N.S. parents struggle to find child care for kids with disabilities

Courtnee Peddle is a working, single mother of two who has spent years trying to find inclusive child care for one of her sons. But after being turned away time and time again, she's realized it may never work out.

Her 12-year-old son, Hunter Estabrooks, has autism and is non-verbal. She described him as fun-loving and energetic, and compared him to Houdini because one of his impulses is to run away. To help keep him safe, he wears a tracking bracelet, has a service dog and receives one-on-one support at school.

But Peddle said finding before- and after-school care in a licensed facility that can accommodate Hunter has been impossible. In fact, securing child care has been a challenge since he was a toddler. When he first started daycare, Peddle said she was asked to take him elsewhere because staff couldn't keep up with him.

"I cry a lot for my kids in that aspect," she said. "It's nobody's fault that their brain is wired the way it's wired. But society has decided that we can't accommodate them, or if we are going to accommodate them, they all have to go together in an institution." 

More recently, Peddle said three local child-care facilities near Enfield, N.S., where they live, have told her they don't have the resources to look after Hunter even though they call themselves inclusive centres.

With no other options, Peddle said she has resorted to paying for individual caretakers like babysitters, costing her significantly more than she would pay for a space in a licensed child-care facility.

To make ends meet, she said she works three part-time jobs in health care and retail, sometimes paying friends or neighbours to spend the night at her house while she picks up a night shift at the hospital.

While many parents across the province are struggling to find child care, securing care for kids like Hunter who have disabilities presents additional challenges. 

In February, officials from Ottawa and Nova Scotia announced an update to their joint plan to make child care accessible at an average cost of $10 per day by March 2026, as part of a $605-million deal signed in 2021 between the two governments.

In addition to lowering costs, creating more spaces and a new benefits plan for early childhood educators (ECEs), the funding is going toward an inclusive early learning and child care strategy. That will include a "provincial inclusion policy and practice framework" for ECEs, according to Krista Higdon, a spokesperson for the Department of Education. 

Higdon told CBC News in an email that the strategy is still in the works, but some initiatives are already being implemented, such as hiking wages for inclusion co-ordinators and adding funding to support children with disabilities and their families.

Beth Towler is executive director of Wee Care Developmental Centre in Halifax, one of the leading inclusive child care facilities in the province. She said there's a lot of work to do to improve inclusivity and accessibility in the sector. 

Wee Care is a non-profit centre with a limit of 75 children from ages four months to six years old. Towler said they're at capacity, and currently serve at least 19 children with various disabilities. But over 500 families are on their waitlist.

"When they're told we really have nothing at all, it's very disheartening for them," she said. "I really, in my years in working within the child-care sector, have never witnessed such a desperate need for care."

Towler said families are often recommended to Wee Care by the IWK Health Centre because they offer specialized services like occupational, physio and music therapies. The space is also fully accessible, with an elevator and ramps, which many facilities in the region don't have. 

Sara Mullins's eight-year-old son, Nash Daye, attended Wee Care until he aged out and started school.

Nash has autism, ADHD, a learning delay and kidney disease. Mullins said he was supported at Wee Care, and wishes he could still go there for after-school care.  

But three years later, she still can't find a space for him. 

Mullins, who works full-time, said Nash attended his school's after-school Excel program, until he was asked to leave because staff did not have the resources to look after him.

Lindsey Bunin, a spokesperson for the Halifax Regional Centre for Education, said that she cannot speak to Nash's situation due to privacy concerns. However, she told CBC News that "Excel strives to provide a nurturing, respectful, supportive and responsive environment for all participants," adding that parents are encouraged to reach out to the Excel team at their child's school if they have concerns. 

Mullins said her son has also been turned away from several other child-care centres because of his disabilities and behavioural challenges.

"If these facilities are going to offer these services, it should be a legal requirement that they're inclusive to everybody," she said. "He has just as much a right to safe care … as does a neurotypical child."