Vision
Building Brighter Futures Together
Mission
Our collective mission is to nurture a dynamic network that improves the lives of children and youth with special needs by providing a range of integrated, family-centred services.
Values
In all that we do, we are guided by four core values.
Inclusion
For us, inclusion means embracing each person’s potential, abilities, and needs. Children, youth, family members, partners, staff, and others all work together to enable each of us to be healthy, happy, and growing as part of a fun, supportive, and welcoming community.
Innovation
For us, innovation means we are always exploring new ideas, trying new approaches, taking measured risks, gathering honest feedback, measuring our progress, spreading what works, and striving to do more for the children, youth, and families that we support.
Agility
For us, agility means being ready to adapt effectively as our communities grow, as services develop, and as opportunities arise. Our work teaches us that nothing is ever static; and our network of strong relationships allows us to respond effectively together.
Shared Responsibility
For us, shared responsibility is at the heart of collaborating effectively. Throughout the network, children, youth, family members, partners, and staff create shared goals, agree on what each can contribute, ask for help when it is needed, hold each other accountable, and encourage each other at every step of our journey together.
Throughout the network, we each demonstrate leadership by advancing these four core values.
Strategic Goals: 2018-2021
Over the next four years, we seek to fulfill our collective mission by evolving services, nurturing relationships, and strengthening capacities.
Strategic Goal 1: We will Evolve Services
We are proud of the integrated service network that we have developed together. Our model enables us to provide exemplary coordinated services to children and youth with complex special needs. We also recognize that we have yet to achieve our network’s full potential. By continually evolving our services, we will do even more to improve the experience of children, youth, and family members, and increase the impact our services have on their lives.
We will focus on:
a. Access. We will make it easy for children, youth, and families to access the services they are eligible to receive. We will do so by communicating clearly about what is available to them, providing families with the help they need to navigate amongst our services, and organizing services so they are available at convenient times and locations.
b. Integration. We will help each team of service providers work together across partner organizations so their services, collectively, provide the greatest possible benefit.
c. Consistency. We will help ensure children, youth, and families with similar needs can access similar services across our network. We will do so by examining and addressing unnecessary differences in service eligibility, availability, quality, and experience across organizations, geographies, and age groups.
d. Transitions. We will help prepare children, youth, and their families for transitions, with a special focus on the transition into adulthood.
Strategic Goal 2: We will Nurture Relationships
Healthy relationships are our most precious resource — they allow the network to thrive. We recognize that we must continue to nurture the open, constructive, and trusting relationships that enable each of us to play our unique and essential role. By nurturing relationships, we will strengthen our community and deepen the trust we have in one another.
We will focus on:
a. Peer Community: We will foster a welcoming, fun, and supportive community amongst the children, youth, and families we serve, and encourage former clients to share their experiences and advice with community members.
b. Partner Community: We will deepen relationships amongst all partner organizations, at the service delivery, managerial, and leadership levels.
c. New Collaborations: We will nurture relationships and explore partnerships with organizations that bring valuable expertise to our network, and work together to create a service system where all children, youth, and families have equitable access to the services they need.
d. Provincial Allies: We will work with government, other children’s treatment centres, and like-minded organizations across the province so that Ontario’s system for children and youth with special needs is comprehensive, efficient, effective, and locally adaptive.
Strategic Goal 3: We will Strengthen Capacities
Our network is strengthened when we work together to attract and share resources, develop our skills, and build shared systems that ultimately allow us to improve the lives of children, youth, and their families. Sustaining and increasing the network’s value requires that we consistently work to strengthen key capacities.
We will focus on:
a. Child, Youth, and Family Participation: We will strengthen our capacity to involve children, youth, and their families in shaping the services our network provides. We will also strengthen the capacity of each child, youth, and family member to advocate for their needs at each step of their journey.
b. Network Leadership Skills: We will work together to strengthen network leadership skills amongst partners. We will identify and support emerging innovators.
c. Measurement: We will refine shared systems of evaluation and outcome measurement and demonstrate the value of these systems throughout the network
d. Finances: We will strengthen the financial sustainability of the network, direct resources to where they are needed most, and grow our financial capacity to respond to identified needs.
To read our full strategic plan click here.