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Child care for young children with disabilities
Stacie Kerr1, Leanne Findlay1, Rubab Arim2
1Health Analysis Division, Statistics Canada.
Insights
Many Canadian children with disabilities face challenges accessing and remaining in child care. Parents report difficulties finding care and instances of denial, underscoring the need for inclusive early learning and child care systems.
Area of Science:
- Child Development
- Public Health Policy
- Disability Studies
Background:
- Over half of Canadian children (56%) use non-parental child care.
- Limited data exists on child care use among children with disabilities.
Purpose of the Study:
- Examine child care participation among young children (0-5 years) with disabilities in Canada.
- Investigate challenges faced by these children and their families in accessing child care.
- Analyze differences based on disability type.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from Statistics Canada's 2023 Survey on Early Learning and Child Care Arrangements.
- Analyzed 1,189 children aged 0-5 years with disabilities.
- Employed logistic regression to identify factors influencing child care arrangements and difficulties.
Main Results:
- 45% of children with disabilities used formal child care; 17% used informal care; 38% did not use non-parental care.
- Nearly half of parents reported difficulty finding child care, especially for children with emotional conditions.
- Approximately 10% of parents reported their child was denied child care due to their condition.
Conclusions:
- Findings underscore significant barriers to child care access for children with disabilities.
- Highlights the need for inclusive policies and resources within Canada's early learning and child care system.
- Emphasizes the importance of addressing specific needs, such as those related to emotional conditions.
Background:
More than half (56%) of Canadian children aged 0 to 5 years are in non-parental child care, but data on child care attendance among children with disabilities is limited. This study examines child care participation among young children with disabilities in Canada, with a focus on different disability types.
Data And Methods:
Analyses were conducted on 1,189 children aged 0 to 5 years identified with disabilities from Statistics Canada's 2023 Survey on Early Learning and Child Care Arrangements - Children with Long-term Conditions and Disabilities. Rates of child care participation, difficulties finding child care, difficulties within child care, and whether parents reported that their child had ever been denied a child care space because of their condition were examined. Logistic regression models tested for differences in the main child care arrangement and difficulty finding child care based on the child's disability while controlling for sociodemographic variables.
Results:
Among children aged 0 to 5 years with disabilities, 45% attended a daycare centre, preschool, centre de la petite enfance, or before or after school care as their main child care arrangement; 17% attended another type of child care, such as a family child care home or care by a relative; and 38% did not regularly attend non-parental child care. The parents of nearly half of children with disabilities reported difficulty finding a child care arrangement, particularly for children with emotional conditions. Close to 1 in 10 parents of children with disabilities who were using child care reported that their child had been denied a child care space because of their condition.
Interpretation:
These findings highlight the need for information to support inclusive policies, practices, and resources for children with disabilities within the Canada-wide early learning and child care system.
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