Information for Parents & Families

• This information is to assist parents with child care information and support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last Updated: July 30, 2020

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​Changes to Enrolment Start September 1

All child care centres who opt in will continue to receive Temporary Emergency Funding (TEF) until the end of the summer, August 31, 2020. TEF helps child care centres to remain operational with reduced enrolment and to accept children of Essential Service Workers.

• Until August 31, 2020, child care centres receiving TEF must continue to prioritize care for Essential Service Workers and continue to not charge families who temporarily withdrew from care.
• Beginning September 1, 2020, child care centres will go back to their pre-pandemic enrolment.

If you have any questions about your specific child care situation, contact your child care centre directly.

If You Require Child Care

Based on current public health advice, you are able to return your children to their child care provider, if you choose to do so. If your child care provider does not have available space please request a temporary emergency child care space. 

Accessing child care space:

• Review the Request Temporary Emergency Child Care for the list of prioritized roles
• If a facility receiving TEF has available child care spaces providers may, but are not required to, offer those spaces to families in other fields of work who are unable to care for their children at home during this time
• Eligible families will continue to receive the Affordable Child Care Benefit, if your provider is open and charging you a fee
• Families must follow the provided health and safety guidelines

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Returning to Care

• All child care centres must follow the Child Care Setting Practice Standards
• Child care centres continue to make individual choices as to when they wish to resume operations
• Child care centres receiving TEF must continue to prioritize children of essential service workers
• If your child care centre is at capacity with children of essential service workers and can’t yet accommodate you as a returning family who is not an essential service worker, please contact your local CCRR or use the online matching service by completing the Request Temporary Emergency Child Care Form for referral to an available space in another centre
• As the child care sector transitions to resuming care at full capacity and TEF is withdrawn, the agreement you made with your provider prior to withdrawing your child from care will come into effect. Likely this means you will return to your previous child care spot and resume paying fees for child care

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Funding

Temporary Emergency Funded Centres

Centres that opt-in to receive Temporary Emergency Funding that are:

• Closed must not charge fees to families and must reserve the space for the child once the pandemic passes
• Open must
  • Prioritize available spaces for children of essential service workers where able to do so
  • Not charge fees to families that choose to withdraw their child temporarily due to COVID-19 related issues or concerns
  • Offer families that have temporarily withdrawn their child the space back when the child returns once the pandemic passes
• If open - centres may charge families fees for using the child care space during COVID-19 pandemic

List of Open Child Care Operators

To better assist parents in finding a child care space in their community, a list of open Child Care Operators is now available. Please note, although this shows a list of open providers, some providers may not have any vacancies

• To further support parents, Child Care Resource and Referral Centres have access to information on the available spaces at each of these facilities by age group
• Please use this list to reach out directly to a child care facility in your community or contact your local Child Care Resource and Referral Centre

Affordable Child Care Benefit

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Changes to the Affordable Child Care Benefit (ACCB) mean that families may continue receiving the benefit even if:

• The child was, or will be, absent for over two weeks due to COVID-19
• The parent no longer has a valid reason for child care due to COVID-19

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Child Care Services

Withdrawing Your Child at Any Time

Licensed child care providers receiving Temporary Emergency Funding:

• Must not charge you fees for your vacant space while they are open
• If you notify your provider on or before the 15^th of the month, you should receive a 50% refund or future credit for that month 
• If you notify your provider after the 15^th of the month, you will likely need to pay the regular fee for that month
• You should not be charged for any future months your child remains absent during the pandemic

Unlicensed providers, and providers that don’t access TEF may continue to charge you a fee.

If Your Centre Closes or Care is Revoked

If your facility temporarily closes and receives Temporary Emergency Funding due to COVID-19:

• On or before the 15^th of the month, you are entitled to receive at least a 50% refund or future credit for that month
• After the 15^th of the month, you are not entitled to a refund/future credit for that month
• You should not be charged for any future months your child remains absent during the pandemic

If a family has their care temporarily revoked to provide room for the child of an essential service worker:

• You are entitled to a pro-rated refund or future credit of fees paid, based on the date care was revoked
• You should not be required to pay for any days of the month in which you weren’t able to access the space

Retaining Your Child Care Space

If you temporarily withdrew your children from care during the pandemic and your child care facility in in receipt of TEF, you have the option to go back to your original spot when the pandemic is over, provided your child hasn’t aged out of the space.

Child Care Hours

Each child care provider determines their own days and hours of operation. We are monitoring whether the needs for child care outside of regular hours are being met for essential service workers.

Denied a Space

The majority of eligible providers have chosen to take advantage of our TEF program. All facilities in receipt of this funding are required to accept and prioritize essential service workers where they can safely do so.

• Providers who have not opted in to receive TEF are not required to follow this prioritization protocol and may choose to deny child care at their own discretion
• Some providers may have health and safety reasons that prohibit them from filling all of their vacant spaces, which may result in them denying both essential service workers and other families

If you are denied a space, reach out to your local CCRR to clarify if there are available spaces at another child care centre.

Unlicensed Care

TEF is only available for licensed child care providers. If you are an essential service worker who requires child care, complete the request temporary emergency child care form to find available space at a nearby licensed child care centre.