In Ontario, the ratio rules for child care centres are in O. Reg. 137/15, the general regulation under the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014, mostly in sections 7 to 10 and Schedules 1 and 4. The home child care limits come from the Act itself. Here is a plain-language summary, with section numbers so you can check the official text.

The Schedule 1 ratios and group sizes

Every centre must place children in groups by the age categories in Schedule 1. For each group, it must meet the Schedule 1 ratio, maximum group size and proportion of qualified employees. This applies on the premises and during activities off the premises, unless a director approves otherwise (s. 8 (1)).

Source: O. Reg. 137/15, Schedule 1.

How age categories work

An “infant”, “toddler” and so on is a child whose age is within the Schedule 1 range for that category (s. 7 (1)). A “licensed age group” is a group in one of those categories that your licence covers (s. 1 (1)). Some ranges overlap: a child aged 44 months fits both the preschool and kindergarten ranges. Ask your program advisor if a placement is unclear.

Mixed-age grouping: the 20% and 25% rules

“Mixed-age grouping” means placing a child whose age is outside a group’s range into that group (s. 1 (1)). You need a director’s approval to do this (s. 8 (2)). Once approved, s. 8 (3) decides which Schedule 1 rules apply:

• Toddler or preschool group: if no more than 20 per cent of the children are from a younger age category, the group’s own rules apply. Over 20 per cent, the rules for the youngest child apply.
• Kindergarten group: no more than 25 per cent may be three years old (or, on or after the first day of school, turning three that year).
• Primary/junior school age group: no more than 25 per cent may be kindergarten children.
• Junior school age group: no more than 25 per cent may be 68 months or older but younger than nine years.
• Over 25 per cent in any of these three groups: the rules for the youngest child apply.

The Child Care Centre Licensing Manual explains how to work out and round the percentage. Your director’s approval may also set limits, so read it closely.

Reduced ratios at arrival, departure and rest

Section 8 (4) allows a lower ratio at certain times. The limits are strict:

• The reduced ratio can’t be less than two-thirds of the required ratio.
• It applies only during arrival and departure periods and the rest period.
• For programs of six hours or more a day, arrival is the 90 minutes after the program starts and departure is the 60 minutes before it ends.
• For programs of less than six hours a day, both periods are 30 minutes.
• It never applies to a licensed infant group.
• It never applies during outdoor play.

Family age groups are outside section 8 (s. 8 (7)), so this doesn’t apply to them. The regulation doesn’t say how long the rest period may be. The Licensing Manual adds detail on rest periods and on other groups where it says reduced ratios don’t apply. Check with your program advisor before you rely on reduced ratios.

Who counts in the ratio

The ratios are written as employees to children.

• Supervisor (s. 8 (5)): if fewer than five full-time employees are needed to meet ratios, the supervisor may be counted as one. If five or six are needed, a full-time supervisor may be counted for up to half the time. If seven or more are needed, the supervisor can’t be counted.
• Resource consultants (s. 10): they’re never counted toward ratios under s. 8 or 8.1.
• Volunteers and students: they must be supervised and never left alone with a child (s. 11.1). The Licensing Manual says they don’t count in ratios unless they are employees.
• Adults on site (s. 8 (6)): a separate rule. Six or more children not in an infant group, or four or more in an infant group, means at least two adults in attendance. Below that, at least one.

Qualified staff and RECEs

Column 5 of Schedule 1 sets the share of employees in each group who must be qualified employees. Under s. 54 (1), a qualified employee is a member in good standing of the College of Early Childhood Educators (an RECE), or an employee otherwise approved by a director.

For junior school age and primary/junior school age groups, s. 54 (2) also counts employees with a diploma or degree in child and youth care or in recreation and leisure services, and members of the Ontario College of Teachers.

Director approvals come up often: a different ratio or group size (s. 8 (1)), mixed-age grouping (s. 8 (2)), staff qualifications (s. 54 (1)) and the supervisor (s. 53). Keep each approval on file.

Licensed family age groups (Schedule 4)

A centre may be licensed for a family age group: children who may or may not be from the same family (s. 1 (1), s. 8.1). The group can’t have more than 15 children, or more than six younger than 24 months (s. 8.1 (1)).

Schedule 4 sets the ratios:

Source: O. Reg. 137/15, Schedule 4.

To find the number of staff, s. 8.1 (2) says to multiply the number of children in each age range by its ratio as a decimal, add the results, and round up to a whole number. Then these rules apply:

• More than six children: at least two employees.
• More than 10 children, with one or more younger than 12 months: at least three employees.
• Six or fewer children, with no more than three younger than 24 months: one employee is enough.
• If fewer than three employees are needed, at least one must be qualified. If three or more are needed, at least two must be qualified.

If children aged 44 months or older push the staffing number up, the higher number is needed only while they’re present (s. 8.1 (3)).

Home child care

The regulation doesn’t repeat the home child care limits. Section 9 (1) says the number of children at each home, including the provider’s own children, must not exceed the number in the Act. The agency must set a maximum capacity for each home in its agreement with the provider (s. 9 (2)).

According to Ontario’s child care rules page, a provider overseen by a licensed agency can care for:

• a maximum of 6 children under the age of 13;
• a maximum of 3 children younger than 2 years old; and
• counting their own children if they are younger than 4 years old.

The regulation’s penalty table points to s. 6 (3) of the Act for these limits (s. 78, Table 1). Read the Act on e-Laws, or ask your program advisor.

Before placing a child, the agency must consider whether the placement is safe, looking at the children’s ages and needs, their ability to evacuate, the provider’s experience and the space (s. 9 (3)).

Keeping ratios through the day (general good practice)

This section is general good practice, not a legal requirement.

• Breaks: plan cover before a break starts. A reduced ratio is allowed only at the times in s. 8 (4).
• Transitions: when groups combine or move outside, recount children and staff. Outdoor play has no reduced ratio.
• End of the day: when groups merge, check the merged group still meets the rules for its youngest child.
• Records: s. 72 (3) and (4) require daily attendance records, with arrival and departure times and the hours each child was in each group. The regulation doesn’t name a staff sign-in record, but accurate staff clock-in times help you show who was in ratio and when.

Do ratios change on January 1, 2027?

No. The 2027 amendment, O. Reg. 197/26, doesn’t change ss. 7, 8, 8.1, 9, 10 or 54, or Schedules 1 and 4. The supervision and counting policies do change. From January 1, 2027, centres and agencies need written supervision policies that say when, how and how often children are counted, including at transitions, arrivals and dismissals (new s. 11 (2)). Centre policies must also name who acts when the supervisor is away (new s. 6.1 (2)).

How KiddieTrac helps

KiddieTrac runs live ratio checks per room against Schedule 1. These include mixed-age groups, the reduced ratios at arrival, departure and rest, family age groups and the share of qualified staff each group needs, counted from the RECEs on file. It also has name-to-face headcounts with an acting supervisor recorded, staff clock-in and child check-in. These tools help you keep the records. They don’t replace your director’s approvals or your program advisor’s guidance.

Sources

• O. Reg. 137/15 (General), Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014, consolidated on e-Laws, ss. 1, 7 to 11.1, 53, 54, 58, 72 and Schedules 1 and 4
• O. Reg. 197/26 (amending O. Reg. 137/15), commencement in s. 22
• Child care rules in Ontario (home child care limits)
• Child Care Centre Licensing Manual, Part 3, Ratios and Group Size