Some Toronto daycares close to protest Ontario funding rules

Some daycares in Toronto and the GTA closed Tuesday to protest the province's new child-care funding approach, which they say could put them at risk of permanently shutting down — but the education minister says the changes will go ahead. 

The new formula, which will take effect in January, impacts daycares enrolled in the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) program, the federal government's plan to reduce fees to $10 a day. 

Some daycare operators say the province's changes could under fund their centres, limit operations and threaten their financial autonomy. They say they won't be able to cover costs for special programming or additional staff.

"We're really punishing our educators," said Zoe Prassoulis, who runs a daycare in Vaughan. "These are the backbone of child care, these are the people that are taking care of the most precious thing in people's lives."

Currently, the government covers the amount of money that parents saved when daycare fees were reduced. But the province's new funding formula will be cost-based, meaning operators will receive a main pool of funding based on factors – including location, how many spaces they operate and the age groups they serve. 

Prassoulis was among daycare operators and staff at a rally at Queen's Park on Tuesday, calling on the province to pause implementing the new framework and consult with child-care providers. 

"We're asking them to consult with us, not just roll out this program and say: 'Hey, this is how it's going to be,'" Prassoulis said. 

Starting January, the province is also capping parent fees at $22 an hour, down from $23. The province said it's aiming to lower fees to $10 an hour by March 2026. 

Earlier this month, a group of mainly for-profit daycare operators across Ontario threatened a week of rolling closures to protest the provincial changes starting Monday in Toronto, Peel, York, Halton, Barrie, Muskoka, Durham and potentially other regions.

Minister of Education Jill Dunlop said the province is planning to move forward with the new funding plan. She said the formula was created after consultations with daycare operators. 

"We've met them, we've listened to those concerns and we took those into consideration when developing the new funding formula," she said on Tuesday. 

She said she plans to meet with the protesting daycare operators on Thursday. 

Dunlop said she's met with federal Minister of Families Jenna Sudd and is calling on the federal government to provide more funds for child care. 

She said Ontario is currently providing three times more in funding toward child care in the province than the federal government.