The Avon Maitland District School Board has been given the go-ahead to take a childcare space project to tender.
Perth-Wellington MPP Matthew Rae announced on January 16 that the AMDSB "was provided a scope change and approval" to tender the child care addition at Milverton Public School. It will be supported by $1.7 million from the province, which brings the total funding to over $2.9 million for the addition.
A statement released Monday said the funding is part of the province's commitment to providing $14 billion to "support school construction, repair, and renewal over 10 years."
“This is great news for families in Milverton and Perth East,” Rae said. “Affordable and accessible child care is a necessity no matter where you live in Ontario. It is important that we continue to make these investments in our rural communities.”
“Our government is investing $14 billion over ten years to build new schools, improve existing facilities and create child care spaces to ensure young people can reach their full potential," added Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education. “By building the new state-of-the-art child care centre at Milverton Public School, as well as investing in tutoring and mental health supports for the year ahead, we are getting students back on track now and well into the future. While we make progress building this child care centre at Milverton Public School to support hard-working parents, we remain committed to keeping students in more normal classrooms with extra curriculars, sports, and clubs.”
“This project is an excellent example of a multi-sector partnership that enables us all to support the families that we serve,” said Dr. Lisa Walsh, Director of Education. “We are grateful for the additional support from the Province of Ontario so that families in Milverton have an additional option for childcare.”
“AMDSB is pleased that this enhanced contribution from the province will enable us to proceed with our planning to create these much-needed childcare spaces in Milverton,” added Cheri Carter, Superintendent of Corporate Services. “We look forward to moving this project forward so that these spaces become available as soon as possible.”
“Under Premier Ford’s leadership, we’re building more state-of-the-art schools to support the needs of Ontario’s students, families, and growing communities. By investing in innovative and modern learning spaces, we’re ensuring students have access to quality education that will provide them with lifelong skills and education in a safe and healthy environment,” said Kinga Surma, Minister of Infrastructure. “These investments are one of the ways we’re delivering on our promise to build Ontario, with an infrastructure budget of more than $148 billion over the next decade.”