Inclusive Childcare Program  (ICC) 

ICC serves children from newborn to 19 needing extra support to access child care settings. Children attending licensed child care settings which include Head Start, preschools, and daycares are eligible for support from the program.  Priority is given to children aged birth to 6 years. 

Families choose the licensed child care program that best fits their needs and ICC Educators help to support inclusion and accessibility in the program.  There is no fee for this service.

ICC operates under the principles of inclusion and family centred practice by working closely with families and collaborating with a trans-disciplinary therapy team and community partners.  A referral to this program can be made by therapists with the parent or guardian consent.  

ICC offers a range of services and support to:

The Child by:

  • Promoting opportunities for play
  • Facilitating participation and inclusion in childcare programs
  • Supporting communication with others
  • Supporting continued development physically, socially, emotionally, and cognitively
  • Facilitating learning opportunities to meet parents’ goals for their child

The Family by:

  • Providing assistance with finding and securing childcare options
  • Collaborating in the development of individual plans to meet the child’s needs
  • Supporting community and Kindergarten transitions
  • Providing community and childcare resources

The Childcare Centre by:

  • Teaching/modelling child-specific and universal strategies for inclusion to childcare providers
  • Consulting for care plan development
  • Consulting and/or providing resources such as visual schedules and timers
  • Facilitating training for ICC Educators and community child care providers
  • Providing general consultation for questions/concerns about child development

Extra Staffing

All children referred to the program will receive consultation from an ICC Consultant to support inclusion in their child care setting. An ICC Consultant works with the child’s team by modelling and teaching strategies, facilitating training, assessing need for extra support and regularly reviewing level of support.  

Based on assessed need, some children may be eligible for direct support from an ICC Educator.  An ICC Educator works directly with the child during the daycare/preschool day to support inclusion in the program as needed.  Support may be short term, intermittent, shared, or in complex cases one-to-one support is provided based on the child’s assessed need to access the program.

Guiding Principles of Inclusive Childcare

Inclusion – the right of all children, regardless of their ability, to participate actively in child care settings within their community.

Family Centred – the belief that families know their child best and the needs of the family as a whole are honoured in their history and culture.

Individual Planning – the service process is guided by family concerns, priorities and resources with families being active participants in the process.

Collaboration – the family member and service providers work together in a team-based approach to gather information, plan, implement, and evaluate goals to meet the individual child’s developmental needs.

Diversity – the design and delivery model of ICC is respectful and responsive to ethnicity, finances, language and culture.

If you would like to learn more about the ICC Program please contact the ICC Team at 250-635-9388