Some parents face childcare waitlists of two years as city pushes for more ECEs

As a mother of two children, Ellie Gauvin is currently not able to work.

While her three-year-old son is only able to attend his childcare centre two days a week due to staffing shortages, her six-month-old has been asked to register for waitlists as long as two years.

"I would love to go back to work now. I would even love to get a part-time job, but I can't because I don't have childcare," said Gauvin.

Gauvin is among many parents across Windsor-Essex who have been struggling, following the introduction of the Canada-wide Early Learning & Child Care Plan which looks to bring the average cost of childcare down to ten dollars per day.

It's estimated there is an immediate need for 8,500 early childhood educators (ECEs) across Ontario, with 15,000 needed by 2026.

To address the shortage, the City of Windsor is reminding the public of its W.E.R.E.C.E. program. It stands for Windsor-Essex Registered Early Childhood Educators and aims to encourage the recruitment and retention of ECEs locally.

"As the pandemic winded down, we [also] had more families going back to work and going to school, and therefore needing a safe [and] quality place for their children to attend," said Windsor’s Manager of Children's Services Dawn Bosco.

"So, in order to address the need and all of these new little ones coming into childcare, we need more ECEs which is why we're doing this push."

The W.E.R.E.C.E. program was launched by the City of Windsor last year with funding from the provincial and federal governments.

The city is projecting an increase of 1,540 childcare spaces in Windsor-Essex by 2026.

Currently, Bosco added, the size of waitlists varies between different childcare centres across Windsor-Essex.

"Some spaces do have a waitlist because maybe it's in the community near where they live or where they work, and families want to attend that. But I know there are spaces across Windsor-Essex available immediately should you need them," said Bosco.

For Gauvin, the prolonged time at home is having a negative impact on her mental health.

"Not being at work means I have to stay home all day long, every single day, and take care of the kids and the house," said Gauvin.

"Postpartum depression is a real thing, and with having to stay home with the kids nonstop, it's a lot on you."