Supporting a child with disability or additional needs.
Disability support can involve health care, school, equipment, respite, benefits and long-term planning. This guide brings the main PEI and federal starting points together.
Part of our Health & Mental Health resource series. See the main Health & Mental Health guide for the wider topic and related resources. Following a guided route? Return to the School & health route.
Information reviewed September 2026. Program rules, benefits and services can change, so use the linked official source for current requirements.
A disability can change the kind of support a grandfamily needs.
A caregiver may suddenly be responsible for therapies, assessments, school plans, equipment, transportation, appointments or behaviour support that the child’s parent previously managed. Other families discover developmental or disability-related needs only after the child has moved in.
You do not need to know the correct program name before asking for help. Start with what the child is having difficulty doing and what support would make daily life safer or more manageable.
PEI AccessAbility Supports
PEI’s AccessAbility Supports program serves Islanders with diagnosed physical, intellectual, neurological, sensory or mental disabilities who experience significant impairment in daily activities and meet program criteria.
Support can include personal supports, community participation, technical aids and assistive devices, housing-related supports and caregiver supports. Current program information includes respite, supervision support for some applicants over age 12 who cannot safely be left alone, and behavioural supports.
Government of PEI: AccessAbility Supports
Children with Complex Needs Navigation
PEI’s Children with Complex Needs Navigation Program helps families of children under 18 whose physical, developmental, behavioural or emotional conditions significantly affect daily functioning. The navigator does not provide medical treatment or change wait-list priority, but can help with education, advocacy, referrals and finding medical and non-medical services.
PEI Children with Complex Needs Navigation Program
Disability Tax Credit and Child Disability Benefit
Disability Tax Credit, DTC
The DTC is a non-refundable federal tax credit for people with severe and prolonged impairments in physical or mental functions. A medical practitioner certifies the effects of the impairment and CRA decides eligibility.
Approval can also open access to other federal programs.
CRA: Disability Tax CreditChild Disability Benefit, CDB
The CDB is a tax-free monthly payment for families caring for a child under 18 with a severe and prolonged impairment. The caregiver must be eligible for CCB and the child must qualify for the DTC.
If both requirements are already met, CRA calculates the CDB automatically.
CRA: Child Disability BenefitSchool can be part of the support network.
PEI Student Well-being Teams work in all Island public schools and provide direct support around mental, social and physical health. Students, caregivers and school staff can connect with the team, and self-referral is available.
For learning or disability-related needs, ask the school what assessments, adaptations, individualized planning or student services are appropriate for the child.
Keep one disability and health file.
- Diagnostic and assessment reports.
- Medication and allergy information.
- Therapy and specialist contacts.
- School plans and accommodations.
- Equipment information.
- AccessAbility Supports correspondence.
- DTC approval and CRA correspondence.
- Receipts for disability-related expenses.
Think ahead to adulthood.
Child-focused health, school and benefit systems can change when a young person turns 18. If the young person may need ongoing disability supports, decision-making assistance, housing support or adult services, begin transition planning well before the birthday.
More help for the next part of this situation.
FASD & prenatal exposure
FASD can create lifelong support needs across school, health and daily living.
Read: FASD & prenatal exposureTaxes for caregivers
DTC, caregiver credits and medical expenses may affect tax planning.
Read: Taxes for caregiversYouth mental-health crisis
Know where to turn if disability and mental-health needs escalate into a crisis.
Read: Youth mental-health crisisDisability support can also change the family's finances.
Our disability-benefits guide brings together the DTC, Child Disability Benefit, Canada Caregiver Credit, disability amount transfers, RDSP grants and bonds, and the transition at age 18.
If FASD is part of the picture, use the FASD-specific guides.
Could this be FASD?
Understand assessment, records and PEI health navigation.
FASD assessment & diagnosisDisability benefits
DTC, Child Disability Benefit, caregiver tax credits and RDSP may be relevant when eligibility criteria are met.
Disability benefits guideWas this page helpful?
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