Universal Free Child Care Toronto

Child care

Universal Free Child Care Toronto

Child care is essential infrastructure for a working city.

As Mayor, I will work toward universal, $0-a-day licensed child care for Toronto families, beginning with children under six and expanding access as new spaces become available.

Toronto will not build a completely separate child-care bureaucracy. We will build on the billions already invested through the federal, provincial and municipal child-care system and use City resources strategically to eliminate the remaining parent fee.

Phase 1: Make Child Care Free for Families Who Need It Most

We will begin by eliminating remaining child-care fees for lower-income Toronto families and work to eliminate the existing child-care fee-subsidy waiting list.

Phase 2: Expand Toward Universal $0 Child Care

We will progressively expand eligibility to middle-income families and ultimately work toward eliminating base child-care fees for Toronto residents using participating licensed programs.

Our objective will be simple:

$0-a-day child care for Toronto families.

Phase 3: Create the Spaces

Free child care means very little if parents cannot find a space.

Toronto will establish a Child Care Expansion Strategy using:

• City-owned land and buildings;
• community centres and other public facilities;
• partnerships with Toronto school boards;
• new affordable-housing developments;
• partnerships with nonprofit and community organizations; and
• incentives to incorporate child-care centres into appropriate new developments.

New spaces will be prioritized in neighbourhoods with the greatest shortages.

Invest in Early Childhood Educators

Universal child care cannot exist without the people who provide it.

Toronto will develop an ECE workforce strategy focused on recruitment, retention, working conditions and competitive compensation so that new centres have qualified professionals to operate them.

Protect Toronto Taxpayers

Toronto residents already contribute through their federal, provincial and municipal taxes.

My administration will negotiate aggressively with Ontario and the federal government to maximize their contributions before asking Toronto property taxpayers to finance additional costs.

The City will publish annually:

How much child care costs.
How much Ottawa contributes.
How much Ontario contributes.
How much Toronto contributes.
How many children receive care.
How many families are waiting.
How many new spaces are being created.

Universal child care must be universal not only in price, but also in availability.

Our long-term goal is a Toronto where parents do not have to choose between working and caring for their children, and where access to safe, high-quality child care does not depend on a family’s income.

Universal access. Quality care. $0-a-day for Toronto families.

Questions? Email bethechangeno1@gmail.com, call (647) 785-3729