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CUPW Background Information
CUPW/SpeciaLink Partnership
CUPW Summer Project
CUPW School-Year Project
CUPW Project Scrapbook
Order In Our Way


CUPW Special Needs School-Year Project

Background

In 1998-1999, the CUPW Special Needs School-Year Project helps 250 members with 290 children with special needs to find and pay for out-of-school child care and child care-related services that reduce stress on parents and provide opportunities for the children to learn more about their interests, develop their skills, and spend time in positive learning relationships with other children and adults.

CUPW is one of a very few unions that has negotiated a child care fund to assist members in finding and affording quality child care.

A membership survey told CUPW that child care for children with special needs was a major issue for many of their members. The union then used the fund to research and analyze the impact on members' work and family lives of parenting a young child with special needs. 74% reported that their children face limitations regarding attendance at school or child care, 75% of the children are limited in participation at play or recreation activities, and 43% have special transportation needs. Since 1996, the CUPW Special Needs Summer Project helped 240 members to bring their costs of child care and child care-related services closer to the costs faced by other members with typically developing children.

A partnership with SpeciaLink, the National Centre for Child Care Inclusion, gives CUPW access to staff who are experienced in special needs.

What is CUPW's Special Needs School-Year Project?

All CUPW members who are parents have difficulties juggling work and family. Parents of children with special needs have additional problems with higher financial and personal costs. Recognizing those added challenges, the CUPW Special Needs Project helps over 250 CUPW members and their families deal with out-of-school child care and child care-related services.

Who are the CUPW children with special needs?

The 250 CUPW members have 290 children with special needs including blindness, deafness, severe asthma and diabetes, learning disabilities and attention deficit disorder, autism, cerebral palsy, genetic disorders, brain injuries, and profound developmental delay. These special needs range from mild to severe, and include children from birth to 18 years. Thirty-five members have more than one child with special needs, and several members who themselves have special needs also have children with special needs.

Why is CUPW's Child Care Fund helping them?

  • Child care and related costs are generally much higher for CUPW members with children who have special needs.
  • Without additional supports, the doors to regular child care, recreation and community programs remain closed.
  • The child's special needs often cause spouses of CUPW members to leave the workforce or take part-time work.
  • The child's medical needs often require much more unpaid time off work by CUPW members and many more uninsured expenses.

How does the CUPW Child Care Fund help CUPW families with children with special needs?

Most of the CUPW members use the CUPW fund to pay for child care, special transportation, and recreation programs that include specially trained workers.

CUPW members also use the CUPW fund to make community-based child care more accessible to their children who have special needs by providing funding for such things as equipment and assistive devices.

What is the criteria for participation in the CUPW Special Needs Project?

The funding and support offered by the CUPW Special Needs Project is available to CUPW members who have children with special needs, and who experience difficulties in securing, keeping, and paying for specialized child care services.

The children must be no older than 18. In addition, the impact of the child's special needs on the family must result in child care and child care-related expenses being higher in cost, and/or more difficult to access, hindering or preventing the child's participation in activities that other children his or her age are accessing. Prepared for the CUPW Special Needs Project by SpeciaLink: The National Centre for Child Care Inclusion. For hard copies of this Fact Sheet, the Executive Summary of the research report, the Full Report In Our Way, and further information, contact the CUPW National Office, or SpeciaLink.


SpeciaLink: The National Centre for Child Care Inclusion
76 Cottage Road,
Sydney, NS  B1P 2C7
Phone (902) 562-1662
FAX (902) 539-9117
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