The Parents & Professionals Plan - P + P Plan

04/06/2025

Advocacy in Action 🚨

Our Executive Director, Jennifer Newby, presented this week at the BC 2026 budget consultations, pushing for expanded individualized funding for all disability groups, plus a school district audit to ensure education dollars are being spent where they’re needed most.

We hear about education being underfunded, but there’s little accountability for how the money is used. It’s time to change that. 💜

09/04/2025

A new report from Kids Brain Health Network, outlines disability policies and includes firsthand accounts from caregivers affected by those policies.
It’s clear that policy shortcomings in B.C. are negatively impacting children with disabilities and their families.
Embedding disability rights in policy is the way forward.

Search the title below to read the opinion piece coauthored by our board chair.

28/03/2025

Good news!

For families outside the lower mainland, it is now slightly easier to get your Autism Funding established! Check it out here:

Learn about how funding works for children with autism, funding amounts for children under six, and children six through eighteen.

07/01/2025

Children with complex medical needs should have equitable access to quality health care and supports that meet their needs as they grow. For Goldie, this means daily nursing support to keep her healthy, well supported, and her family whole.

To read the full article and to watch the video, search "BC family denied nursing care".
Josie Osborne Jodie Wickens

24/12/2024

We appreciate this thoughtful opinion article written by Dr Jennifer Balfour.

"School failure is a massively important predictor of mental health, of vulnerability to substance misuse, and to economic disparity.

For all the articles about substance use on the streets, and untreated mental health, there is a need for review of educational governance, accountability, collaboration, with data-informed change ideas, and true energy for action."

Read it in the Times Colonist by searching this headline

26/11/2024

23/09/2024

Another eloquent article that directly ties to our Pillar - Delivery. Core health needs & supportive housing should never be subject to discretionary budgets under / . Demand ⬆️50% but no projected budget growth is cruel.

16/09/2024

What a powerful article. This service provider noted the intense labor shortage, which is a critical issue for the Family Connection Centres, and put in the work to build a collaborative of service providers for change. They also have a website to make it easier to contact your local MLA's.

“We are committed to ensuring that government policies not only honour the rights of children and youth with special and diverse needs but also address systemic inequities and ***advocate for individualized supports and family choice when it comes to supports for youth with special needs***.” (emphasis ours)

Read it here:
https://www.castanet.net/news/Vernon/504842/Vernon-specialist-calling-for-better-autism-supports-province-wide

Sign it here:
https://www.supportbcfamilies.ca/

15/08/2024

Actions have consequences; so does inaction. is seeing impacts of ignoring the "Pay Now or Pay Later" report. There is a better way! Expand Funding to other groups. can be proactive.

This video sums the issue up very nicely:
https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMrsvKhtQ/

28/03/2024

An incredible commentary on the current state of affairs with MCFD. This line especially resonated:

"The government could go back and find all the previous reviews and reports, the “new roadmaps” “new visions for mental health care” and not write another until they have read the ones already written, and accounted, in a public facing way, for how they have or have not met previous recommendations to improve access, to integrate ministries, to listen to schools and physicians and other professionals, and to be less reactive and more anticipatory."
###https://www.timescolonist.com/opinion/comment-for-the-sake-of-children-this-ministry-needs-a-reset-8515257

23/03/2024

Grateful to this Dad for speaking up - there is little or no discourse around complex kids. These diagnoses are core health and should be treated as such - social services is not appropriate.