Prince Edward County is putting a plan in motion to address shortfalls in childcare.
During Thursday’s Committee of the Whole meeting, council members discussed a report from the childcare task team, outlining their findings on how to address a shortage of childcare in the community.
The report outlines the impacts of the identified shortage, noting that a lack of available childcare is reducing the available workforce in the area, with parents unable to work full-time hours without childcare.
The largest obstacle is the number of Canada-wide early learning and child care funded spaces allocated by the province to the municipality, and part of the plan is to advocate to the federal and provincial governments for a 30% increase in spaces allocated to the community in order to address rising needs for childcare.
Some other actions include establishing a grant program for home-based childcare, funding childcare options outside of normal hours such as weekends or evenings, and considering expansions for non-profit licensed care.
The motion was approved without debate and sent on to a future council meeting for final approval.
