Ontario child care centers that are not part of the $10 a day program will lose provincial funding starting in 2025, including subsidies for families and a pay raise for staff that could cut their pay by $2 an hour. Families already receiving subsidies will keep them, but new families will not be able to access them at these centers.

The funds will be used to support the $10 a day program. This decision will make it more difficult for child care centers outside the program to operate and limit access to child care, according to Andrea Hannen of the Ontario Child Care Operators Association. Centers outside the program can set their own rates and subsidies, but they will have to close or raise fees.

The $10 a day program is intended to be primarily public and not-for-profit, but caps on private spots are preventing it from expanding.

Anastasia Chupina