Daycare removes children from waitlist after dispute with parents

A daycare society removed several children from its waitlist after parents continued to seek involvement in the facility's operations. The parents are members of the Ingonish Arts and Cultural Society. The group has asked the province since February to transfer control of the planned daycare to the arts society.

Dispute timeline In April the daycare society sent the arts society a cease-and-desist letter. The letter instructed the arts society to stop interfering with the daycare contract and to remove three of its directors. The arts society did not comply.

On May 11 the daycare board emailed the parents and stated their children had been removed from the waitlist. The email to one parent said the parent had shown a lack of support for the daycare's mission and that the removal was final.

Daycare response The daycare society declined an interview request.

In a written statement the board said the decision was intended to protect privacy and maintain a safe environment. The same statement added that the invitation for the parents to connect directly remains open if they later choose to use the daycare once it is licensed.

Local context Ingonish currently has no licensed child-care centre.

The nearest facility is more than a two-hour drive away. One parent said removal from the waitlist before the centre has opened is shameful and raised concerns about how children would be treated. Another parent said the loss of a local daycare would limit opportunities for children to form social connections.

The daycare society received more than $1 million in provincial funding in 2022 to build facilities in Ingonish and Bay St. Lawrence. A provincial education minister stated that waitlist and governance decisions rest solely with the operator.