Excerpts
Introduction
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This report provides an annual snapshot and detailed year-over-year trends of, Ontario’s child care sector that will help to inform future plans and policy. In addition, the report supports Ontario's commitments to informing the public on progress made under the federal-provincial early learning and child care agreements. Most of the data presented in this report were collected between March 2022 and March 2023.
2022 was a milestone year for the early years and child care system in our province. Ontario and Canada signed the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) Agreement that will support Ontario to achieve average fees of $10 per day for children under the age of six. The agreement focuses on five priority areas, including lowering fees, increasing access, enhancing quality, supporting inclusion and strengthening data/reporting.
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In addition to work on the CWELCC system, in 2022–23 the province continued to implement two existing federal-provincial early learning and child care agreements.
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Ontario is committed to continuing to deliver high-quality, affordable child care and early years programs to families in every corner of the province. In 2023, the province and Canada invested $3.86 billion in early years and child care. This included:
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Ontario’s licensed child care system continued to grow in 2022–23, supporting more children and families.
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In summary, this report shows that Ontario’s early years and child care sector has showed strong growth and demonstrated significant achievements over the past year. These achievements could not be reached without the collaboration and leadership of our hardworking partners: our early years and child care workers, program operators, First Nation communities, Consolidated Municipal Service Managers and District Social Services Administration Boards and the federal government.
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