Link to press release no longer available
Text of the press release:
Child care advocates are shocked by the death of 14 month old Duy-An Nguyen in an unlicensed home child care. Our condolences go out to her family and everyone affected by this tragedy.
As a result of the tragedy, the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care is calling for Coroner's Inquiry which would investigate the death and system failures in Ontario's child care system that allowed it to occur.
The first choice of many parents is a licensed, regulated environment to provide education and care for young children.
Ontario has a system of licensed home child care where home-based providers face an annual inspection, monitoring to ensure compliance with the Day Nurseries Act and receive support to provide child care.
In response to the death, Minister of Education Leona Dombrowsky said: "It's very important for parents to pay some attention to the service that they engaged for providing care for their children," (Toronto Star,Jan 8).
Ontario has tens of thousands of children on waiting lists for licensed centre-based child care and licensed home child care. With a huge shortage of licensed child care spaces in Ontario, parents who need child care are often forced to forgo licensed child care and must rely on informal options.
"We have a system of licensed home child care. To allow someone to advertise and charge for child care in their home, but opt-out of licensing requirements puts children at risk. The Ontario Government is doing nothing to provide safeguards for families. The Ontario Government must ensure a safe environment for all children and ensuring access to high quality, affordable child care for all families who choose to access the service." said Andrea Calver, Coordinator, Ontario Coalition for Better Child
Care.