Grand Erie Completes Construction of New Child Care Spaces

The Grand Erie District School Board is pleased to announce that the construction of new child care spaces at Central Public School in Brantford is now completed and now officially open to families as of April 26, 2021. Through a partnership between the City of Brantford and the Board, the addition will add four new child care rooms and 64 new child care spaces to Central Public School in Brantford.

“We are incredibly proud and excited to announce the completion of a significant project that will have an immense impact on the children and families in our community,” said JoAnna Roberto, Director of Education. “In collaboration with our partners at the City of Brantford, we were able to identify and respond to a vital need for quality child care. We look forward to opening the centre soon and continuing our ongoing work to improve facilities in our school communities.”

The Ministry of Education approved funding to add licensed child care spaces to Brantford’s downtown core in 2019. The proposal was a joint submission by the City of Brantford and the Grand Erie District School Board. The funding of $2,057,016, part of the province’s Early Years Capital Program, allowed for the construction of a child care centre at Central Public School, and will proactively address a heightened need in the neighbourhood for accessible and affordable child care.

“We are taking action to ensure that families in Brantford deserve access to safe and affordable child care,” said Education Minister Stephen Lecce. “Our government is proud to support the creation of new child care spaces at Central Public School, while increasing financial support for families through the expanded Ontario’s Child Care Tax Credit, saving a family on average $1500 per year.”

“It’s been so exciting to see this project through from beginning to completion,” said Will Bouma, MPP for Brantford-Brant. “Now families in this part of town have access to childcare and education in their neighborhood.”

“The City of Brantford is pleased to support this important resource for families in our community,” said Marlene Miranda, General Manager of Community Services and Social Development at the City of Brantford. “Now more than ever, accessible and affordable child care is required to support families as they face serious challenges as a result of the impacts of the ongoing pandemic. We thank the Grand Erie District School Board and the YMCA and look forward to more collaborative projects like this in the future to increase the complement of child care spaces in Brantford.”

“At the YMCA, we applaud the investment in the development of a new centre to meet the growing need for childcare in the community,” said Christina Martin, Senior Regional Manager for the Child Care, Day Camp and Community Outreach at the YMCA. “The YMCA has been providing quality child care for the past 50 years and we are pleased to be operating this centre which will allow the YMCA to provide full day care for infants, toddlers, preschoolers and before and after care for kindergarten and school age children.”

Due to the current circumstances surrounding the ongoing pandemic, Grand Erie and the city will not be holding a formal grand opening ceremony, but are looking into hosting a virtual ceremony via livestream at a later date.

Community is a pillar of Grand Erie’s current Multi-Year Plan, with the goal of integrating and celebrating the partners whose contributions enhance the learning experiences of all students.

Grand Erie District School Board represents more than 18,000 students in 58 elementary schools and 7,700 students in 14 secondary schools within the City of Brantford and the Counties of Brant, Haldimand, and Norfolk as well as secondary students from Six Nations of the Grand River and Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation. With a dedicated staff of more than 2,500, Grand Erie remains committed to its goal of Success for Every Student.