Ontario Launches COVID-19 School and Licensed Child Care-specific Web Page

Daily information available to parents and the general public

News.Ontario.ca
Sept. 14, 2020

Today, the Honourable Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education, and the Honourable Peter Bethlenfalvy, President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for the Ontario Digital Service, issued the following statement on making COVID-19 school-specific data publicly available online:

"We know that this September comes with a new set of challenges, as many children return to school. We have pulled out all the stops for Ontario's students. It is why we have ensured that schools can reopen safely, with a $1.3 billion plan that is endorsed by Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. David Williams.

The Premier and our government made a promise to parents, that we would ensure that they would have access to the same information that we have. Over the last several weeks, we have been working with the Ministry of Health, the Ontario Digital Service and public health authorities, to ensure a rapid and transparent exchange of local COVID-19 data.

Today, the government is launching a webpage to report COVID-19 cases in schools and child care centres. This page will be updated every weekday with the most up-to-date COVID-19 information available, including a summary of cases in schools and licensed child care centres and agencies, if a COVID-19 case is confirmed at your school and where the numbers come from. Parents deserve to know what we know.

As Ontario students return to school, we are developing new and innovative ways to combat COVID-19 in the classroom, including this webpage, which is just one way the Ontario government is leveraging technology to protect the health and safety of the next generation. By making it easier for students, parents, and teachers to access important information about COVID-19 in their communities, we continue to deliver on our commitment of building simpler, faster, better services for the people of Ontario."