The Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system is a federal program, administered by the province and delivered by Service System Managers, such as York Region. The goal of the program is to build a high-quality, affordable, accessible, and inclusive licensed child care system.
You may be eligible for lower child care fees if your child is under the age of six and your child care operator is participating in CWELCC. Children are eligible:
Child Cares participating in CWELCC will charge a Base Fee for the provision of child care. Some may charge a Non-Base Fee for Optional Programs. Parents are not required to pay optional fees to receive care. If you have any questions about child care fees please email [email protected]
Licensed child care centres and licensed home child care agencies interested in creating new CWELCC-enrolled spaces, including the expansion of existing programs, must apply through the Region’s Access and Inclusion application process when applications become available.
Access and Inclusion applications are accepted during designated intake periods and are subject to provincial and regional eligibility requirements, funding availability, and community need.
Applications for new CWELCC spaces are currently closed.
Please check regularly for updates on future application opportunities.
Learn more about the Canada-Ontario Early Years and Child Care Agreement.
Staff Compensation Application
Each month, from the 1st to the 8th, operators are required to complete the ROA in the Ontario Child Care Management System (OCCMS) to report for each care type (i.e.: Infant Full Day, Infant Part Day, etc.):
a. The number of enrolled full fee-paying children receiving a CWELCC reduction
b. Their operating capacity (minus any subsidized children)
York Region's Children's Service Representatives (CSR) review and verify each submission.
CWELCC-participating operators are required to complete and submit their reconciliation for each calendar year. The Region will notify child care operators when reconciliations are due.
Any funds used for ineligible expenses or underspent funds will be identified through the reconciliation process. To avoid large overpayments, Operators are encouraged to contact their Contract and Funding Coordinator (CFC) if their actual enrollment does not align with their estimated enrollment at time of application for funding. Budget adjustments can be made in year but not at the time of reconciliation.
If funding is available, York Region can provide additional financial support to child care operators enrolled in CWELCC who are experiencing financial hardship as a result of non-discretionary cost pressures. CWELCC Financial reviews must be made in year and not at the time of reconciliation. If you are operating at a deficit and would like a cost review, please submit the form below.
Families of children aged six years or younger, attending licensed centre-based and home child care agencies in York Region are eligible for CWELCC if:
Effective January 1, 2025, child care daily fees at participating centres or programs were capped at $22 per day.
Families receiving child care fee subsidy are also currently eligible for fee reductions of 50% of their parent contribution under the CWELCC system.
Learn more about the Canada-Ontario Early Years and Child Care Agreement.
If you would like to know if your child care operator is participating in CWELCC you can ask them directly.
For a list of licensed child care centres and home child care agencies in York Region participating in CWELCC, visit the Early Years Program Finder.
While many operators are enrolled in CWELCC, some operators have not been approved due to limited funding, and some operators have chosen not to participate.
To equitably distribute CWELCC funding among interested child care operators, an application process is used that aligns with the priorities of the Ministry of Education's Access and Inclusion Framework.
The application process determines where the new CWELCC funded child care spaces in the priority area neighbourhoods are located.
The Access and Inclusion Framework requires Service System Managers to include directed growth plans for CWELCC spaces in their service plans that prioritize access to new child care spaces for low-income, Francophone, Indigenous, Black, and other racialized and newcomer communities, and children with special needs in underserved neighbourhoods. These growth plans identify priority area neighbourhoods for child care expansion investment.
The current fee subsidy program will continue to be available for families who are eligible to apply for financial support to help pay for licensed child care. Effective January 1, 2025, only CWELCC-enrolled child care centres will be eligible to provide Child Care Fee Subsidy for families.
Those who have children actively receiving Child Care Fee Subsidy in a non-CWELCC participating child care centre will continue to be funded until the child leaves or ages out of the program. Child care facilities that exclusively serve children in the six to 12 age range continue to remain eligible for fee subsidy support for families.
For more information on how to access child care in York Region, please visit york.ca/Childcare
