The Canadian Forces has now authorized funds to assist CF parents in meeting many of their unexpected childcare requirements caused, at least in part, by CF duty requirements. These funds are disbursed through your Military Family Resource Centre.

The goal of the service is to support the ability of CF members to be available for duty, including deployments on short notice, by maximizing parents’ accessibility to childcare during times of emergency. The emergency may be the result of an unexpected deployment, or a short-notice deployment, or as a career course – where the member will not have time to implement his/her personal childcare plan. The emergency may also result from medical or other problems that the spouse or caregiver may encounter while the CF member is deployed, that disrupts usual care arrangements for children, and requires immediate alternative arrangements.

This service will enhance and support the childcare plans which CF members are required to have implemented prior to a deployment. It will also address financial hardships to families during an emergency by paying for care during the first 72 hours and a portion of any further childcare costs, if required, for the period of the emergency.

CF members are responsible to have a personal childcare plan in place, which allows them to be available to meet the CF requirement to deploy at any time. Financial assistance with childcare may be available to families under the following emergency circumstances:

1. when the CF member is employed or deployed away from home and the spouse/caregiver is unable to provide immediate care for the child due to illness or other family emergency
2. When the CF member is required to report for duty of any type with less than seven days notice. This presumes that the spouse/ caregiver cannot readily accommodate this unexpected CF duty requirement
3. when a single parent CF member is unable to access the regular childcare provider in an emergency situation
4. when both parents are CF members and when one has already deployed and the other is required with less than seven days notice to be away from home due to operational demands or extended family emergency
5. when there is an illness of a child that would prevent a parent from accessing regular arrangements for care at a time when the CF member is away
6. when there is a need for respite childcare in or out of the child’s home due to the total family situation, including the CF members work commitments.

Financial assistance in these situations is approved through an individual and confidential one-on-one assessment with your Coordinator of Children and Youth Services at the Greenwood Military Family Resource Centre. Feel free to call 765-1494, local 1812 to discuss this program and receive more information on how this program can work for you.

For Emergency Childcare Requests during working hours, please contact the Coordinator of Children and Youth Services at 765-1494, local 1812.  For Emergency Childcare Requests outside working hours, please contact Wing Ops at local 5457.