Maple Creek Childcare Cooperative

Maple Creek, Saskatchewan, like many rural communities, lacks adequate childcare. Without enough daycare spaces, parents in the area struggle to go back to work, which impacts local businesses and the wider economy.

A group of residents came to Co-operatives First with an idea: for the Town, Rural Municipality, and Nekaneet First Nation to work together to create a licenced daycare co-operative to help meet the needs of local parents.

It’s a great time for communities to explore this option. The federal government is working with provinces to provide $10-a-day subsidized daycare, and provincial governments have funds available to expand the number of daycare spaces. The subsidies are only available to non-profit, licenced daycares, which makes co-ops a great option.

The Maple Creek group conducted a community survey to gauge the need for childcare (it was high!), and Co-operatives First provided a feasibility study to help them start out on the right foot. This hard-working group has gone on to secure $420,000 through the provincial Space Development Grant, and start-up funding of an additional $36,120. Thanks to this initiative and collaboration, the co-op will build a new daycare facility with 42 daycare spaces for Maple Creek and surrounding area.

Back

“Heather and the team at Co-operatives First are top-notch. Not only their knowledge but their understanding of the project. They have truly helped us along every step of the way. Their timely response and knowledge of the steps are extraordinary. They are forthcoming with information. This is one of the most knowledgeable and friendliest teams I have ever had the pleasure of working with.”

Weyburn Theatre

“Co-operatives First made the process of establishing our Artisan Co-operative a very clear and easy process. The expanse of available tools and resources provided by Co-operatives First answers many questions and lightens the workload. Greatly appreciate having the connections made with Trista and Kyle, they keep the co-operative moving forward.”

Nehiyawaskiy Indigenous Peoples Art Co-op

“Our experience working with the Co-operatives First team was absolutely fabulous. The staff was accommodating, knowledgeable and patient. It was truly a breath of fresh air to have such a wealth of skill and resources available to a non-profit. They were invaluable to our successful launch!”

Heart Linked Community Services Cooperative

“Working with Co-operatives First was fantastic! We are still new to the cooperative world, and we relied heavily on their advice and expertise when drafting our rules/bylaws, and our memorandum of association. The team has experience with many different cooperative models, so they provided advice on what has and hasn’t worked for other cooperatives. We wouldn’t have been able to incorporate without their help!”

Ananda Cooperative

“We have had a very positive experience with everyone at Co-operatives First. They have helped us in multiple ways. Right from the first step in knowing how to incorporate, how to set our business and offering ideas for us to help steer us in the right direction plus allowing us to really make our own decisions. If our decisions go off track, they have gently guided us back to where we needed to be. The Co-operatives first guys are always eager to answer questions, and give ideas to us that got us off the ground.”

South East Butcher Block