Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) System

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Directed Growth Plan

Halton’s Directed Growth Plan: An Appendix to the Early Learning and Child Care Service Plan (2024 – 2026)

As a condition of CWELCC participation, the Region is required to develop a Directed Growth Plan for Halton. This plan is legislated by the Province and is used to guide how and where new CWELCC spaces the Province allocates to the Region through to 2026.

Halton’s Directed Growth Plan: An Appendix to the Early Learning and Child Care Service Plan (“the Plan”) is a comprehensive plan that focuses on system priorities as identified through consultation with local educators, service providers, parents and caregivers, children, community partners and Regional staff. The Region used provincial guidelines, the Provincial Access and Inclusion Framework (external PDF), and the 2022-2025 Early Learning and Child Care Plan to inform the directed growth plan.

The purpose of the Plan is to provide information to operators of licensed child care centres and licensed home child care agencies regarding the CWELCC System for the period of 2024-2026. The Plan includes priorities for enrollment and expansion of affordable child care spaces in CWELCC and identifies underserved priority neighbourhoods based on local priorities and the priority populations established by the Province including: children living in low income families, children from diverse communities, children with special needs, Francophone children and Indigenous children.

The Region recognizes that many areas of Halton have equity, diversity and inclusion needs. As such, a consultative, data driven, and equity focused approach was used to determine the Region’s priority neighbourhoods.

Read Halton’s Directed Growth Plan: An Appendix to the Early Learning and Child Care Service Plan (2024 – 2026) (PDF file)

CWELCC Directed Growth Map

The map below profiles all 30 Halton neighbourhoods with their level of priority. Child care operators are encouraged to refer to the map when developing their applications for CWELCC enrollment or expansion.

Local child care providers will be updated as new CWELCC-funded child care spaces become available.

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CWELCC Applications

Halton’s CWELCC Application process is now closed. Applications submitted prior to the submission deadline of January 31, 2025, are currently under review.

As the Service System Manager, Halton Region is responsible for implementing an application, review and approval process to determine which licensed child care spaces will be eligible for CWELCC participation. Expressing interest or applying for CWELCC through the CWELCC Application, does not guarantee automatic participation and enrolment into the plan.

Approval of CWELCC Applications

A fair and transparent application and evaluation process will be used. Details are provided below. For specific details on CWELCC expansion priorities and the evaluation approach, please refer to Halton’s Directed Growth Plan: An Appendix to the Early Learning and Child Care Service Plan (2024 – 2026), review the expanded instructions included in the application package, attend the Region’s CWELCC Application webinar (optional).

CWELCC applications will be evaluated using a two-stage process. Child care operators will be prequalified through Stage One. Successful applications will proceed to Stage Two where formal ranking of prequalified applications will occur. Operators interested in applying are encouraged to first check eligibility requirements outlined in the Directed Growth Plan and review the expanded instructions included in the application. An overview of the two-stage process is below:

Halton Region will prioritize operators if their spaces support the Region maintaining or increasing its provincially mandated auspice target of not-for-profit to for-profit spaces. Halton Region must maintain an auspice target of 55% not-for-profit spaces / 45% for-profit spaces as the CWELCC system grows per provincial requirements. All operators, regardless of auspice, are encouraged to submit an application if they meet all of the criteria above and are interested in CWELCC enrolment or expansion.

The Region will review prequalified applications, score them in an equitable and consistent manner, and communicate a decision in writing to child care operators within 45 days of confirming prequalified applicants in writing.

Due to the limited number of CWELCC spaces available, expressing interest or applying for CWELCC through the CWELCC Application, does not guarantee automatic participation and enrolment into the system.

For more information about the CWELCC Application process in Halton Region, please contact our Children’s Services team at childcareservices@halton.ca, review the frequently asked questions document and CWELCC application webinar slides posted in the Resources Section of this page.

Cost-Based Funding

In 2025, child care operators enrolled in CWELCC will be funded based on eligible costs incurred in the calendar year in respect of eligible centres/agencies, up to a maximum amount of funding determined by the new Cost-Based funding formula.

CWELCC Cost-Based Funding intends to:

• More accurately reflect the true cost of providing licensed childcare in Ontario.
• Replace the revenue replacement model, which replaced lost revenue due to fee caps.
• Support wage enhancements.
• Improve access to high-quality and affordable child care by supporting growth spaces.

For more information on the cost-based funding approach, visit Supporting Child Care in Ontario (external link).

For an estimate of cost-based funding, please visit the CWELCC Cost-Based Child Care Funding Estimator (external link). Operators are also encouraged to explore the resources section below, which includes recordings of past webinars hosted by Halton Region.

Wage Enhancement Grant (WEG)/Home Child Care Enhancement Grant (HCCEG)

WEG Eligibility and WEG Cap

WEG supports an increase of up to $2 per hour, plus 17.5% benefits (applied only to any WEG increase) for eligible positions. To be eligible to receive the full wage enhancement of $2 an hour plus 17.5 per cent in benefits, staff must:

• be employed in a licensed child care centre or home child care agency;
• have an associated base wage, excluding WEG, of $2 less than the wage cap of $32.81 per hour identified by the Ministry of Education in 2025; and
• be in a position categorized as a child care supervisor, RECE, home childcare visitor, or otherwise counted toward adult to child ratios under the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA).

For 2025, the Ministry of Education has established an hourly wage maximum of $32.81 per hour for WEG.

Where an eligible centre-based or home visitor position has an associated base wage rate, excluding WEG, between $30.82 and $32.81 per hour, the position is eligible for a partial wage enhancement. The partial wage enhancement will increase the wage of the qualifying position to $32.81 per hour without exceeding the cap.

HCCEG for Home Child Care Providers – Eligibility and HCCEG Caps

HCCEG supports an increase of up to $20 per day for eligible home child care providers contracted with an eligible home child care agency. To be eligible for HCCEG, the home child care provider must:

• hold a contract with a licensed home child care agency that is enrolled in CWELCC or exclusively serving children aged 6 to 12; and
• provide services to one or more children (including privately placed children; excluding the provider’s own children).

For 2025, the Ministry of Education has established a maximum of $328.10 per day for full HCCEG and $196.86 for partial HCCEG.

Full Home Child Care Enhancement Grant

In order to be eligible to receive the full HCCEG of $20 per day, an eligible home child care provider must:

• provide full-time services, on average (6 hours or more a day); and
• receive base daily fees, excluding prior year’s HCCEG, of $308.10 or less (that is, $20 below the eligibility ceiling of $328.10). Note: those receiving base daily fees between $308.10 and $328.10 would be eligible for an amount to bring fees up to the $328.10 eligibility ceiling.

Partial Home Child Care Enhancement Grant

In order to be eligible to receive the partial HCCEG of $10 per day, an eligible home child care provider must:

• provide part-time services, on average (less than 6 hours a day); and
• receive base daily fees, excluding prior year’s HCCEG of $186.86 or less (that is, $10 below the eligibility ceiling of $196.86). Note: those receiving base daily fees between $186.86 and $196.86 would be eligible for an amount to bring fees up to the $196.86 eligibility ceiling.

CWELCC Annual Wage Increase and Wage Floor

To be eligible for workforce compensation funding, staff must be employed in an eligible position by a CWELCC-enrolled operator. Eligible positions include:

• RECE Program Staff
• RECE Child Care Supervisor
• RECE Home Child Care Visitor

Refer to the Ministry of Education’s 2025 Guidelines which set out the order of operations to determine eligibility for annual wage increase and wage floor funding.

Operators must include General Operating Grant, Pay Equity and any employer-based wage improvements such as obligations from collective agreements and minimum wage increases in the staff base wage when determining annual increase and wage floor amounts for eligible staff in 2025.

Operators must consider workforce compensation in addition to, and not to reduce other, planned compensation increases for eligible staff. For example, the annual wage increase and wage floor cannot be used to reduce or offset planned merit increases for eligible staff.

Please contact your program analyst or our Children’s Services team at childcareservices@halton.ca for questions about workforce compensation.

Non–participation in CWELCC

Licensed child care programs that do not participate in the CWELCC system must continue to follow the rules and requirements for operating a licensed child care program (external link).

Effective January 1, 2025, child care programs not participating in CWELCC that serve children 0-5, are ineligible for General Operating Grant, Wage Enhancement Grants, Home Child Care Enhancement Grants, or other direct funding. This was a change made by the Ministry of Education to support the ongoing success of the CWELCC system. Additionally, child care programs not participating in CWELCC cannot accept new fee subsidy placements.

Licensed centres/agencies that are enrolled in CWELCC, or are not enrolled and exclusively serve children aged 6 to 12, are eligible to receive workforce compensation funding for eligible staff who serve 6-12 age groups.