Statements in Debates
When we're providing program services in the Northwest Territories, we always engage and consult with our stakeholders moving forward. Aboriginal Head Start has been very successful, and they focus on the culture and identity of the people of the Northwest Territories, and that's something that we're really implementing within our education system from JK to grade 12 and beyond and we want to make sure that some of their best practices and around the curriculum that we're developing is working closely together.
Early childhood is an important aspect of the work we do here within the Department of Education, Culture and Employment as well as working with the Department of Health and Social Services to make sure that our children get the right education, the right start to a long life and a very prosperous future. Working with that are groups, whether it's daycares, day homes, Aboriginal Head Start, we take all that into consideration when we're supporting them. We have supported Aboriginal Head Start for the last few years and will continue to support them and work with them to make sure that the...
I do believe that is part of our economic drivers, as well, but we've got to look at our cultures, our traditions, our values for the people that were here, our First Nations, our Inuit people that helped shape the Northwest Territories to what it is. So it's more than an economic driver, it's preserving culture, it's preserving language, it's preserving what our ancestors, our grandparents have laid before us. So it's more than an economic driver and more than a tourism thing, it's about preserving our culture and heritage in the Northwest Territories for the people that helped build this...
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don't have the full details of the heritage funds that we have here for the Northwest Territories. I know we do work closely with our federal counterparts to look at some of our cultural sites as well as our museums and the learning centres we have in the communities to do some of that work in terms of heritage, but I can get the numbers and I'll get them to the Member. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I believe in 2015 this government did put an increase on food allowances. The Northern Food Basket was what we looked at in terms of how we provided an income for food in the Northwest Territories. Obviously, there's one federally, and we wanted to make one for the North so we developed our own Northern Food Basket. As a result, we did put an increase in 2015. There is no index for income assistance. We don't index it to anything. So we feel that what we offer in income assistance is sufficient for families and individuals that need income assistance in the Northwest Territories.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We'll have to look at the promise that was made by the previous Finance Minister. We are in a new government in the 18th Legislative Assembly, so we'll have to take a look at that, but the benefits and the increases in the changes that we've made to our Income Assistance program is actually benefiting families a lot more than what was in the previous year and even in the previous government. As I mentioned last week in the House, families are going to receive up to about $740,000 to $750,000 this fiscal year, in the fiscal year since we've made these improvements, but...
That's exactly what we're doing with this survey. As I mentioned in this House during this session. We also got a motion that as passed earlier in the week supporting the roll outs of a junior kindergarten and making sure that those surveys that addressed the concerns that are brought forward will be meeting the needs of the school, and we're having our engagements with the schools and the communities to ensure that they have the resources needed to implement junior kindergarten.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and we did see the concerns in the press earlier this week. I can inform the Member that we do have two schools that fall under the Yellowknife Catholic School Boards that offer programs from kindergarten to Grade eight. The school in particular that he's mentioning does have a utilization rate of 79 per cent and at 85 per cent then we start looking at extensions as well as renovations. Now, the other school that they have has a capacity rate of 58 per cent.
We will have conversations with the superintendent how to address those concerns from the Yellowknife Catholic...
The gap in resources, I'd like to hear if it is anything specific. We've been out engaging, we've been hearing the responses that needed to be met. We've addressed those needs and the concerns, but for the gaps I'd like the Member to let me know where they are rather than some of the projected numbers where I actually have some of the actual numbers in front of me. We're still putting that plan together as the motion said earlier this week. So in two days, I don’t think I could get a plan together from what the motion said, but we will have that in time for implementation in 2017-2018.
The numbers that I have stated that the school in question is at 79 per cent, so we'll have to follow up with the superintendent and have our staff speak with the superintendent to make sure which numbers are correct. The numbers before me are 79, and if we are at 90 per cent and we are over utilization capacity, then we'll have to speak with the school board.