Cumberland Early Intervention Program Information

The Cumberland Early Intervention Program is celebrating its 25th Anniversary. We wanted to take this opportunity to let you know a little bit about our program and what we have been up to for the past 25 years! The Cumberland Early Intervention Program is a non-profit, registered charity administered by a volunteer board of directors. The program has been in operation since May 1990. The program is partially funded by the Province of Nova Scotia's Department of Education and Early Years, Department of Community Services and by the United Way of Cumberland County. We otherwise depend on fundraising and the generosity of individuals, organizations, and business' in order to continue providing services to all of Cumberland County. Early Intervention provides support to families with young children (birth to six years) with special needs. Our program has assisted families with children who have Autism, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, visual and hearing impairment, children who are at risk due to prematurity and other birth complications, just to name a few. The program is focused "in-home" where they are most comfortable and so families do not have to travel. We provide information on their child's diagnosis or delay and on typical child development, access to local programs/supports, assistance in contacting and communicating with professionals, assistance in transitions to new programs or school, and access to developmentally appropriate equipment and toys. We help build upon the parents skills so they can help support their child to reach their full potential. Since the program's inception we have served more than 1000 children and their families. At any given time the caseload includes 40-60 families who are in need of early intervention services. We have also expanded our service to serve families with children ages 3-16 with behavior and emotional needs or parenting challenges through the Parenting Journey Program.