The Ontario government is investing $42.5 million in the Simcoe County District School Board to build a new replacement Banting Memorial High School in Alliston and a two-room child care center renovation at Tecumseth Beeton Elementary School in Beeton.
This investment, announced by Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education is part of the Ford government’s commitment to supporting affordable and accessible child care in communities across the province.
Once complete, the new replacement Banting Memorial High School will have 1288 secondary school spaces and one infant, one toddler, and one preschool room, for a total of 49 licensed spaces. The child care centre renovation at Tecumseth Beeton Elementary School will have a one toddler and one preschool room, for a total of 39 licensed spaces.
The Simcoe County District School Board capital projects at Banting Memorial High School and Tecumseth Beeton Elementary School are part of a provincewide investment of more than $600 million to support student and child care spaces that were recently announced by Minister Lecce.
The overall investment will support 78 school and child-care-related projects.
As part of this investment, the province dedicated more than $95 million to create more than 3,000 new child care spaces through renovations and additions at 55 child care centres across Ontario. The investment will provide families with more options for their children.
Across Ontario, the province is supporting the creation of 40 infant rooms (400 new spaces), 59 toddler rooms (885 new spaces), 71 preschool rooms (1,704 new spaces), and seven family age group rooms (105 new spaces).
The announcement supports Ontario’s child care plan which focuses on making child care more affordable, providing more choice and availability for families, reducing red tape and administrative burden, improving quality, and effectively delivering high standards of care.
“By building and improving schools right across Ontario, we are providing students with modern, accessible and digitally connected schools with enhanced ventilation,” said Minister Lecce. “For Simcoe County students, our investment will address an urgent need to replace an aging school by investing in this rural community after years of neglect under the previous government. In addition, I am proud to announce that this modern school will include a new child care centre – key to supporting working families and our economic success.”
As part of this plan to make child care affordable, safe and accessible, Ontario has committed up to $1 billion to create up to 30,000 new child care spaces over five years. To date, nearly 24,000 new spaces have been approved which builds upon Ontario’s existing and well-established child care infrastructure giving families more choices and flexibility.
In addition, to support parents with the cost of child care and help them re-enter the workforce, Ontario is providing a 20 per cent enhancement of the Childcare Access and Relief from Expenses (CARE) tax credit for 2021. This will increase support from $1,250 to $1,500 per family, on average, providing about $75 million in additional support for the 2021 child care expenses of over 300,000 families.
“This is exciting news for the communities of Alliston and Beeton. Trustee Beitz has advocated on behalf of her community for these projects, and we are pleased to receive these funding announcements today. We are grateful for these continued investments in our students, and we look forward to future similar announcements to address our rapid growth,” says Jodi Lloyd Board Chair, Simcoe County District School Board
The governments of Canada and Ontario have allocated more than $600 million to support ventilation improvements in schools across Ontario as part of their plan for a safer return to school. The
Simcoe County District School Board has benefited from an investment of $14.6 million for ventilation improvements and has 360 HEPA filter units in place.
The new replacement Banting Memorial High School will be located in Alliston at a site to be acquired.
Tecumseth Beeton Elementary School is located at 43 Patterson Street in Beeton.
“This announcement is great news for the Simcoe County District School Board (SCDSB), and the municipality of New Tecumseth. The approval of these projects is welcome recognition of the needs in the communities of Alliston and Beeton. We appreciate that the Government of Ontario understands the important changes occurring in the SCDSB,” adds John Dance Director of Education, Simcoe County District School Board
“Today’s announcement of the new Banting Memorial Replacement School and the renovation of a two-room child-care centre at Tecumseth Beeton Elementary School is not just a much-needed update to an older school and a renovation to an existing one, but an investment in our community and our students’ futures that will enrich their lives and prepare them for a successful life beyond school.
Town-building is a team effort that requires focus, discipline, hard work as well as the co-operation from all levels of government. Investments such as this, play an important role in the quality of life for our residents. As Mayor, I believe that improving access to knowledge, training and education is fundamental to building a more promising future for the residents of our municipality,” says Rick Milne Mayor of New Tecumseth
