SUBMISSION TO THE TOWNSHIP OF TAY VALLEY BY Tayside Community Residential and Support Options

Township of Tay Valley October 23, 2007

OPERATOR PROFILE
Name: Tayside Community Residential and Support Options (TCO)
Program Name: Taycare Children’s Centre
Contact Name: Dave Hagerman, Executive Director
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 707, Perth, Ontario, K7H 3K5
Fax: (613) 264-1930
Telephone: (613) 264-0953 ext. 102
E-Mail: dhagerman@tayside.ca

ORGANIZATION PROFILE
Tayside Community Residential and Support Options (TCO) is a not for profit, charitable, community based organization that initiates and provides service for children and their families. When Tayside Community Residential & Support Options was established in 1989, the Board of Directors had a vision of an organization that could be responsive to the social need gaps in the communities of Perth, Tay Valley and Drummond North-Elmsley.
CHILD CARE PROGRAMS AND HISTORY
Current Programs
The Taycare Children’s centres have offered fully insured, accessible quality child care programs for junior toddler, toddler and preschool aged children since 1992. In 1995 the organization began offering child care programs to kindergarten and school aged children.
The junior toddler, toddler, preschool and kindergarten programs operate out of the St. John High School location. The school aged program operates from the location at 100 Wilson Street and another location at St. John Elementary School. The kindergarten and school aged children primarily come from Queen Elizabeth and St. John Elementary schools. The St. John High School location is licensed for 46 children; the 100 Wilson Street location is licensed for 30 children and the St. John Elementary School locations is licensed for 30 children.
Currently the programs provide service to 130 children on both a full and part time basis. Families primarily come from the Perth and district with 30% or 39 children coming from Tay Valley Township. The programs operate from 6:30 AM to 6:00 PM.
Benefits if a High Quality Child Care Program
A high quality child care program that offers both full and part time care is a key part of modern family living. With most Tay Valley parents working and the long travel times between school, work and home, the child care programs that are close to the schools become particularly important in rural communities.
High quality child care programs also become important elements in the decision making process when business explores to locate in Tay Valley Township or when young families explore moving to the area. Both these patterns, expansion of business and population growth would expand the tax base and ease pressure of the property tax.
The child care programs also provide high quality employment to many Tay Valley residents.
History
In 1992, the organization was asked by the Town of Perth and the Ministry of Community and Social Services to assume the operation of the two child care centres in Perth and district. One was a 4500 square foot, child care centre in St. John Catholic High School and the other was the 5000 sqare foot child care centre formerly operated by the Town of Perth at 100 Wilson Street. These progams are called the Taycare Children’s Centres.
In 1992 the local Munipalities ( including some of those that now are included in Tay Valley Township) provided 20% of the funding for child care subsidies of the children who were residents of their municipality. Tayside required a commitment by the local municipalities to continue this funding as a condition of taking over the operation of the child care programs. As a condition of releiving the local municipalities of directly operating child care programs the local municiplaities agreed to support Tayside with finacilal assistnace. Prior to amalagamation, Bathurst and North Burgess Townships, for example, contibuted $1,400 each annualy for a total of $2,8000.
Since the late 1990’s the area munipalities have suspended this assiatance while the Town of Perth continues to provide the child care programs with a grant of $20,000 per year.
Tayside Community Residential and Support Options is thus asking both Drummond North Elmsley and Tay Valley to resume their funding of the Taycare child care programs with an annual amount of at least $2,800 and consider increasing the funding up to $5,000 per year.
This funding would secure the stability of the child care programs , that currently operate close to a deficit. This funding would also ease the pressure of the centre to raise fees to a level that most residents of Tay Valley could not afford the care.