The Upper Grand District School Board and the County of Wellington are pleased to announce the opening of a new child care centre and a new EarlyON centre in the Town of Erin. The new child care centre will provide 10 infant, 15 toddler and 24 preschool full day, full time spaces for residents in the County of Wellington. The centre will open late 2018 and will be operated by the YMCA-YWCA of Guelph.
The new EarlyON centre, located next to the child care centre, will offer a safe and welcoming high-quality early learning environment open to all families and caregivers with children up to the age of six years. Services will include drop-in programs and play groups offered by Registered Early Childhood Educators as well as access to supports and available resources. More details will be announced by the County of Wellington in the fall of 2018.
The capital funds for this retro-fit project comes from a successful joint Capital Priorities application to the Ministry of Education for child care and child and family support programs. The Ministry of Education also provided increased child care operating funds as part of the Ontario government's plan for the expansion of child care.
"We are so pleased to be able to offer this valuable service to our families, alongside our partners at the County. This will be the first licensed centre in the area to offer child care spaces for infants, which is much needed in our communities," said Linda Busuttil, Chair of the UGDSB.
Luisa Artuso, Director of Early Years Division, County of Wellington, notes, "This is a welcomed addition of children's early years' services in Wellington County as it provides a continuum of services for families with young children - particularly for those attending Erin Public School."
"I am so grateful to see the investment in this Erin child care facility in our community. It is a much needed resource for our families now and for the future growth of the Town of Erin," said Kathryn Cooper, UGDSB Trustee for Erin.
