OCDSB scrambles to shore up $200K daycare funding gap left by city

The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board wants the city to reverse a decision to cut funding for board-run daycares while it continues to subsidize child care centres run by the Catholic board.

 In January, the city went ahead with a plan to change funding rules, making school boards ineligible for general operating funding, known as "GO funding." The funding helped daycare operators cover direct operating costs, pay equity and wage enhancement grants. 

According to the city, the Catholic board has continued to get that funding because a private entity runs its daycares, while the OCDSB runs its own.

The decision represents a loss of $200,000 in annual GO funding, according to board staff.

We believe that in the interest of equity, we should have been eligible for it.- Mike Carson, OCDSB CFO

"We believe that in the interest of equity, we should have been eligible for it," said Mike Carson, the OCDSB's chief financial officer.

Approximately 130 children aged three months to four years attend the four licensed child-care centres operated by the OCDSB:

• 50 children at Rideau Child Care Centre operated out of Rideau High School.
• 50 children at Variety Child Care Centre operated out of Woodroffe High School.
• 16 children at Adult High School Child Care Centre operated out of Adult High School.
• 16 children at Banting Child Care Program at Frederick Banting High School.

The Catholic board daycares were already run by non-profit entities, so continued to receive funding after January. 

Carson warned the stakes could be high for the families who now depend on OCDSB daycares.

Board to review staffing, fees to address shortfall

According to a note to board members, "[OCDSB] staff is assessing how best to address the deficit which would include a review of fees charged and staffing levels, but they continue to liaise with City of Ottawa and Ministry of Education representatives in an effort to restore the funding."

"We would hope that we could find another solution. Ultimately, we need to be in a position where we aren't subsidizing them with education dollars," Carson told CBC.

"They provide an important service to the community, a service that is obviously required. We all know the availability of affordable licensed child care in this city continues to be a major concern, and we think it should be a normal part of our business."

Board was warned, city says

The city's general manager for community and social services Aaron Burry told CBC the board has known about impending changes in its funding model since 2013, when the province tasked cities to come up with a funding strategy that would spread provincial money more equitably among non-profit daycares in order to keep fees lower for more parents.

Burry said school boards were cut off because they're considered to have other funding sources available to them. 

The board could also seek another entity to operate the daycares, as the Catholic board has done, Carson said. But Burry said even then it wouldn't be considered fo eligibility until 2018.

"It's now been distributed," said Burry. "At the present time we're not seeing those dollars increase."

The board is already facing tough choices as it struggles to implement a one per cent budget cut ordered by the province. Staff have suggested cuts to staffing and programs, and could recommend closing schools.