fame

Two former athletes from Garden River First Nation in northeastern Ontario will be inducted into the Canada Sports Hall of Fame this year.

'Long overdue' dikeland upgrades coming to rural N.S. community

A rural Nova Scotia community on the Bay of Fundy is preparing for the most significant upgrades in decades to the dikeland system that protects it from flooding.

Deer collision leads to insurance nightmare for N.B. woman

As Samantha Anderson headed home to Sunny Corner after Christmas supper in Miramichi last December, a deer jumped in front of her car on a blind hill.

Montreal air quality deteriorates as Prairie wildfire smoke blankets much of southern Quebec

As wildfires continue to rage in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, travelling plumes of smoke drifted into Quebec on Friday, prompting Environment Canada to issue warnings over air quality.

Southern Manitoba fire chief and firefighter drive pumper truck 15 hours to help in Lynn Lake

Fire departments in southern Manitoba are answering the call to help northern communities save their homes and lands.

Battle of Stoney Creek win over the U.S. in 1813 offers lesson about peace, say re-enactment organizers

Despite the muskets, bayonets and firing cannons, organizers of the annual Battle of Stoney Creek re-enactment — which takes place this weekend in Hamilton — see the event as a celebration of peace. 

Windsor couple joins global march to Gaza border to protest war

A Windsor Ont., couple is preparing to make the journey to the Middle East to join a peaceful global protest to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people. 

Alberta conservationists, sheep outfitter call for stiffer poaching penalties after 4 men fined $26K

Four men who illegally killed bighorn sheep in western Alberta were fined $26,000 combined and each received one-year hunting bans — penalties some say are not steep enough. 

'We're keeping a couple bags packed': Weyakwin, Sask., residents start returning after evac order lifted

Lisa Powder and her great grandchildren were among the first Weyakwin residents to return home after fleeing a wildfire that burned dangerously close to the northern Saskatchewan community.

Neskantaga First Nation calls for more federal support after community evacuation cut short

Chief Gary Quisses says Neskantaga First Nation's evacuation lasted 46 days — but he wasn't ready to bring his community members home.

© 2008 - 2025 Webjosh  |  News Archive  |  Privacy Policy  |  Contact Us