Purpose of the Manual

The Ministry of Education (the ministry) publishes the Child Care Centre Licensing Manual (“the manual”) to provide information about the legal requirements that apply to child care centres under the applicable laws in Ontario. These requirements are set out in the statute entitled the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA) and Ontario Regulation 137/15 (O. Reg. 137/15).

In this manual, the relevant laws may be referred to as legislation, the CCEYA, the Act, the statute, the regulations or O. Reg. 137/15.

The purpose of the manual is to:

  • support centres in meeting licensing requirements by telling the reader why a requirement is in place (the intent) and how a licensee can show how that the requirement was met (compliance)
  • help centres stay in compliance as well as improve program quality by setting out clarifying guidance and talking about best practices that complement a requirement under the CCEYA
  • connect centres to resources to help licensees and staff continue to build their knowledge about child care, children’s development and more

This manual does not cover everything in the CCEYA and O. Reg. 137/15 – it focuses mostly on the rules/requirements that apply to the day-to-day operations of child care centres.

Important information: It is important to note that both the CCEYA (the statute) and O. Reg. 137/15 (the regulation) contain requirements that licensees of child care centres must meet. It is the responsibility of applicants and licensees to meet the rules and requirements under the CCEYA, its regulations, binding Minister’s policy statements, and any other laws that may apply.

Where it is unclear to an applicant or licensee how a particular law applies to their circumstances, the individual may wish to consult with a lawyer for assistance in understanding and interpreting the CCEYA.

Organization of the Manual

This manual is generally organized in the same order of the requirements set out in the CCEYA and O. Reg. 137/15.

To help make information easy to understand and to make sure the reader can find important information, each section of the manual includes:

  • the legal requirement (which is known as the legislative/regulatory requirement): in the manual, rules/requirements in CCEYA or O. Reg. 137/15 are copied and put into the manual. These requirements are sometimes referred to as licensing requirements
  • intent: explains why a rule/requirement is included in the legislation or regulation and why it is important for licensees to meet the rule/requirement
  • clarifying guidance: provides additional information or clarifies information related to a legal requirement to help licensees understand and meet the requirements
  • best practices: where there are any, these are included to help licensees in thinking about how else they can meet and stay in compliance with legal requirements and enhance the quality of their program
  • compliance indicators: show how ministry program advisors assess that a licensee has met a requirement; this information can come from documentation, observation or an interview process (these are explained further below)

Licensees who have further questions or require clarification about the CCEYA or this manual should contact their Ministry of Education program advisor directly or contact the licensed child care helpdesk at childcare_ontario@ontario.ca.

What are compliance indicators?

Compliance indicators are used by Ministry of Education program advisors –employees of the ministry who inspect child care centres – when they are checking to make sure that a centre has met licensing requirements (meeting a requirement is called compliance).

For all inspections, program advisors must use a standard inspection checklist.

When they inspect a centre, program advisors look for information that shows a licensee is meeting the requirements under the CCEYA. Program advisors gather three types of information when doing an inspection. Information is collected from:

  • Observation – information collected while the program advisor is watching and listening to the program activities and staff
  • Review of documentation – information collected by reviewing written documents (such as reviewing policies and procedures the licensee is required to have, reviewing files and records, etc.)
  • Interview – information collected by speaking with licensees and/or staff

Offence

The CCEYA prohibits people from giving false or misleading information to ministry officials, including in any application, report or other document required to be submitted to the ministry related to CCEYA or the regulations. If a person provides false or misleading information to the ministry, this is an offence under the CCEYA.

 For some licensing requirements, only one compliance indicator is needed to show that the requirement has been met. If compliance indicators are linked with “or” any one indicator may be met to achieve compliance.

Example

Licensees must ensure that all children who spend at least six hours a day in the child care program spend at least two hours of the day outside (weather permitting). The compliance indicators for this requirement involve observation or interview.

If the program advisor sees all children playing outside for two hours, they have confirmed compliance with the requirement or, if they are unable to observe all children playing outside for two hours, the program advisor will ask questions of the centre’s supervisor or program staff to confirm that children go outside for two hours every day, weather permitting.

For some requirements, there is more than one compliance indicator that shows compliance with a particular licensing requirement. If there is more than one compliance indicator described in a section of the manual and the word and appears between the compliance indicators, all of compliance indicators must be met to achieve compliance.

Example

Licensees must develop and make available a parent handbook that includes specific information as set out O. Reg. 137/15. When doing an inspection, the program advisor will look for evidence that there is a parent handbook and that it contains all the information required by the regulation.

The regulation requires licensees to develop different policies and procedures, as well as individualized plans for children who need extra support when they are at a child care centre.

It is important to note the difference between policies and procedures:

  • Policy: A policy sets out a requirement that staff and others in a centre need to follow. Policy statements address what the requirement is rather than how to implement or satisfy the requirement.

Policies are not task oriented – they answer what and/or why

  • Procedure: A procedure is different from, but related to, a policy. A procedure is an established, predetermined set of instructions on how to perform tasks that must be completed to achieve something. Where the regulation requires a licensee to have a policy about something, the main thing that the procedures need to achieve is compliance with the centre’s policy.

Procedures are task oriented – they answer who, how, where and when 

Procedures typically include specific step-by-step instructions on how to perform tasks and/or what actions need to be done, when, by whom, what reports need to be made and more.

  • Procedures often include the word if such as “if X happens, then staff are to do Y”.
  • Procedures have a beginning and an end.
  • Procedures may be updated to respond to feedback about how well they work.

Sample policies

To support licensees in understanding and being compliant with licensing requirements, the ministry has developed several sample policies and procedures where it makes sense for these to be available for certain requirements in the regulation. These sample policies/procedures are available on the ministry’s Child Care Licensing System under Tools and Resources.

Important information: Use of a ministry-developed sample policy is optional but strongly recommended. Licensees may create their own documents if they wish, as long as the documents meet the requirements in the regulation about what needs to be included in a policy, procedure or individualized plan. If the licensee does choose to adopt the ministry-developed policy or individualized plan, the licensee must complete all customizable areas of these documents.

When doing inspections, ministry program advisors are looking at the content in a licensee’s policies, procedures and individualized plans to make sure what is required in the regulation is reflected/addressed in the documents. Licensees can name their documents however they want and different documents can be grouped together if the licensee wishes to do so.

About child care in Ontario

The law for child care

The Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA) is the law which oversees child care in Ontario. To make sure they are familiar with the law, licensees and those who are thinking about applying for a licence should read the CCEYA and its regulations. The CCEYA has two regulations:

  • Ontario Regulation 137/15 is the general regulation. It is most relevant to licensees and is the focus of this manual as it sets out most licensing requirements.
  • Ontario Regulation 138/15 deals with funding, cost sharing and financial assistance and is mostly relevant to service system managers and First Nations. However, licensees and applicants should be aware of section 27.1 which requires every licensee to keep financial records for each child care centre it operates and keep such financial records for at least six years from the time of their making. The financial records must show, at a minimum, the assets, liabilities, income, expenses and accumulated surplus and deficit of the child care centre.

Important information: child care has a specific meaning in the CCEYA. It means the provision of temporary care for or supervision of children in any circumstance other than in exempt circumstances per section 3 of the CCEYA. The exempt circumstances are listed in section 4 of Act and section 3 of O. Reg. 137/15.

What types of child care does the CCEYA apply to?

The CCEYA applies to different types of child care:

  • unlicensed child care
  • home child care providers contracted by a licensed home child care agency
  • in-home services providers contracted by a licensed home child care agency
  • home child care agencies
  • child care centres (including licensed before- and/or – after-school programs)
  • authorized recreational and skill building programs and
  • child and family programs (namely EarlyON Child and Family Centres)

Unlicensed child care

An unlicensed child care provider can provide child care for:

  • a maximum of five children under the age of 13 years, including their own children under the age of 4years
  • no more than three children can be under 2 years of age

The rules around how many children an unlicensed provider can provide child care for are in paragraph 1 of subsection 6 (3) of the CCEYA.

For additional rules that apply to unlicensed providers, please refer to the CCEYA and the ministry’s infographic: Home Child Care and Unlicensed Child Care: How Many Children Are Allowed?

Exempt circumstances

There are several exempt circumstances (also called exemptions) set out in the CCEYA. These exemptions identify the types of programs or services that do not require a licence to provide child care. They include:

  • child care to children from the same family in the family’s home which is provided by nannies or babysitters
  • child care provided by relative where all children are related to the caregiver
  • camps that only care for children age 4 years and older
  • programs with a primary purpose of artistic, musical and other academic or skill-based recreational programs, in accordance with the regulations
  • programs with a primary purpose of academic study and skills (such as tutoring), in accordance with the regulations
  • private schools that only serve children age 4 years and over

There are other exemptions from needing to have a child care licence that are set out under section 4 of the CCEYA and section 3 under the O. Reg. 137/15.

Questions about whether a program needs a licence

Information about providing child care in Ontario is available on this provincial website.

If, after reviewing the CCEYA and its regulation, there are still questions about whether a planned program needs a licence, a question can be sent to the ministry. Note that the ministry responds only to written inquiries.

Written inquiries (over email or mail) to the ministry must include detailed information about the planned child care program, including:

  • the proposed times of the day the program would operate
  • the ages and number of children who would be served by the program
  • what the purpose of the program/service would be
  • what a typical program or schedule of activities would look like

Inquiries about whether a program needs a child care licence can be sent by email to  childcare_ontario@ontario.ca.

Licensed Child Care

There are two types of licensed child care in Ontario:

  • child care centres which include both community-based and school-based child care programs
  • child care offered through home child care agencies

Information on all licensed child care programs in Ontario can be found on the provincial Licensed Child Care Website.

Important information: note that there are rules in the CCEYA about what a program can be called. Only a program licensed as a child care centre under the CCEYA can be called a “child care centre” or “licensed day care” and there are other restrictions. See subsections 11(1) and 11(2) of the CCEYA.

Child care licences under the CCEYA are issued by a director who is an employee of the Ministry of Education and who is appointed by the Minister of Education. The director is the person who is makes licensing decisions, consistent with the CCEYA. Directors review all documents required for licensing and approve and electronically sign a licence.

The ministry will only issue licences to applicants who have shown that they have met all CCEYA licensing requirements that apply to them and their centre/program. While most applicants will get a regular licence issued to them as their first licence, sometimes a provisional licence is issued if a licensee is unable to demonstrate compliance with all requirements. In these situations, the outstanding requirement(s) must not pose a threat to the health, safety or well-being of children and the ministry must be certain that the applicant is actively working on addressing the outstanding matters. To demonstrate compliance with many of the licensed requirements, applicants must submit a variety of supporting documents in CCLS. Other requirements are assessed at a site inspection prior to the licence being issued.

Licensed child care programs may be issued one of two types of licences: regular or provisional.

  • A regular licence may be issued or renewed when the licensee has met all licensing requirements. The maximum term for a licence is two years (for more information about the term of a licence, see content regarding tiered licensing below).

If the ministry is granting a regular licence, the licensee will get an electronic version of the licence which needs to be printed out (preferably on white paper), and

  • A provisional licence may be issued when certain licensing requirements have not been met and the licensee requires more time to meet the requirements. The maximum term for a provisional licence is one year.
    • If the licence being granted is a provisional one, the ministry will courier to the licensee a licence which has been printed on yellow paper to serve as a visual cue to families.
    • Copies of a letter indicating that a provisional licence has been issued and a summary of the licensing requirements that were not met (known as non-compliances) are sent to the centre for distribution to parents.

Licensees will also be mailed a decal when their first licence is issued. The decal is a sticker issued by the ministry to the licensee that indicates the program is licensed.

Licences (printed versions) and decals are referred to as signage in the CCEYA and O. Reg. 137/15.  Both licences and decals must be posted in a child care centre where parents and others can easily see them.

Directors may set out conditions on either regular or provisional licences. Conditions are extra requirements put in place by the ministry that may be needed to:

  • reflect circumstances specific to the operation of a centre (for example, there may need to be different requirements for programs which run for only half a day as opposed to a full day)
  • address previous non-compliances and reduce the chance that the non-compliance will be repeated

By law, directors can:

  • refuse to issue, revoke or renew a licence; the grounds upon which such a refusal could be based are set out in section 23 of the CCEYA.
  • issue a protection order if there is an imminent (in other words, urgent and upcoming) threat to the health, safety or welfare of any children in a centre. A ministry official will make a protection order if they believe on reasonable grounds that there is an imminent threat to the health, safety or welfare of any children for whom child care is provided (see section 37 of the CCEYA).
    • makes it a priority for everyone in the child care program to be continuously building and maintaining responsive, respectful and caring relationships amongst children, staff, families and the community

Canada-Ontario Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Agreement

In March 2022, the Province of Ontario signed an agreement with the Government of Canada on the funding and terms for the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system.

CWELCC has changed the landscape of licensed child care in the province, including changing the cost of child care for parents whose children attend child care centres which are part of CWELCC.

Also, as a result of CWELCC, the process to apply for a child care licence and the role of local municipal governments, which are the service system managers (SSMs) for child care in Ontario, have changed.

See part 2 of this manual for more information.

Licence Appeal Tribunal

By law, applicants and licensees have a right to a hearing by the Licence Appeal Tribunal (the LAT) when their application for a child care licence or a renewal is denied and in other situations relating to the licence. See Appendix D for more information on the right to appeal or visit the Licence Appeal Tribunal website.

Tiered Licensing

The ministry uses a tiered licensing approach when licensing child care centres. Tiered licensing is a risk-based approach to licensing which means that how often the ministry inspects the centre and what inspection checklist is used depend on how well the centre has complied with licensing requirements in the past.

Centres that have had difficulty meeting licensing requirements in the past require more ministry oversight than centres which have a good track record of being in compliance with licensing requirements.

This approach to licensing allows the ministry to ensure the health, safety and well-being of all children in centres while at the same time being able to focus additional time and attention on child care centres that need more support to achieve and maintain compliance with licensing requirements.

The type of inspection the ministry will conduct, as well as how long the licence is in effect (called the duration of the licence), depends on the tier a centre is assigned to by the ministry (there are three tiers: Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3).

The tiered licensing approach uses information about how well a centre was able to meet licensing requirements in the past (this is called the centre’s compliance history) as well as a centre’s history of formal enforcement action to determine its tier level; that is why tiered licensing is only available to child care centres that have been licensed for three years or longer.

Tiered licensing and the maximum two year licence duration for a regular licence do not apply to centres that have been licensed for less than three years. After three years, the child care centre will be placed into the appropriate tier at the next licence renewal inspection for the centre, based on the centre’s compliance history.

Roles and Responsibilities in Licensed Child Care

The role of licensees

The licensee and their staff have a very important role to play when they are part of licensed child care. The science is very clear – those working in child care programs help develop children’s brains and help build the foundation for children to succeed in their relationships, in school, and in life. When we think of licensees and their staff as brain developers, we understand the profound impact of what they do and why it is so important.

The CCEYA emphasizes the Province’s interest in, amongst other things, a system of child care and early years programs/services that promotes the health, safety and well-being of children and provides high quality experiences and positive outcomes for children (see subsection 49(1)).

The licensee and their staff have an essential role to play in achieving these things because they spend a lot of time with children and have a lot of influence over what children experience every time they attend the child care program.

Licensees are responsible for the quality of their program. A high quality program:

  • makes it a priority for everyone in the child care program to be continuously building and maintaining responsive, respectful and caring relationships amongst children, staff, families and the community
  • protects the health and safety of children
  • supports children’s development and well-being
  • is inclusive, which means the program and staff:
    • make sure that all children can actively participate and contribute in a meaningful way
    • are responsive to the unique and diverse experiences of children, families, educators and communities
    • understand and respect parents’ choices: parents are the main decision-makers in the child’s life which means understanding that parents may do things differently depending on their own culture, beliefs and lived experiences
  • engages and values staff, makes them feel fulfilled in their work and provides the staff with opportunities for continuous learning and growth

The provincial government

The Ministry of Education is part of the Ontario provincial government. The government is responsible for having and enforcing laws like the CCEYA to protect people and, in the case of child care programs, ensure children are getting high quality experiences. That is why the CCEYA is in place. The experiences and relationships that children have in child care programs are so important and their impacts on children are so strong that there needs to be a set of minimum standards around how things happen in programs.

The ministry administers the CCEYA, which includes issuing child care licences, and it is also responsible for enforcing the CCEYA.

At least once a year, Ministry of Education program advisors conduct inspections of all child care centres to:

  • make sure licensing requirements are being met
  • renew licences
  • follow-up with licensees who need more help in meeting licensing requirements
  • support licensees to achieve and maintain compliance and improve program quality

Ministry staff also look into complaints received from the public about licensed child care and follow- up on serious occurrences.

Important information: by law, certain ministry staff may, at any reasonable time, enter and inspect a child care centre.

Consolidated Municipal Service Managers and District Social Services Administration Boards

Outside of First Nation communities, the child care system is managed at the municipal level by 37 Consolidated Municipal Service Managers (CMSMs) and 10 District Social Services Administration Boards (DSSABs).

Under the CCEYA, the CMSMs and DSSABs are designated as the service system managers (SSMs) for child care and other early years services at the local level.

Each CMSM/DSSAB is responsible for planning and managing different types of services in their region that are in place to support licensees and families using child care, including the processing of fee subsidies and wage subsidies and support services for children with special needs in licensed child care.

The ministry has authority under the CCEYA to share certain information with CMSMs/DSSABs with CMSMs/DSSABs. The CMSMs/DSSABs are subject to the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

First Nations

For on-reserve communities, the Minister of Education and a First Nation or group of First Nations may enter into an agreement for the purposes of establishing, administering, operating, and funding child care and early years programs and services.

How to Apply for a Child Care Centre Licence

In Ontario, an individual, corporation or First Nation can apply for a licence to operate a child care centre. Licences cannot be issued to unincorporated partnerships.

Important information: as part of the documentation provided to the ministry for a new licence application where the applicant is a corporation (federal or provincial), the applicant must provide their articles of incorporation. Where the corporation is a federally incorporated corporation, the applicant is not required to prove that the applicant has registered the corporation provincially.

There is only one way to apply for a child care centre licence. Those applying for a licence (applicant) must apply using the Ministry of Education’s online Child Care Licensing System (CCLS) and submit the required fee payment. Applicants must have an email address in order to apply for a licence in CCLS.

The ministry has created two technical guides to help new applicants use CCLS and complete the registration and application processes:

Copies of these guides and additional resources can also be found in CCLS under the Tools and Resources tab.

New Application Process

Once an applicant has registered in CCLS and created an applicant profile, they can submit an application for a new licence. Submitting this application starts the licensing process, but it may take 4-12 months to complete all required steps and obtain a licence.

Important information: many factors, including those outside of the control of the ministry, will determine how long it will take for the ministry to issue a licence. Some examples of these factors are:

  • how long it will take the applicant to develop required policies and procedures
  • whether renovations are required to the building that the planned centre would be in
  • the time needed to purchase equipment, furniture, etc.
  • how long it will take the applicant to hire a supervisor and other staff
  • how long it will take to obtain all required local government approvals, including zoning

During the application process, applicants must submit a variety of supporting documents, like floor plans, policies and procedures, and municipal approvals. However, most of these will be uploaded in CCLS after the application has been formally submitted to the ministry.

The initial application that is submitted to the ministry must include foundational information and approvals for the proposed child care program, including the following:

  • name – proposed name for the child care centre
  • location – civic address where child care will be provided
  • capacity – age groups and number of children for each age group
  • zoning approval – documentation showing that the proposed child care site is zoned for use as a child care centre, sometimes called “proof of permitted use”
  • intention to enrol in CWELCC – whether the program intends to enrol in the CWELCC system

The CWELCC system uses a directed growth strategy to ensure that new funded spaces are located in communities that need them most. Local SSMs manage growth as well as enrolment in the CWELCC system.

If a program intends to enrol in CWELCC, their application will be automatically sent to the applicable service system manager (SSM). The SSM must confirm (through CCLS) that the proposed program is eligible for funding and aligned with local growth plans. The applicant will only be permitted to submit their application to the ministry after the SSM has provided this confirmation.

If a program does not intend to enrol in CWELCC, the applicable service system manager will be automatically notified by CCLS of this decision. This notification satisfies the requirement set out in subsection 13.1(1) of O. Reg 137/15 and the applicant will be able to proceed with their application.

For more information on enrolment in the CWELCC system, applicants should contact their service system manager.

Once an initial application is complete and advice has been provided by the SSM, the applicant must pay an initial fee deposit of $200. Once this fee has been paid, the application will be officially submitted. A Ministry of Education program advisor will be assigned to the applicant file once the SSM(s) approves the child care program’s CWELCC intention. If the supplicant is not intending to enrol in CWELCC, a Ministry of Education program advisor will be assigned to the applicant’s file after the initial fee deposit is received.

While submitting an application will launch the licensing process, applicants are not permitted to begin construction or renovation of a proposed child care centre until the ministry approves their floor and site plans. These plans can be submitted in CCLS once a program advisor reviews the application.

Applicants are encouraged to have detailed plans prepared so that they can be submitted in a timely manner. These plans must show the layout of the centre and include labels identifying the use of each room, room measurements, locations of fixed counters, cabinets and storage areas and the planned layout of designated spaces (these are spaces in the centre that have a dedicated use, for example, there needs to be a dedicated storage space for toys and other play materials; the requirements for designated spaces are in section 15 of O. Reg. 137/15).

The plans must also show that the building meets the requirements of Ontario’s Building Code. To demonstrate compliance with the Building Code, applicants must either have their plans approved by the local building department or by an engineer and/or architect.

Some centres will also need to submit a site plan which shows the outdoor space that would be part of the centre and, where applicable, a separate playground plan. Only centres that must have outdoor space per O. Reg. 137/15 need to submit a site plan which may also need to have a separate playground plan, depending on the proposed design of the outdoor space.

The ministry program advisor assigned to the application for a licence can confirm which plans an applicant must submit other than a floor plan.

Helpful Tip: the ministry has created separate Planning and Design Guidelines for Child Care Centres. This document has a lot of detail around how child care centres need to be designed and includes helpful checklists.

  • Request for approval for the centre supervisor: There must be a Ministry of Education director-approved supervisor in place before a licence may be issued (see subsection 6(4) of O. Reg. 137/15). Applicants need to submit to the CCLS a request for director-approval for the person who they have selected to be their supervisor. If the Ministry of Education director does not approve the individual because they do not meet the requirement set out in regulation, the applicant will need to submit a request for a different individual.
  • The following 15 policies and procedures are required under the CCEYA:
    • Playground Safety Policy: See section 24(5)(a) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Anaphylactic Policy: See section 39(1) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Sleep Supervision Policy & Procedures: See section 33.1(2)(c) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Serious Occurrence Policy & Procedures: See section 38(1)(a) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Administration of Drugs/Medication Procedure: See section 40(1)(a) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Supervision of Volunteers and Students Policies and Procedures: See section 24(5)(a) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Program Statement Implementation Policies and Procedures: See section 49 (a) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Staff Training and Development Policies and Procedures: See section 58(1) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Police Record Checks/Vulnerable Sector Check Policies and Procedures: See section 65 of the regulation for the requirement
    • Fire Safety/Evacuation Procedures: See section 68(1)(a) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Monitoring Compliance and Contraventions Policies and Procedures: See section 49(c) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Waiting List Policies and Procedures: See section 75.1(2) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Parent Issues and Concerns Policies and Procedures: See section 45.1 of the regulation for the requirement
    • Emergency Management Policies and Procedures: See section 68.1(2) of the regulation for the requirement
    • Safe Arrival and Dismissal Policy: See section 50 of the regulation

Important information: these sample policies are available on the ministry’s Child Care Licensing System under Tools and Resources.

If you have further questions or require clarification on registering and applying for a licence in CCLS, please contact the CCLS helpdesk at childcare.helpdesk@ontario.ca.

Important information: per section 77 of the Act, the CCEYA prohibits people from giving false or misleading information to ministry officials, including in any application (such as that required for CCLS), report or other document required to be submitted to the ministry related to CCEYA or its regulations.

Offence

It is an offence under the CCEYA to contravene or fail to comply with subsections 77 (1) or (2) of the Act, per section 78(1)(12) of the Act.

A person convicted of an offence under the CCEYA is liable to a fine of not more than $250,000, imprisonment for a term of not more than one year or both (per section 79 of the Act) and is prohibited from providing child care or operating a child care premises in Ontario at any time in the future (per subparagraph 9(1)(1)(i) of the Act).