Four years into $10/day program, child-care waitlists growing in some Ontario cities

When Angela Zhu learned she was pregnant, she joined 40 daycare waitlists in Toronto, believing it would be enough. The program's annual cost, including taxes, was $205.00 for the first year, with automatic renewal at $233.00 annually. Despite her efforts, a year after her son's birth, they only secured a spot 30 minutes away, beginning nearly a month after she planned to return to work.

This situation, while fortunate compared to others, persisted for over three years after joining the waitlists. Ontario, while participating in the $10-a-day program, has not yet achieved the target fee of $10 per day, with fees capped at $22 daily, far lower than pre-program rates of $70 for some daycare spots. However, increased demand since the fee reduction has led to critical access issues in certain regions.

Ontario aimed to create 86,000 affordable spaces under the federal agreement but has fallen short, reaching only around 60,000. The demand growth is estimated to require up to 220,000 new spaces. In Toronto, one daycare's waitlist has surpassed 700 children, with operators closing it multiple times due to intense demand. Centralized waitlists in the Region of Waterloo have seen a 200% increase since 2021, with 15,000 children waiting.

Thunder Bay's waitlist has more than doubled, with 1,235 infants alone on the list. Ottawa's demand has surged 300% since 2019, with 8,500 children currently on the central waitlist. The city meets about three-quarters of demand but needs approximately 7,400 additional spaces to fully address it. Ontario allocated around 2,900 spaces for Ottawa under the program, but families like Hana Park's left the area due to the inability to secure a spot.

Park, who moved to Gatineau, Que., expressed her hopes for better access when the $10-a-day program launched but now finds the situation dire.