Item - 2016.TS4.3

The City-School Boards Advisory Committee recommends to the Executive Committee that:

1.  City Council request the Minister of Education to support a continuum of learning and the stabilization of early years and child care programs located in school buildings by undertaking the following five actions which have been developed collaboratively by the City of Toronto and Toronto District School Board, Toronto Catholic District School Board, Conseil scolaire Viamonde, and Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud:  
 

a.  Improve the funding formula in order to fully fund the occupancy cost of  early learning and child care space in schools directly to the school boards;

b.  Ensure the funding formula takes into account the higher cost of building, operating and maintaining spaces for young children;

c.  Ensure the funding formula for early learning space is not a per person rate, but a per room rate;

d.  Ensure the funding formula accounts for the incrementally higher cost of operating before- and after-school programs in shared spaces; and

e.  Ensure that the school utilization formula reflects the improved funding formula and fully accounts for early learning space in schools.

The City-School Boards Advisory Committee:

1.  Requested the Executive Director, Social Development, Finance and Administration in consultation with School board staff to report to the November 1, 2016 meeting of the City-School Boards Advisory Committee on:

a.  Provincial policy changes related to funding for building, renovating and moving child care centres.

b.  School Utilization Rate and outstanding issues related to other city and community uses in school board space and how they will be addressed in the proposed Community Asset Utilization Rate (CAUT).

c.  Provincial changes related to leases in school space.

Working in collaboration, staff from Toronto District School Board, Toronto Catholic District School Board, Conseil scolaire Viamonde, and Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud and City of Toronto Children's Services have defined five actions for the Ministry of Education to strengthen school funding and school utilization formulas in support of a continuum of learning, starting in the early years. When implemented these changes will facilitate cooperative working relationships between the City and school boards in relation to child care and early years programming delivered in school buildings.