LONDON — The Ontario government is expanding licensed child care spaces in the City of London by investing $62.3 million in 2023 to support the implementation of the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system. The funding will help create an additional 2,889 licensed child care spaces enrolled in the CWELCC system in Ontario in the City of London by 2026, representing a 28 per cent increase of new spaces for children aged zero to five in the community. These new spaces are on top of the 9,092 spaces enrolled in the CWELCC system in the City of London last year.
“We are delivering savings directly to families while increasing access to child care spaces for families across London,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education. “Our government believes that child care should not be the cost of a mortgage payment, which is why we have already reduced child care fees by 50 per cent on average and continue to deliver on our commitment to build new child care spaces in areas that need them most.”
These new spaces will be affordable for families already benefiting from a significant reduction of child care fees by 50 per cent on average. Families are saving an annual average of $6,000 to $10,000 per child.
“Access to affordable child care should not be optional,” said Jenna Sudds, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development. “For too long, families have faced high monthly child care fees, long waitlists and a lack of child care options. Every time a new space is created, we are bridging the gap for families, and delivering on our promise as a government for an affordable, flexible and inclusive Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care system.”
Ontario remains committed to the success of the CWELCC system and will continue to work with municipalities and the sector to ensure affordable child care is available in communities where it is needed most.
Quick Facts
- In September 2023, the Ontario government made changes to allow all families eligible for a fee subsidy to be able to apply outside of their city’s boundaries. This will provide more choices for families, including giving them better access to child care that matches their religious beliefs, cultural background, linguistic needs, or is closer to their workplace.
- Ontario’s child care system offers a range of options for families with differing needs, including licensed, unlicensed, for-profit, not-for-profit, centre/school-based and home-based child care.
- As of June 2023, 92 per cent of Ontario’s licensed child care spaces for ages zero to five were enrolled in the CWELCC system, meaning at these facilities across the province, families with children under the age of six are already seeing fee reductions of 50 per cent on average compared to 2020 levels.
- There are more than 5,500 licensed child care centres, 145 licensed home child care agencies, and around 473,000 licensed spaces in Ontario.
- Since 2018, the Ontario government has invested over $2.2 billion in capital projects within the education sector, including nearly 6,500 new, licensed child care spaces within schools. For 2022-23, the Ontario government has invested more than $57 million to create 1,502 school-based licensed child care spaces for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.
- In March 2022, Ontario secured a five-year, $10.2 billion agreement with the federal government which will lower fees for families to an average of $10 a day. Ontario aims to reach that target by September 2025. In December 2022, as part of that agreement, Ontario announced a targeted plan to create thousands of new licensed child care spaces, with a focus on increasing access to Ontario families.
- The Ontario government has streamlined the application process for new child care operators when they apply for a licence. They will learn about their eligibility for CWELCC child care funding before investing heavily in becoming licensed. The applicants will also have to submit key municipal approvals, including zoning and permitted use, together with their application.
Quotes
“This investment is needed and welcome here in London. Creating affordable child care spaces where they are needed most is just one way our government is supporting families in Ontario.”
– Rob Flack
Associate Minister of Housing and MPP for Elgin–Middlesex–London
“As one of the fastest growing communities in Canada, this investment in children and families is absolutely essential to London. This will provide a significant increase in the number of available child care spaces. We are all committed to providing the highest quality of care and education for our children while supporting the needs of families as they build a brighter future here in London.”
– Josh Morgan
Mayor of London
SOURCE Province of Ontario
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