On April 6, 2020, the Ministry of Education announced the Support for Families program, which provides one-time financial support for families to purchase educational materials during the current school and childcare closures. Under this new program, parents are eligible for a one-time, per-child payment of:
- $200 for children aged 0-12, or
- $250 for children and youth with special needs aged 0-21.
All children within the identified age brackets are eligible for the program. This includes:
- Children enrolled in public school
- Children enrolled in private school (includes on reserve First Nation schools)
- Children attending child care
- Children who are home-schooled
- Children who are not enrolled in school or attending child care
All parents who are residents of Ontario are eligible for funding, including parents of First Nation children attending schools on reserve.
Follow the link below to apply for the first time. Parents/guardians that applied for the Support for Parents program during the school strike days are automatically enrolled in this Support for Families program and do not have to apply again.
The Ministry has now added an option for First Nations schools to the drop down list of schools. Families with children in schools on reserve should select “My child is not enrolled in either public or private school” and then select the “My child is attending a First Nation operated/federally operated school” option from the drop down list.
To apply, visit: https://www.ontario.ca/page/get-support-families