The closure of a Hamilton daycare has sent several families scrambling to find alternatives for their children.
On Tuesday, parents were informed that Little Sprouts Daycare, a Hamilton Mountain childcare facility, sent out a notice that come the end of the month, they’d be closing for good.
It’s a time frame of 20 days, something parents say is “unacceptable.” One parent tells CHCH News that they’ve called seven different care centres in less than 36 hours, only to discover waitlists stretching as far as 2026.
David DeMelo, who is a parent of two 15-month-old twins, says he just started daycare this month and is disheartened by the news.
“We were on the waiting list for about a year,” he says. “Part of the issues is we declined offers to other daycares and because of this … they took us off [their] lists.”
Tiffany Yan says she is going to have to give up her career to stay home and watch her kids. “I have to give up my job for the foreseeable future.”
The owner of Little Sprouts Daycare says the closure comes as a part of a loss in funding the centre had been receiving from the city. “We were required to change our pricing back then,” she said referencing the Ford Government’s $10-a-day daycare plan.
“I have a commercial mortgage, mortgage rates have gone through the roof, and financially, it’s just no longer feasible for us to fund this business.”
She also says her decision to close came on the heels of a call she had with the city on Friday.
“The City of Hamilton wanted me to complete a audited financials in a timeframe that I couldn’t meet and they were not willing to meet my request for extension … and as a result they stopped funding as of September 30.”
The owner says she has been able to find 30 spots in private care for some families and is looking for 12 more.
She is hopeful that another owner will take over and will be able to provide care for children and jobs for her staff.