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INVESTING IN AFFORDABLE CHILDCARE
"… investing in the very young is probably the most important investment a society can make. That's because the trajectories for learning, health and coping are set in the earliest years of life."
James Heckman, Nobel economic prizewinner.
An impressive and ever-growing body of research indicates that the first six years of children's lives are crucial and determine in many ways what kind of people they will grow up to be.
Studies indicate that investment in early-childhood education and care (ECEC) produces substantial returns that significantly benefit society.
Study after study demonstrates that preschool children who attend high-quality early-childhood education and care programs are more likely to become productive contributing members of society as adults. Good childcare not only protects children's health and safety, but also helps them develop their full potential.
Delaying early intervention results in an estimated annual cost of $2.5 billion for remedial education.
In Ottawa, there are fewer than two licensed childcare spaces available for every 10 children under the age of nine. Across Canada, the demand for ECEC outstrips supply by thousands of spaces. And Canadians pay a tremendous price-increased spending in health care, remedial education, and social and justice costs.
Too few families qualify for childcare subsidies; the full cost of high-quality ECEC is too expensive for the vast majority of people.
Education is a means of escaping poverty-and high-quality childcare is the most cost-efficient and effective way to prepare children for success in school. Fraser Mustard and Margaret McCain's Early Years Study confirms earlier research that children from all socio-economic backgrounds benefit from participation in high-quality ECEC programs. If we are to address poverty, children from disadvantaged homes must have access to healthy learning environments in the crucial early years of life.
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