Monday's announcement about the reopening of businesses and services left a lot of people confused about rules and guidelines.
Tuesday’s announcement about daycares reopening was no different.
As of this Friday, child-care centres across Ontario are permitted to reopen, provided they adhere to strict public health measures.
The provincial government announced yesterday that the measures for reopening child-care centres include capacity limits, screening for COVID-19 symptoms, and a strict no-visitors policy.
But Ferris Lane Community Daycare supervisor Michelle Goss said a Friday reopening is much different than what Premier Doug Ford said June 5 about child care.
Last Friday, Ford said his government would lay out a phased plan for reopening child-care facilities safely and gradually.
“Last week, he said 'safely and gradually'. Now we have two and half days to open? That is nowhere near enough time,” said Goss. “We will not be open this Friday and we hope to have more news on when we can open by next week.”
Goss feels the pressure is on child-care centres to open now that the government has given the go-ahead. She says the wording could have been different to reflect the situation.
“It wasn’t like he said ‘as of Friday you can open if you’re ready.’ He said Friday was the opening so long they meet the government guidelines,” said Goss. “We just got those guidelines late last (Tuesday) night.”
BarrieToday obtained a copy of the Operational Guidance During COVID-19 Outbreak: Child Care Reopening manual. The 20-page document covers all topics of reopening, including having 10 people per room (staff and children), constant cleaning and disinfecting of toys throughout the class, and all frequently touched surfaces being cleaned and disinfected at least twice a day.
Goss is still hoping she can make it work at her Ferris Lane location, but is worried about what the numbers will look like and if they will be sustainable.
“We usually have upwards of 160 to 175 kids here, but the way this looks so far, we wouldn't be able to have more than 36,” she said. “Truthfully, I don’t know how that looks financially.”
Finances are also what is unclear to Goss and her 21 staff.
“Nobody is clear on what kind of funding will be available. If the government was still paying for child-care spaces and we were adding that to our wage subsidy, it might be possible,” said Goss.
The issue of limiting space also creates a lot of work for Goss and her staff who now have to contact every parent to find out their intentions on coming back and who gets priority.
City of Barrie staff and council are also confused with how things move forward on Friday.
The government says that pools, splash pads and beaches could open with some restrictions, but those restrictions are currently unknown.
At Monday’s general committee meeting, Mayor Jeff Lehman said staff was still reviewing some of the details due to some confusion regarding the announcement.
As for the beaches at provincial parks, they are able to open on Friday as maintenance and water testing are completed.
People are still asked to maintain physical distancing while using Ontario Parks outdoor amenities.
Facilities such as showers, laundry, group camping, picnic shelter rentals and swimming pools will remain closed for the rest of the 2020 season.
