56 child-care projects planned for schools across Ontario 'cancelled': government docs

Editor's note: This article originally appeared on The Trillium, a Village Media website devoted exclusively to covering provincial politics at Queen’s Park.

Fifty-six child-care projects planned for schools across Ontario have been classified as "cancelled," potentially costing around $11 million in "sunk costs," according to a Ministry of Education document. 

The projects — which were set to create 3,493 child-care spots — were to be built at six boards' schools, a document The Trillium received through a freedom-of-information request said. The boards include the Toronto District School Board, Toronto Catholic District School Board, Peel District School Board, Durham District School Board, Simcoe County District School Board and Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board.

Last fall, The Trillium reported that dozens of child-care projects were in limbo after three of these school boards said an offer from the province to boost funding to cover increased costs for the projects wouldn't cut it. 

The Ministry of Education document shows there were more than just three school boards offered "25% additional funding," and that while six boards apparently decided to proceed with the projects, another six indicated they couldn't, while two said their decision was "still pending."

The government, meanwhile, says the almost 3,500 previously approved spots the cancelled projects would have created will be reallocated. 

"Following TB/MBC (Treasury Board/Management Board of Cabinet) approval, in August 2023, school boards were informed that the ministry would contribute 25% additional funding for previously approved 66 standalone child care projects that are not under construction to support cost overages and any cost overages above 25% would need to be managed by the board," the information note from the ministry said. "School boards were asked to indicate if the project would proceed and sources of funding or determine if the school board would forgo the project."

The 66 projects were approved with $131.8 million in funding and were estimated to create 4,026 child-care spaces. For the 56 "cancelled" projects, ministry staff estimated "approximately 10% of the original stand-alone child-care funding will be required for sunk costs."

"Both Toronto Catholic and Toronto District School Boards have indicated a desire for the projects to move forward but have indicated they do not have funding to support identified cost escalations. Therefore the projects were classified as cancelled," the document stated, adding, "it can be anticipated that there will be a strong public reaction to the perceived loss of the child-care spaces."

Tho Nguyễn, resident of Scarborough, where more than 20 projects are listed as cancelled, said it was "disappointing" that the projects were approved some time ago and "nothing happened."

"Those school-based child care would have been ... a perfect choice for me, because we know that there's more oversight and the quality would be better," said Nguyễn, who is 12-weeks pregnant and said she started putting her name on child-care waitlists as soon as she learned she was expecting four weeks ago. 

Nguyễn said she'd prefer school-based child care because it would provide familiarity for her child if they end up attending the same school.

The two Toronto boards and the provincial government have accused each other of causing delays. The boards said costs increased significantly due to ministry approval delays and inflation and asked the government to cover more than 25 per cent in additional funds. The previous education minister, Stephen Lecce, called this amount a "final" offer.

"I'm not going to defend seven-to-10-year wait periods ... I'm here as a steward of the taxpayer to get projects done quickly and efficiently because families need child care yesterday," Lecce said in February. "I'm determined to build every single space committed in those very same communities using a much more efficient vehicle like the community or a YMCA than building at a much higher cost, almost 300 per cent in some cases, that's going to take another seven years."

The ministry document said stand-alone projects, such as the ones it listed that are added to existing schools, "tend to be smaller in size, and do not have the economies of scale compared to school-based projects (new schools/additions)."

"As a result, these projects have a higher per square foot cost and has been experiencing larger cost escalations, as the tight labour market means that contractors are focusing on larger projects," it said. "The majority of recent tenders for stand-alone child care only projects have resulted in construction costs between $550 and $650 per square foot."

In March, Toronto District School Board (TDSB) chair Rachel Chernos Lin outlined two scenarios in a letter to Lecce — the board could either build 10 or 15 of the 28 projects that were approved several years ago in underserved areas "pending the authorization to proceed with pooled funding." But the government had previously indicated it wasn't considering pooling funding for the child-care projects.

Of the 28 TDSB child-care centres, 27 were approved more than five years ago. The TDSB had pledged to use around $14 million of its proceeds of disposition funding for 17 priority projects, but Chernos Lin previously said the board would still be short $43 million for these even after a funding boost from the province and the proceeds of disposition. 

In a February letter to Lecce, the Catholic board's chair, Nancy Crawford, called it "disheartening for families" that the government wouldn't go beyond the 25 per cent offer, and accused the province of "backing out of the necessary funding required." 

Asked to confirm whether the projects listed in the ministry document remain "cancelled," Crawford said in a statement on July 12 that the government had approved 20 projects that totalled 1,048 spots with $29.4 million in 2017-18 and 2021. 

"We have asked the ministry to honour this commitment and fund these projects," she said. 

Both board chairs have stressed the benefits of having child-care centres located within schools, with Crawford previously noting it offers a "seamless transition from early learning into the broader education system ... alleviates the stress families face when planning for their child’s care and educational journey, fosters a stronger connection with the school community."

As for sunk costs, Crawford said this could include costs for getting building permits, and while it's difficult to provide a dollar amount, current estimates would put these costs at around 10 to 12 per cent of the original funding. 

The Trillium reached out to all 13 school boards listed in the ministry document asking them to confirm the status of their projects and provide details on them, including any sunk costs. 

The Peel District School Board said the three projects that were approved for Shaw Public School Agnes ($1.5 million), Taylor Public School ($2.1 million) and Cashmere Public School ($2.1 million) are "on hold."

A spokesperson for the PDSB said the board had already invested about 8.5 per cent of the original funding on the three projects, including for costs like hiring a consultant architect to study the project design.

The Simcoe County District School Board confirmed it didn't go ahead with the child-care project at Chris Hadfield Public School in Bradford "due to a multitude of factors."

"Most notably, in 2017, the SCDSB had not yet been approved to build the two new elementary schools that now exist in Bradford, a community that had been and continues to experience significant growth," said spokesperson Sarah Kekewich. "As a result, Chris Hadfield P.S. was faced with extreme accommodation pressures and the space at the school was required for portables in order to ensure that existing students could be accommodated at the school."

Kekewich also said that Harvest Hills Public School, which opened in 2022, was approved soon after and has a child-care centre located in it. 

'Proceeding' and 'pending' projects

According to the ministry document, the six school boards that indicated they would proceed with eight projects to create 421 spaces include the Avon Maitland District School Board, Bruce-Grey Catholic District School Board, Grand Erie District School Board, Rainbow District School Board, Kenora Catholic District School Board and Trillium Lakelands District School Board. These boards were initially granted a total of $13.8 million in funding. 

A spokesperson for the Grand Erie District School Board confirmed that its two listed projects for Banbury Heights Elementary School and Cobblestone Elementary School are proceeding, with Banbury being tendered in June and Cobblestone expected to be tendered in the fall.

The projects were originally given $2.18 million and $2.22 million, respectively, with the government providing another approximately $550,000 for each project. Spokesperson Jenny Gladish said the board "will allocate up to $382,000 and $265,000, to Banbury and Cobblestone respectively, from its accumulated surplus, if necessary."

The number of child-care spots for Banbury Heights will also be reduced from 64 to 49 spots "as a result of a scope change."

Trillium Lakelands District School Board, which was listed in the document with one project for Gravenhurst Public School, said $1.66 million was approved for the project in 2017-18 and that it was granted an additional 25 per cent in funding. This funding is still short of what's needed, the board said. 

"Further conversation with the Ministry of Education indicated that there would be no additional funds available for this project and TLDSB does not have plans to fund any additional costs," spokesperson Carolynne Bull said. "At this point in time, the project is in the design phase and we are working with the ministry on the next steps."

The Kenora Catholic District School Board said its project at St. Louis Catholic Elementary School is proceeding, but that it wouldn't be able to provide further details without ministry approval. 

The other three boards did not respond to questions before publication. 

Neither did the Renfrew County Catholic District School Board and Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board, whose two projects, set to create 112 spots, were marked as "still pending," with the ministry document noting the boards "would like the projects to proceed but are working to identify sources of funding to support cost overages."

The document said the ministry gave school boards a deadline of Sept. 20, 2023 to let the government know whether or not they would proceed with the projects, with several boards asking for an extension until Sept. 28. 

It also said that with the 56 cancelled projects, $131 million of "child-care capital funding can be redirected to Capital Priorities to support school construction."

Carolyn Ferns, public policy co-ordinator with the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care (OCBCC), said that while new schools are needed, she thinks the funding allocated for the projects should go specifically towards child care. 

Additionally, the fact that the projects were previously approved warrants the government offering additional funds to get these projects built, said Ferns. 

"The truth is that the need for child care is so great across the province that we should be having child care going into each new school build, and we also need to have child care into existing schools like the ones listed here, and we need child care in communities," she said.

Ferns said it's "pretty troubling to see all of these projects cancelled," especially when some boards have been trying to find a way to proceed with them. 

"It's so clear that the province just isn't doing everything they can to make sure that non-profit and public expansion is happening where it needs to happen, and this is a symptom of that problem," she said, citing a request from Education Minister Todd Smith for the federal government to get rid of a cap on for-profit spaces in the $10-a-day program, as recently reported by the Canadian Press. 

Edyta McKay, a spokesperson for the education minister, said the government "is supporting the creation of new licensed childcare spaces that are affordable and close to home, including community-based or licensed home childcare."

"It is disappointing that families continue to wait for school boards to build these childcare spaces that were approved over 5 to 7 years ago. That’s why in August 2023 our government offered school boards an additional 25% funding increase to help get shovels in the ground and bring new spaces open faster," McKay said. "Should boards decide not to proceed with their project, these allocated childcare spaces will not be cancelled. Instead, they will be reallocated to other childcare providers in the same community. The government will be communicating with the remaining boards shortly."