Peel parents are facing a growing child-care crisis as long wait lists for Before and After School Programs (BASP) leave hundreds scrambling for solutions — and in some cases, reconsidering their careers. Registered nurse Nicola Montgomery is one of many who planned to return to work but now finds herself applying for nonhospital jobs that match her child’s school hours because she cannot secure a BASP spot. She joins more than 1,400 children currently on wait lists across the region, according to Peel’s newly validated figures for the 2024–25 school year.
With 342 licensed BASP sites but no centralized wait list, the exact number of families affected remains unclear. PLASP, the main provider in Peel, has about 890 children waiting; Family Day has 290, and the YMCA has 124. Parents like Mississauga resident Anjali Rego, whose younger daughter lost her licensed spot after switching schools, say families are increasingly forced to rely on unlicensed home daycares despite safety concerns.
Advocates warn that the crisis is worsening as demand rises while providers close spaces due to staffing shortages and financial constraints. Carolyn Ferns of the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care calls it “a perfect storm” made worse by gaps in the federal-provincial Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) plan. While CWELCC capped preschool fees at $22 a day, school-age care was left out entirely, resulting in more affordable care for younger children but higher costs and fewer spaces for older ones. Many parents now juggle reduced preschool fees with soaring BASP expenses — if they can find a spot at all.
Providers say staffing shortages are at the heart of the issue. Early childhood educators earn around $23.86 an hour and often work split shifts without pay between them, making recruitment and retention difficult. Both PLASP and the YMCA say expansion is limited by licensing rules and the number of qualified staff available. Peel Region emphasizes that responsibility for meeting demand lies with school boards, while boards note that staffing and licensing fall to the providers themselves. Under Ontario’s Education Act, BASP must be offered where there is “sufficient demand,” but the term is undefined, leaving inconsistent access across the province.
Advocacy groups are urging the province to integrate school-age programs into the CWELCC system, establish a province-wide wage grid of $35–$45 an hour with benefits, and treat child care as essential infrastructure rather than a patchwork of programs. The Ministry of Education points to “record investments” and a new Workforce Strategy but also calls on the federal government to contribute more funding. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Sport — responsible for BASP — recently committed $43.9 million over three years for after-school recreation programs, funding which will go to organizations like the YMCA and Boys and Girls Clubs but not PLASP. The ministry has offered no explanation for PLASP’s exclusion.
With few licensed options available, many families reluctantly turn to unregulated care. Mississauga mother Leah Rosalak spent over a year waiting for an after-school spot for her daughter, only to find herself back on the wait list at No. 4 on the very day she expected to secure placement. She eventually found an unlicensed provider she trusts, but recognizes that others are not so fortunate. She worries not only about safety but also about the emotional toll: her daughter watches classmates attend the school-based program she cannot join.
For parents across Peel, the shortage has become more than an inconvenience — it’s reshaping work lives, forcing difficult choices, and highlighting what advocates call a major gap in Ontario’s child-care system.