Child care spaces begin to open
Image courtesy of Northumberland County.
By Cecilia Nasmith
By next week, 50 Northumberland children will move from waiting list to child-care space, with work on preparing spaces for 82 more now ongoing.
Northumberland County announces that, by Jan. 20, 50 children will move from waiting list to child-care space – with work on three facilities ongoing that will prepare space for 82 more.
These spaces include 30 in Port Hope (with Ganaraska Child Care operating out of the former Ruth Clarke Activity Centre, 81 Mill St. S.), Warkworth (with YMCA Northumberland at 161 Old Hastings Rd.) and Cobourg (with YMCA Northumberland and the Northumberland Centre for Individual Studies at 780 D'Arcy St.).
These facilities are in the midst of a hiring process for 10 new staff members to help open those 82 spaces as soon as possible.
This could not have happened without the strong collaboration of community partners, Early Years Service Manager Lesley Patterson said.
“We thank our two child-care providers fore their dedication and support in managing services at these new facilities,” said Patterson.
“The Municipality of Port Hope has also prioritized this initiative, playing an essential role by making municipal-facility space available to expedite this expansion.
“Additionally, we would like to recognize our construction partners for completing the renovations required to make these spaces available to the community.”
This is part of a broader expansion initiative by the county in partnership with the Government of Canada, the Province of Ontario, and local municipalities and community organizations, including nearly $1.7-million from the federal and provincial governments for construction, equipment and supplies for facility upgrades and retrofits. Through this expansion, the county plans to provide a total of 404 new high-quality affordable and accessible early-learning and child-care services to Northumberland families by the end of 2026.
It's not just about meeting current needs, Patterson commented.
“It is also about ensuring that future generations of children have access to the best start in life through high-quality inclusive early-childhood education.”
Warden Brian Ostrander said the investment from the federal and provincial levels has been instrumental in this regard.
“We are grateful for their continued support, which will ensure that more families in our community have access to affordable and high-quality early-learning and child-care services,” Ostrander remarked.
Families in need of child care are strongly encouraged to get their names on waitlists for any of the child-care facilities in this area, as this will increase their chances of securing a placement.
Those interested in a career in the Early Years sector can learn more (including a list of local job opportunities) at Northumberland.ca/ECE.
And by early February, you can track updated data on the county's performance in delivering on child-care expansion efforts by visiting the performance dashboard at Northumberland.ca/Dashboard.
