Huron County's Manager Of Ontario Works And Children's Services Says Fluctuations In The Need For Child Care Spaces Has Been A Challenge

by Bob Montgomery

Huron County Manager of Ontario Works and Children's Services, Cheryl Patience, says the number of child care spaces they require fluctuates significantly and that presents some challenges in meeting the demand.

The urban migration to Huron County during COVID wasn't factored into their original planning so that created some problems as well. She says they're trying to encourage their existing providers to expand but they keep running into the same problem in finding enough qualified staff to meeting the demand. She says they know they need to grow and she's confident they will meet their growth target with the Ministry. She says that will be welcome news in North Huron where the Blyth area is under served and parents there have to drive out of town to get their kids to a daycare centre. 

Patience says they're hoping that the money from the Federal and Provincial governments through the Canada Wide Early Learning and Child Care System will help attract and retain qualified staff because that provides a base wage for staff, but they have to be registered staff to take advantage of the base wage. North Huron is currently conducting assessments on various locations that would allow them to expand. She expects an announcement from North Huron in the near future and they're trying to put some funds together to help make it happen.

Their target for growth in Huron County is 175 spaces by 2026 and she is confident they'll hit that target. She says their next area of focus will likely be in the south end of the county and then Central Huron after that.