Project Overview

Investing in Futures: An Independent Living Approach to Education Savings Incentives was launched in spring 2007. This three year national project will support member Independent Living Centres (ILCs) to provide post-secondary Education and Savings resources, tools and supports to parents with disabilities as well as the parents of children with disabilities. As tools and resources are developed, they will be posted. The 2007 series of seven Information Sheets was the first resource available for download; the series was updated in 2009.

Investing in Futures has three specific Project Objectives:

• To promote and facilitate methods of post secondary savings to parents with disabilities and parents of children with disabilities; 
• To design and implement a national outreach, training, and awareness campaign on the educational savings plan initiative to be delivered through member ILCs across Canada; and
• To facilitate diverse partnerships at the local, regional, and national level.

Designed to enable participants to take advantage of existing government education and savings incentives, this is a comprehensive national initiative that will create greater awareness of the benefits of Registered Educational Savings Plans, Canada Educational Savings Grants, Canada Learning Bonds and the Alberta Centennial Education Savings Plan.

Independent Living Canada will enhance the capacity of its member Centres to support persons with disabilities and parents with children with disabilities in accessing education and savings information and to access training in order to help support local communities.

This project aims to ensure that interested individuals have access to financial institutional services and financial literacy programs that will enable long-term savings goals are met.  Member ILCs are well connected within the communities they support and as a part of their core programming already provide supports and education on issues related to parenting with a disability and financial issues. As such, our network is well situated to implement such a program, and to reach out to underserved individuals and community allies.

Other Investing in Futures resources and tools for IL Centre internal use only are posted in the National Projects section within the VILRC. 

This project is funded by the Canadian Government though the Department of Human Resources and Social Development.