Implementation of Regulatory Changes under the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014

Ministry of Education
Early Years and Child Care Division
315 Front Street West
Toronto ON M7A 0B8

TO: Child Care Licensees
FROM: Iyana Browne, Acting Director, Child Care Branch
DATE: December 11, 2023
SUBJECT: Implementation of Regulatory Changes under the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014

Dear child care licensees,

As you may be aware, on November 16, 2023, the Minister of Education launched Ontario’s Child Care Workforce Strategy. This strategy will deliver increased wages to Registered Early Childhood Educators (RECEs) and implement a multipronged strategy to recruit and retain qualified educators.

  • As part of the plan, regulatory changes were made to O. Reg 137/15 under the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA) that are intended to support licensees in recruiting and retaining staff. The regulatory changes include:
  • Effective January 1, 2024, a new provision will clarify in regulation that staff who are employed while also enrolled in an educational program and complete their educational placement in their current place of work may continue to be counted as a staff member throughout the duration of their placement. This regulatory clarification will avoid misinterpretations that could lead to barriers to obtaining an ECE placement.
  • Effective July 1, 2024, individuals with a Child and Youth diploma or a Recreation and Leisure diplomas, and individuals who are members in good standing with the Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) can be considered the qualified staff in both primary/junior school age groups and junior school age groups, regardless of the age of the children in the group. Licensees will no longer need to request director approval from the ministry to allow these child care professionals to work as the qualified staff in a primary/junior school age group that includes children aged six to nine years.

 
In addition to the above changes, an outdated provision related to window space requirements for programs originally licensed under the Day Nurseries Act has been revoked. This change is not expected to have an impact to programs as these requirements are already set out under Ontario’s Building Code.

At this time, licensees are encouraged to read the regulation and become familiar with the changes and determine whether there is any impact to their program. The ministry will provide additional information in the coming months related to current director approved staff who will no longer require those approvals in the future. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your program advisor if you have any questions.

For detailed information, please refer directly to the amending regulation on e-Laws |  Ontario.ca. 

For more information about the workforce strategy, please visit the following pages:

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to the families of Ontario.

Sincerely,
Original signed by
Iyana Browne

c.Consolidated Municipal Service Managers and District Social Services Administration Boards (CMSMs and DSSABs) and First Nations