The City’s Community and Protective Services Committee today approved a five-year plan for child care and early years services. Based on extensive consultations, the goal of the plan is to increase access, affordability, quality and responsiveness, to give children in Ottawa the best possible start in life.
Changes in provincial funding for child care services will create a $6.3-million budget pressure in Ottawa’s 2020 budget. While the Province plans to reduce administrative costs, there is little information about how or when this will happen. Staff will include budget mitigation strategies in the 2020 draft budget for Council consideration so municipal taxpayers will not need to cover the shortfall from provincial funding cuts.
