The province is moving forward with the promise to create more day care spaces.
Education Minister Steven Lecce announced Monday that grants totaling $213-million will be made available to operators.
Ontario made a deal with the federal government earlier this year to create 10 dollar a day spots, and so far have created 18,000 of the 71,000 spots promised by 2026.
The new spaces will be allocated to communities across Ontario using a model that incorporates demographics, socio-economic indicators, and existing licensed child care capacity.
These one-time grants, prioritizing regions with historically low rates of space availability, will help child care operators offset the initial costs of expanding or creating spaces, such as purchasing equipment or renovating facilities.
The expanded program is part of the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system and includes a mix of not-for-profit and for-profit centres, a key priority of the Government of Ontario to respect and ultimately provide families with choice and flexibility.
The government also plans to enhance the availability of flexible models of care for a changing economy and labour market – for example, child care spaces that are available on weekends and overnight to support people who work shifts.