Data journalism

The waitlist beat, reported from the record up.

Original journalism and data releases on the Ontario Autism Program: waitlist tracking, budget accountability, and school investigations.

The story so far

One provincial pattern, tracked across five desks.

This newsroom publishes primary-source reporting on the Ontario Autism Program. Every figure below traces to a government record, an FAO analysis, or an FOI release, not to a press release.

Beat
OAP waitlist & accountability
Method
Records first, claims second
Cadence
As data is released

What we cover

  • 91,974 children are registered with OAP. Only 22.5% have active funding, the government does not report the full backlog in a public dashboard.
  • $965M allocated against the FAO's 2020 estimate of full-service need (over one and a third billion dollars a year), a $385M annual gap. Budget analysis tracks where the money goes and what it would take to clear the waitlist.
Show all 4 facts
  • Eight school boards under provincial supervision, against the backdrop of Ontario's $123.3B school-building estate (FAO replacement value, province-wide), and what that means for autistic students.
  • $57.9M (2023-24) flowed to AccessOAP, a private consortium exempt from FIPPA. FOI-backed investigations into where OAP money goes and where accountability ends.
Verified: 2026-08-10
Scope: Ontario, Canada

The story in three numbers

Media reporting reflects a provincial pattern, not individual incidents.

Registered

91,974

Children registered

Total registered in the Ontario Autism Program

MCCSS Ontario Autism Program figures, May 13, 2026, obtained by the Ontario Autism Coalition under Freedom of Information

Funded

20,711

Have active funding

Only 22.5% of registered children

MCCSS Ontario Autism Program figures, May 13, 2026, obtained by the Ontario Autism Coalition under Freedom of Information

Without active agreement

71,263

Without an active funding agreement

An administrative status; it does not confirm current service delivery.

MCCSS Ontario Autism Program figures, May 13, 2026, obtained by the Ontario Autism Coalition under Freedom of Information

Verified , MCCSS FOI via OAC · May 2026

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Show as table
Ontario Autism Program key statistics (MCCSS FOI via OAC · May 2026, verified 2026-08-10)
MetricValue
Children registered91,974
Have active funding20,711
Without an active funding agreement71,263

Coverage index

Five standing desks. Pick where to start.

05 desks
  1. Original Journalism

    Investigations

    Nine original investigations. Key findings: 44.5% of $691M reached core therapy (FAO, June 2024), $57.9M flows to an FIPPA-exempt contractor, eight board takeovers affect schools that are part of Ontario's $123.3B school-building estate.

    Ad-hoc
  2. Live Data

    Waitlist Tracker

    91,974 registered. 71,263 waiting for a funding agreement. Historical trend and methodology for understanding the official numbers.

    Updated as data is released
  3. Budget Watch

    Budget Analysis

    $965M allocated for 2026–27. FAO finds $1.35B/year is needed, a $385M annual gap. What the money covers, and what it costs to clear the waitlist.

    Quarterly + Budget Day
  4. Education

    School Board Takeover Tracker

    Eight Ontario school boards under provincial supervision, tracking the legislative and governance developments affecting autistic students.

    Event-driven
  5. Data Desk

    Data Hub

    All datasets, FOI releases, and methodology documentation, structured for journalists, researchers, and families who need verified figures.

    Ongoing

Primary sources. FAO, MCCSS Spending Plan Review (June 2024); MCCSS OAP spending data obtained by The Trillium (Village Media) via FOI. Full figures and citations appear on each linked investigation.

The Evidence

For journalists and researchers

All data on this site is sourced from government records, FOI releases, and FAO analyses. Contact us for media inquiries or to access source materials.

Contact usPress resources
Citable source facts(3)Question-and-answer pairs with their source and verification link.

What did CBC News find about the Ontario autism waitlist in 2026?

Verified

CBC News reviewed 18 months of bi-weekly OAP progress reports obtained via FOI (Jun 2024 – Jan 2026). The latest verified figures show 91,974 children registered as of May 2026 with only 20,711 receiving funding — still under 25%. Registrations jumped 21% since mid-2024. In some periods, funded children decreased while hundreds more registered.

Source: CBC News Investigation, Mar 30, 2026 · Open source record

How many children are on the Ontario autism waitlist in 2026?

Verified

As of May 13, 2026, 91,974 children are registered with the Ontario Autism Program. However, only 20,711 (22.5%) have an active Core Funding Agreement. This represents ~300% growth in registrations since 2019, with 71,263 children still waiting for essential funding.

Source: MCCSS FOI via OAC · May 2026, FAO Report 2024 · Open source record

Has End The Wait Ontario been featured in CBC News?

Verified

Yes. CBC News featured End The Wait Ontario and founder Spencer Carroll in a March 30, 2026 investigation into the Ontario autism waitlist. Carroll was quoted calling for greater transparency and accountability: "Only through accountability can we see whether or not these funds are being deployed responsibly." The article highlighted the site as a comprehensive resource for affected parents.

Source: CBC News, Mar 30, 2026 · Open source record

Evidence on this page

The source chain stays visible.

Key claims are paired with their source, evidence tier, and verification date so readers can inspect the public record directly.

Facts4
Sources3

22.5%

Only 20,711 children have active funding agreements (22.5%), less than one in four

Government / peer-reviewedMCCSS FOI via OAC · May 2026Verified 2026-08-10

OAP registrations jumped 21% since mid-2024, with the number of funded children dipping in some periods despite hundreds more registering

Secondary sourceNicole Brockbank & Angelina King (2026)Verified 2026-03-30
Last system verification: 2026-08-10. Next scheduled update: 2026-11-05.
View methodologyBrowse every source

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Written by

Founder & Autism Advocate

Parent of autistic child navigating OAP system