Ontario is making further changes to its $10-a-day child-care program funding in a bid to boost uptake.
It comes as nearly a quarter of operators are still undecided about opting in less than two weeks before the November 1st deadline.
The Ministry of Education sent a memo to licensed child-care providers this week saying the new guidelines aim to make it easier for operators to participate in the program.
The funding changes essentially continue amendments recently announced for this year into 2023, and give centres a dollar-for-dollar replacement for parent fees that will be soon cut in half -- instead of adding language about profit caps and ineligible expenses.
When those changes were first introduced in August, a senior government source told The Canadian Press that opt-ins did increase, but the government wants to boost that further.
But some operators say they need details beyond 2023.
The Ontario Association of Independent Childcare Centres says they are being asked to sign an open-ended contract with no guarantees about funding past next year, and small businesses can't remain viable without more clarity and planning.
(The Canadian Press)<
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