ACE Offers a Better Way Forward for Ontario Child Care

ACE’s 10-Point Plan proposes practical reforms to improve affordability, access, workforce stability and parent choice

TORONTO, ONT, CANADA, October 30, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Following yesterday’s Care Counts rally at Queen’s Park, the Association of Canadian Early Learning Programs (ACE) is calling for a broader conversation about how Ontario can deliver affordable childcare to families still waiting for help.

ACE welcomes attention to the challenges facing families and educators. Too many parents cannot find care they can afford, operators face sustainability pressures, and workforce shortages continue to limit access.

But after five years of CWELCC implementation and significant public investment, ACE says governments must examine every practical option—including licensed childcare programs already operating in Ontario communities.

“Has anyone asked the families on waitlists how much longer they can afford to wait?” said Krystal Churcher, Executive Director of ACE. “Before asking Ontarians to fund more construction, governments should explain how they are making use of the licensed childcare programs already in their communities. Where an existing program is ready and willing to participate, what is preventing families from accessing affordable care there?”

City of Toronto figures show that 134 licensed childcare centres—including 44 non-profit and 90 for-profit centres—were outside CWELCC as of July 2, 2025.
ACE is calling for an assessment of existing programs willing and able to participate, available spaces, and the barriers preventing their inclusion. Bringing eligible existing programs into CWELCC could extend affordability to families already attending and, where staffed vacancies exist, help families waiting for care.

These programs would still require operating funding, but using existing infrastructure could avoid the cost and delay of new construction.

“Families are contributing through their taxes to a system many still cannot access, while paying full childcare fees or going without care,” said Churcher “They deserve a plan that considers every workable option. Their children will not stay preschool-aged while we wait for the system to catch up.”
A practical plan for affordability and access

ACE’s 10-Point Plan for Ontario proposes structural reforms to use public funding more effectively, reduce administrative burdens, support the workforce and preserve a diverse range of childcare options.

One proposal would allow fee subsidies to follow eligible children into licensed non-CWELCC centres, capped at CWELCC-equivalent rates. Other proposals address workforce stabilization and barriers to expansion where community need is demonstrated.

“Educators need fair compensation, and programs need stable funding to deliver quality care,” said Churcher. “The question is how we turn that investment into access for more families. That requires listening directly to parents, educators and the operators responsible for delivering care every day.”

ACE is urging provincial and municipal decision-makers to make existing licensed capacity a central part of Ontario’s childcare access strategy.

“Parents measure success by whether they can find quality care they can afford, in a program that meets their needs,” said Churcher. “That is the outcome every funding decision should work toward.”

Learn more about ACE’s plan and to take action: https://yourchildcare.ca/

Krystal Churcher, Executive Director
The Association of Canadian Early Learning Programs (ACE)
+1 780-838-3103
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