Region of Waterloo to gain hundreds of new childcare spaces
In a news release on Wednesday, the Region of Waterloo announced the Ministry of Education has allocated 411 new childcare spaces for the area under the Canada Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) agreement, funded by the provincial and federal governments.
Children's Services for the Region of Waterloo will also receive $7,902,660 in infrastructure and startup funding to create the new spaces in the hopes of lowering the cost of daycare to an average of $10 per day by 2026.
A report presented to the region's Community and Health Services Committee on Tuesday notes, even with the additional funding, demand for childcare will continue to far exceed available spaces.
'Before CWELCC, the waitlist in Waterloo Region for licensed childcare was around 5,600 children – now it is over 13,000 children, of which 8,700 indicate they are looking for care immediately,' the report said.
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