Latest News & Stories

Excerpt: "Manitoba commits to use federal funds to demonstrate meaningful progress on improving quality, including: developing and implementing evidence based quality frameworks, standards, and tools for early learning and child care; developing a wage grid for Early Childhood Educators and committing to its implementation; increasing the percentage of child care workers providing regulated child care in the province who fully meet Manitoba’s certification requirements by 15 percentage points by fiscal year 2025 to 2026."

Excerpt: "Yukon commits to using federal funding to increase the net number of regulated child care spaces for children under age 6 by 110 spaces, which is the number of new spaces required to achieve a coverage rate of 59% by fiscal year 2025 to 2026. In creating these 110 child care spaces, Yukon commits that: federal funding will be exclusively used to support creation of regulated spaces in not-for-profit and public child care providers/operators, as well as family-based child care; federal funding will be exclusively used to support licensed child care delivery by licensed providers."

Excerpt: "In fiscal year 2022 to 2023, Saskatchewan will work to develop a wage grid. Saskatchewan’s renewed funding model will recognize this wage grid and compensation of ECEs as an essential feature of child care funding. The wage grid developed in fiscal year 2022 to 2023 will serve as an anchor for determining appropriate compensation according to certification level. Saskatchewan will work towards implementing the wage grid as part of the renewed funding model."

Excerpt: "BC and Canada agree on the goal of $10 per day child care, and will work together towards achieving this goal for ages children aged 0 to 5 within 5 years. The ability to afford child care remains a significant barrier for families in BC. The fiscal year 2020 to 2021 average fees for group/centre-based care varies from $1,000 per month per child for infant care (after the $350 per month CCFRI fee reduction) to $470 per month per child for before/after school careFootnote 6. The introduction of CCFRI in 2018 rolled back child care fees; however, as fees continue to rise each year due to inflation, increased wages, etc., fees for some care types have returned to pre-CCFRI levels."

Excerpt: "To realize these objectives, I ask that you achieve results for Canadians by delivering the following commitments. Supported by the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth, continue advancing the creation and sustainability of a Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care system, including: Concluding negotiations with remaining provinces and territories and implementing agreements: Reducing fees for regulated child care by 50 per cent on average by the end of 2022 everywhere outside of Quebec, reducing regulated child care fees to $10 a day on average by the end of fiscal year 2025-2026 everywhere outside of Quebec, and building 250,000 new high-quality child care spaces and hiring 40,000 more early childhood educators by the end of fiscal year 2025-2026; Introducing federal child care legislation to strengthen and protect a high-quality Canada-wide child care system; Establishing a National Advisory Council on Early Learning and Child Care; Continuing to advance work with provinces and territories to reduce fees for families for before and after school care; and Ensuring the Federal Secretariat on Early Learning and Child Care is fully resourced and operational by early 2023."

Excerpt: "The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, and the Premier of the Northwest Territories, Caroline Cochrane, today announced an agreement that will support an average of $10 a day child care in the territory, significantly reducing the price of child care for families. Through today’s agreement and previous agreements, the governments of Canada and the Northwest Territories will work together to improve access to quality, affordable, flexible, and inclusive early learning and child care programs and services. This includes creating 300 new licensed early learning and child care spaces by the end of March 2026. All of these spaces will be provided exclusively by not-for-profit providers, including community and non-profit organizations as well as family day home providers. With federal funding of over $51 million over the next five years, the Northwest Territories will also see a 50 per cent reduction in average parent fees for children under the age of six in licensed child care by the end of 2022."

Since arriving at OISE in July 2018, Assistant Professor Cassie J. Brownell has been dialled into critically considering and amplifying young children’s literacies practices.

Excerpt: "With the upcoming reduction to $15 per day for families using regulated child care services under the Operating Grant Program (OGP), today the Honourable Tom Osborne, Minister of Education, announced corresponding changes to the Child Care Subsidy net income threshold for all child care services. As well, Minister Osborne announced the elimination of parental contributions under that program to support lower-income families in accessing regulated child care at a reduced or no cost. This change will also result in the elimination of parental contribution for all eligible Child Care Subsidy clients and free child care for eligible families using a child care service participating in the Operating Grant Program."

Excerpt: "This agreement will fund critical services, and grow a strong and skilled workforce of early childhood educators, including through the creation of a wage grid and greater opportunities for professional development. The agreement will also support an early learning and child care system that is fully inclusive of children with disabilities and children needing enhanced or individual supports, and ensures all families have equitable access to high-quality, affordable early learning and child care."

The Atkinson Centre promotes research on child development, and the development of early learning policy and practice that serve young children and their families.

Dana Sheikh, Matthew Stodolak and Joel Mukwedeya have been recognized for their volunteer service with the University of Toronto’s Arbor Award.

Excerpt: "The Government of Saskatchewan prioritizes allocating new child care spaces in communities where there is both a high need for child care and a higher level of vulnerability, and to organizations that are ready to move forward with centre development. Organizations will be provided with start-up grants and enhanced space development funding to support the creation of child care centre spaces."