Toronto’s childcare situation is about to get less awful to the tune of $21 million

Raising a kid is never easy, and Toronto’s childcare system is often unhelpful. Parents face wait lists and costs as high as $20,000 a year—not to mention a complicated regulatory environment that sometimes allows sketchy operators to thrive. Fortunately, this year’s city budget seems likely to bring some relief.

The Star reports that recent changes to Queen’s Park’s childcare funding formula are pumping an additional $21 million into Toronto programs over the course of 2014. The plan is to use the money to add 668 new subsidized spots for families that need help paying childcare bills. The city will also be able to create more capacity for infants and toddlers. These changes won’t fix the system, but more than a few parents will notice the difference.