Excerpts:
First and foremost, there is a need for a cohesive policy framework that includes all of the early learning opportunities available to children in the province. CMSMs, school boards, and community partners currently form a fragmented system that is scumbersome to administer and difficult to navigate. Provincial leadership is needed to mandate that all of these partners work together in the planning and delivery of various services. A commitment to and clear articulation of the roles and responsibilities of the various parties involved in funding and planning child care - provincial ministries, municipalities and school boards - is needed. Coordinated service planning must be led by CMSMs so that both school-and communitybased child care spaces are properly planned from the perspective of the entire system. A new funding formula should sustain this role by allowing CMSMs across the province to address needs in a locally responsive way - within a provincial framework that sets strategic goals and directions.
These roles and responsibilities must be supported by a legislative and regulatory framework that reduces duplication, provides flexibility to operators, rationalizes and decreases differences in different program areas, and allows for new program models where needed (i.e. for six-12 year olds).
Finally, there is an ongoing need for additional resources in child care. The majority of children have no access to high quality care, and affordability and sustainability issues remain key challenges in the sector. The City would like to reiterate the need for federal funding in child care and would like more transparency regarding the provincial use of the Canada Social Transfer (CST), which is a federal block transfer program that can be used for a number ofsocial programs, including early childhood development, learning and care. The provincial government is encouraged to use its flexibility under the program to make full use of the amount of the transfer that is available for early child development, learning and care. The Province is also encouraged to report on the portion of the CST that is used annually for this purpose. At the same time, indexation of provincial contributions is essential just to maintain the system as it currently exists. Future priorities must respond to the ongoing need for more early learning opportunities in a variety of settings.
See also:
Child care in Ontario: A call for transformation, not tinkering