Welcome. The Single Mothers' Alliance is a membership based non-profit of female lone-caregivers raising our children in communities throughout BC. Only 20% of children live in lone-parent families in BC however over half (55.2%) of all children in poverty are in lone-parent households in the province. In 2019, 80.4% of lone-parent led households were female-led. As of 2019, of the 156, 560 children living in poverty in BC, over half of these children, 83, 080 of them, are being raised in predominantly female lone-parent households. An alarming 78% of children living on welfare in BC are in predominantly female-led lone-parent households.
Our purpose is to alleviate the poverty of female lone-caregivers in BC through contributing to the development of government policy that impacts reducing and ending poverty for women. We carry out this mandate through research into policy solutions and raising public awareness about the importance of a public policy approach. We advocate for law and policy reform and lobby government to implement policy solutions.
Since we founded in 2014, SMA has been defined by a grassroots organizing model. Such an approach ensures that SMA facilitates access to capacity building and tools for impacting change that build power, transferable skills and leadership for our members and participants in BC as we carry out the work of the organization.
Our initiatives, policy proposals and lobbying activities are determined through listening campaigns we conduct with lone-mothers and lone-caregivers throughout BC. In March, April and May 2021, we carried out a province-wide listening campaign and a pandemic impact survey to determine our strategic priorities for 2021-2024.
We employ an anti-oppression decolonizing approach to all we do.
We are grateful for the financial support of our funders including Women and Gender Equality Canada, the Vancouver Foundation and the Vancity Community Foundation.
Statistics quoted here are care of First Call's 25th Child Poverty Report Card.
We officially endorse the $10 A Day Child Care Plan for BC.
Thank you to our generous funders without whom we would not be able to do our work.
The Single Mothers' Alliance Acknowledges the financial support of Women and Gender Equality Canada.
The Single Mothers' Alliance Acknowledges the financial support of the Vancouver Foundation.
The Single Mothers' Alliance acknowledges the financial support of the Vancity Community Foundation.
