County of Northumberland Support

Support for Parents/Guardians

Cook’s School Day Care Inc has a purchase of service agreement with the County of Northumberland that allows eligible families who are enrolled in our programs to receive financial assistance from the County to help pay child care fees.

Support for Educators, Providers and Programs

Northumberland County supports Early Learning & Child Care programs with establishing adequate compensation levels for employees and maintaining quality programs through:

  • General Operating Grant
  • Wage Enhancement Grant
  • Special Purpose Funding to support such initiatives as repairs and maintenance and play-based learning
  • Professional development opportunities.

Funding assistance for special projects is available on occasion through the County. There have been funds made available for health & safety projects, transformation costs, and capital projects.

Criteria

To ensure the most pressing and critical health and safety needs are met in our community, proposals are reviewed based on the following criteria:

1. Health and safety concerns identified as a recommendation by:

  • Ministry of Education Program Advisor
  • HKPR Health Inspector
  • Local Fire Inspector
  • CSA Approved Playground Inspector

2. An organization’s financial resources as reported in the most recent audited financial statements.

Cook's Is Fortunate

Cook’s has benefitted from receiving Special Purpose funding assistance from the County of Northumberland on a number of occasions over the years.

  • Play-based Learning: funds received to assist with purchasing program equipment and supplies to support play-based learning.
  • Health & Safety / Repairs & Maintenance: examples of costly items for which we have received assistance – new playground equipment, windows, roofing, kitchen upgrades, to name a few.
  • Transformation Funding (assistance from the County in 2014 to assist with the blending of our centre-based programs): examples – strategic planning, legal, home child care equipment upgrades and advertising costs.
  • Capital Funding: major modifications to the building to accommodate the blending of our two-centre based programs into one location. The features of the addition are: a new accessible main entrance, office at the entrance, an elevator, an educator resource & rest area, and a new staircase to 2nd floor.
  • Preschool Expansion Funding (2018):  funds received to assist with renovation costs to add additional washrooms on 2nd floor to allow for a second preschool group to be established; also funds to purchase program materials and supplies to support more preschool children.
  • Provincial Affordability Initiative Funding (2018): funds from the provincial government and distributed through the County to provide fee refunds to families with children under 4 years, wage enhancement for staff and program enhancements.