1.
May 2015
SOHC Meeting

2.
Saskatchewan
KidsFirst Vision
Children living in vulnerable circumstances enjoy a good start
in life and are nurtured by caring families and communities.
In targeted, high-needs communities, supports and services
are provided through partnerships between families,
communities and service providers.

3.
Importance of the Early Years
 Brain development research
 Creating environments for healthy
development
 Laying foundation for healthy growth and
development
 Investing in your children pays off for the
children, family and community

4.
Background
 Saskatchewan’s 1993 Action Plan for
Children
 June 2000 Comprehensive Early Childhood
Development Strategy framework approved
 September 2000 First Ministers’ Accord on
Early Childhood Development
 New Federal funding offered an opportunity
to enhance provincial early childhood
services.

5.
Provincial Program Sites
 Regina
 Moose Jaw
 Yorkton
 North Battleford
 Nipawin
 Prince Albert
 Meadow Lake
 The North
 Saskatoon

6.
Saskatchewan KidsFirst Goals
 Provide families a range of supports that
promote and support positive parent
interaction
 Provide families a range of supports that
promote and enhance child development and
well-being
 Support prenatal women to have healthy
pregnancies and birth outcomes

7.
Saskatchewan KidsFirst Goals
 Support families to provide environments to
promote child development and family
well-being
 Provide accountability for quality
programming

8.
Provincial Program Principles
•Preventative
•Comprehensive
•Equitable
•Empowering
•Culturally Affirming
•Accountable

9.
Provincial Program Principles
 Cooperative, collaborative
 Strength based
 Representative
 Innovative and flexible
 Voluntary
 Build Capacity
 Quality Standards

10.
Program Elements
•Prenatal referral and support
•Universal screening at birth/assessment
•Home visiting
•Enhanced early learning, child care and
family support opportunities
•Dedicated mental health and addictions
services
•Regional community development

11.
Family
Supports
Counselling
Child
Care
Healthy Babies Right
From The Start
Pre-
Kindergarten
ECIP
Transportation
Family
Home Visiting

12.
How Do Families Access
KidsFirst?
In-Hospital Birth Questionnaire
Score of 9 or higher
Referral – anyone can refer with
Client's consent, self referral
also accepted
Completion of In-Depth Assessment
Acceptance to
KidsFirst Program –
Introduction of Home Visitor
Deemed inappropriate for
services – other services
offered

13.
Routes to Program Involvement
• Pre-natal referral
• In-hospital birth questionnaire
• Self-referral or referral from community
source
Referral is followed by in-depth assessment
process

14.
Who are KidsFirst families?

15.
Assessment
 Following referral families are assessed in
24 facets of their life
 The assessment provides us with
comprehensive baseline data that reflects
both family strengths and risks

16.
Home Visiting
• Cornerstone of the program
• All families are matched with a home visitor
• Many programs use lay home visitor model

17.
Role of Home Visitors
• Develop trusting relationships with families
• Build on families strengths
• Support families as they identify goals and
address issues
• Connecting families to community services,
programs and activities

18.
Home Visiting
 Growing Great Kids Curriculum
 Cues and communication
 Basic care
 Social and emotional development
 Physical and brain development
 Play and stimulation
 Parent supports
 Injury prevention and home safety

19.
Home Visiting Supervisors
 The programs have Supervisors provide
regular support and supervision to the Home
Visitors.

20.
 Each program has staff who work with
families to acknowledge and address mental
health and addictions concerns
 Provide services in a non-traditional way
including home visits
 Support the Home Visitors
Mental Health and Addictions
Team

21.
Early Learning
• KidsFirst Programs provide funding to
early learning centres in their
communities to expand the number of
spaces so that children in the KidsFirst
Program will have access to this support

22.
Child Care
•KidsFirst has developed an array of childcare
options for KidsFirst families including drop-in and
respite spaces.
• Provision of childcare is a critical first step in
supporting parents to return to work or school.
•Childcare is also provided as part of a family’s
therapeutic plan.

23.
Parent Supports
•Assistance is provided to build on
strengths and to address each family’s
unique needs.
•Parents are supported to explore their
hopes and dreams, identifying their
deepest wishes for a good life for
themselves and their children.

24.
Regional Community Development
 Throughout the province there is funding for
Regional Community Development Positions
 They work in varied ways to highlight and address
important issues related to the early years.
 A community development approach is used.

25.
KidsFirst service provision differs
from conventional service provision…
and is responsive to the realities of the lives
of the families involved in the program, many
of whom have not been effectively served by
other services.

26.
Length of Involvement
 Families are eligible to stay involved until
they reach their goals and graduate or until
their youngest child is 5 years of age.
 Goal is graduation

27.
Is KidsFirst making a difference?