EXCERPTS
La Ronge, Sask., will soon be home to the province’s 10th family resource centre.
Education Minister Gordon Wyant said Monday work will begin immediately to establish a community planning team which will then develop programming, select a location, and hire staff.
“We have seen firsthand the impressive service Family Resource Centres are providing to families in communities throughout the province,” Wyant said in a statement.
“We look forward to seeing the La Ronge area families benefit from the additional access to these resources.”
The centres provide a place where families with young children can access information, services, and support to raise healthy children, officials said.
“To have a central location where families with young children have the option to access support is essential. This opportunity is a perfect complement to our KidsFirst North home visitation program,” said Rebecca Clark, the KidsFirst north program manager.
“The first five years in a child’s life is vital and the implementation of an Early Years Family Resource Centre will assist in ensuring the well-being and development of children in our community.”
It was announced early this year that $1.5 million in funding would be provided through the Canada-Saskatchewan Early Learning and Child Care Agreement to create Family Resource Centres in the Battlefords, Meadow Lake, Moose Jaw, Nipawin, Prince Albert, Saskatoon, and now in La Ronge.
“Quality early learning and child care are critical to the development and future well-being of children,” Jean-Yves Duclos, the federal minister of families, children, and social development said in a release.
“[Monday’s] announcement will ensure that more Saskatchewan families will have access to services, tools, and resources to help them raise happy and healthy children.”
Three centres currently operate in Regina, Yorkton, and Sandy Bay.
Officials said the Sandy Bay site recorded nearly 4,000 visits in 2017-18.
The new centres are expected to open this fall.