Published plans and annual reports 2024–2025: Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services

Ministry overview

Working with our community partners, the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services funds, designs and delivers programs and services to support people in Ontario during times of need. MCCSS works to improve outcomes for children, youth, families and individuals who need support, and advance social and economic opportunities for women across Ontario.

This includes supporting:

• Youth who are in, or at risk of, conflict with the law
• Children, youth and adults with special needs
• Children and youth in need of protection or child welfare services
• Ontarians in need of financial or other support to build better lives for themselves through economic independence
• First Nation, Métis and Inuit communities across the province, including through Indigenous-led services and supports
• Women in the workforce, women-led businesses, women entrepreneurs, and women and girls who are building their skills and experience to prepare for the economy of the future
• Survivors and victims of violence including survivors of human trafficking, survivors of gender-based violence, Indigenous individuals, families, and communities

MCCSS supports Ontarians as they transition through the many cycles of life.

We are there to help individuals and families in financial need by providing monthly income support and benefits, as well as access to employment supports. The Ontario Works program helps low-income people in temporary need, and the Ontario Disability Support Program assists low-income individuals who have a disability.

We are there for young people who at age 18 may need to transition from receiving children’s special needs services to receiving ministry-funded Adult Developmental Services, including Passport funding; and the Ontario Disability Support Program.

We are there for women across Ontario, empowering them to thrive at home, at work and in their communities, and excel in business, in leadership roles, as entrepreneurs, and in sectors where the need is greatest.

We are there for survivors of gender-based violence who may also be receiving child support enforced by the Family Responsibility Office.

We are there to help survivors of human trafficking rebuild their lives with dignity and compassion.

We are there for youth who have had involvement with the youth justice and child welfare systems and who now need support in finding a job, pursuing training or furthering their education.

At MCCSS, we deliver programs and services that support Ontarians at key moments in their lives and help them be the best they can be.

Key accomplishments: 2023–24

The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services tracks key performance indicators to evaluate the effectiveness of its policies and better inform ministry decision-making and program design.

These statistical measurements of program outcomes allow the ministry to apply a quantitative lens in determining the success of its policies and programs and their impact on Ontarians who rely on them.

By setting target goals and tracking program outcomes against the ministry’s goals, key performance indicators ensure that the ministry has the information it needs to make cost-effective decisions on the best use of taxpayer dollars, and where changes should be made to strengthen existing programs.

For example, the percentage of high-volume transactions (e.g., MyBenefits Paperless Services, Applications, and Payments) increased to 64.8% in 2022–23, towards the target of 68% by 2023–24. Similarly, the number of cases exiting social assistance to employment at least once within the calendar year increased to 27,392 in 2022, towards the target of 60,000 by 2024.

As outlined below, MCCSS has achieved several key accomplishments over the past year to protect Ontario’s most vulnerable people, modernize service delivery, and provide a sustainable system of social supports to help with the province’s economic recovery.

Protecting people

• Continued implementation of the Ontario Autism Program (OAP), including enrollment of 20,000 children/youth into core clinical services where families can access funding to purchase eligible services and supports. AccessOAP is fully up and running and serving thousands of children registered in the OAP with intake, registration, and care coordination.
• Continued to implement Pathways to Safety: Ontario’s strategy in response to the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, which was developed in partnership with the Indigenous Women’s Advisory Council. Ontario’s Strategy is a whole-of-government response that sets the path forward to confront and address the root causes of violence and abuse so future generations of Indigenous women and their families are safe to live their lives free of violence.
• Signed a four-year $162 million bilateral agreement between Canada and Ontario to implement the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence (NAP GBV). This agreement is helping the Government of Ontario strengthen the sectors supporting survivors and people at risk of gender-based violence through enhancements to existing programs and services. It will support the government’s action plan to prevent and address violence, Ontario STANDS (Standing Together Against gender-based violence Now through Decisive actions, prevention, empowerment and Supports).
• Launched Ontario STANDS, our four-year, cross-government action plan to better respond to gender-based violence, build safer and healthier communities, and support women’s wellbeing and economic opportunities. In the first year, the plan invested $18.7 million to help prevent and address violence against women and girls. Ontario-STANDS is supported by an investment of $162 million from Canada’s National Action Plan to End Gender Based Violence. This funding builds on the province’s existing investments of $1.4 billion over four years to end gender-based violence and support victims.
• Launched a call for applications to invest $5.5 million in the Women’s Economic Security Program to expand and increase training opportunities for low-income women. The funding will help equip women with the skills, knowledge and experience to find a job or start a business and increase their financial security in high-demand sectors.
• Helped women experiencing social and economic barriers connect to supports and develop the skills they need to gain financial security and independence through an expansion of Investing in Women’s Futures Program to 10 additional locations.
• Announced a $330 million investment in pediatric services, which included up to $45  million in new annual funding for children’s rehabilitation services. This means less time waiting for speech-language pathology, physiotherapy, and occupational therapy services, quicker recovery, and better quality of life for children and their families.
• Awarded 105 capacity-building projects through the second round of the OAP Workforce Capacity Fund with a priority focus on Northern, rural and remote communities, and for Indigenous and Francophone families.
• Collaborated with the Ministry of Health to implement a regulatory oversight framework for behaviour analysts who provide applied behaviour analysis (ABA) services, which will come into effect July 1, 2024.
• Launched the Ready, Set, Go program with an investment of $170 million over three years starting in 2023–24. This new program, launched on April 1st, 2023, helps prepare youth for adulthood starting at 13 with the life skills they need after they leave care. It also offers financial supports for youth up to age 23 and additional financial assistance for post-secondary education and pathways to employment. In 2023–24, this new program supported almost 4,000 youth as they prepared for adulthood.
• Invested an additional $6.15 million in the Student Nutrition Program and the First Nations Student Nutrition Program and partnered with community organizations to launch the Healthy Students Brighter Ontario campaign enabling school-aged children and youth to have healthy meals and snacks throughout the school year.
• Funded culturally relevant mental health and wellness services for Indigenous youth at risk of or in conflict with the law, including specialized services for female-identifying Indigenous youth.
• Worked collaboratively with other ministries, municipalities and the federal government in response to capacity and funding pressures in several sectors including social assistance, shelters and housing, and settlement services, caused by the unprecedented number of asylum claimants arriving in Ontario.

Modernizing government

• Launched a digital Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS) form in March 2024 so that Infant Hearing Program (IHP) screeners can enter assessment information electronically. At the same time, launched a new data connection with Newborn Screening Ontario (NSO) to send UNHS form data (e.g., demographic information and consent information) from the ministry’s Child Development Information System (CDIS). These digital projects are reducing manual data entry and enabling staff to provide faster access to services and interventions and help meet the goals of early intervention for children and families.
• Increased use of MyBenefits service by 37% since December 2022. More than 350,000 social assistance clients have registered to use MyBenefits as of December 2023.
• Introduced an online option for families applying to the Special Services at Home (SSAH) and Assistance for Children with Severe Disabilities (ACSD) programs in April 2022. Since the launch, families have submitted 14,902 applications online for SSAH and 10,111 applications online for ACSD, significantly reducing the number of paper applications submitted to the ministry.
• Introduced a Digital Statement of Arrears and Interest Calculator Assistant as an online tool to support clients to accurately calculate family support payment arrears and or/interest owed to them. The digital tool enables quicker processing time, easier submission, and reduced instances of errors.
• Launched eWrits to improve the process of filing a Writ of Seizure and Sale. This new interface has drastically reduced support payment wait time from approximately three months to 24 hours.
• Introduced an Immigration, Refugee and Citizenship Canada and MCCSS interface system automating the ability to respond to inquiries about immigration status. This new tool enables the accurate assessment and determination of social assistance eligibility changes to immigration status.

Social assistance transformation

The ministry’s vision for social assistance transformation is focused on building a more responsive, efficient and person-centred social assistance system. The government is improving the way that social assistance is delivered in the province so that people get the support they need while making sure that people who aren’t eligible for social assistance are connected to other available benefits and skills training that will support their success.

The ministry has expanded the provincial role by putting in place a centralized intake framework for people applying to the Ontario Works program. The ministry will continue to work closely with municipal Ontario Works delivery partners and Ontario Disability Support Program offices on the path forward to advance its social assistance service delivery strategy.

In 2023–24, the ministry:

• Improved client service by expanding Ontario Works applicant access to the centralized intake process, an automated system that determines eligibility quickly based on risk. With this latest expansion, all 47 municipalities across the province now have access to this centralized intake process, which has received over 418,000 applications since inception in 2020.
• Continued efforts to improve the client experience and streamline social assistance delivery through a partnership with ServiceOntario to provide application support over the phone for all Ontario Works offices across the province. Centralizing the intake process for those who are applying or reapplying for support is a key initiative under Ontario’s vision for a renewed social assistance system.
• Proclaimed amendments to the Ontario Works Act, 1997 to enable realignment of roles between municipalities/DSSABs and the province.
• Continued to enhance program integrity and reduce administrative effort by expanding use of data and automation to ensure decisions are consistently made based on the best information available.
• Delivered on the government’s commitment to annually increase disability income support rates. Effective July 1, 2023, Ontario Disability Support Program rates, as well as the maximum monthly amount for the Assistance for Children with Severe Disabilities program payments, were increased by 6.5% and all future increases are now tied to inflation. This brought Ontario’s total increase in social assistance disability payments to almost 12% since September 2022. The annual rate indexation will help recipients keep pace with the rising cost of living and pay for life’s essentials.
• Decreased the time it takes for applicants to receive an eligibility determination for the Ontario Disability Support Program by over 35% by implementing a new, streamlined medical information adjudication approach. This has supported the government’s plan to build a more responsive and efficient system by connecting those who qualify to supports in a shorter time frame.
• Continued the centralization of benefits administration across the province for all 47 local Ontario Disability Support Program offices as of March 2024. This team has processed over $199 million dollars in benefits through the centralized model to date.
• Continued to support the rollout of integrated employment services for Social Assistance recipients as part of the Employment Services Transformation initiative in partnership with the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

Developmental services

The government is committed to helping protect the needs of Ontario’s most vulnerable adults and providing a sustainable system that addresses their needs.

In 2023–24, Ontario invested approximately $3.4 billion in services for people with developmental disabilities. This included funding dedicated to supportive living services and supports.

Journey to belonging: choice and inclusion

In May 2021, MCCSS released Journey to Belonging: Choice and Inclusion, a long-term plan for adult developmental services (DS) reform.

Since its release, MCCSS has made progress on immediate actions to improve current services and supports, as well as to improve staffing capacity through recruitment and retention efforts. The ministry has also taken foundational steps in the design of long-term reform commitments, including to develop a Strategy to build a Developmental Services workforce with the right skills to support people, adapt to changing service delivery models, and deliver quality person-centred supports.

Key accomplishments include:

• Partnering with the Ministry of Health through a targeted 2023–24 initiative to support 38 adults with a dual diagnosis (having developmental disabilities as well as complex mental health needs) and who are designated Alternate Level of Care (ALC), to transition from hospital beds to community placements.
• Continuing the partnership with the Developmental Services (DS) Sector by launching Phase 2 of the Developmental Services Workforce Initiatives Steering Committee (DSWISC), which brings together a diverse table of stakeholders and sector partners and the Ministry to start implementation of short and longer-term workforce capacity projects. Including:
  • Expanding Operational Leaders training
  • Supporting worker mental health and well-being through development and delivery of training and resources, including developing Cultivating Community Wellness newsletter for the sector

Knowledge Translation and Transfer (KTT)

• Knowledge Translation and Transfer (KTT) is a key component of change management that promotes a shared understanding of the change mandate, its drivers, and a shared commitment in achieving related outcomes for the DS sector. KTT supports external and internal partners to stay informed, strengthen skills and knowledge, collaborate and champion through meaningful and sustained dialogue.
• Sector-driven and in alignment with MCCSS priorities, the KTT Hub and Network provides a comprehensive, evidence-based approach to research, innovation, capacity-building and service delivery modernization.
• To date, the hub is engaging a membership of 466 agencies and 1500 members, and the DS Learning webcasts from the 2023–24 year have over 1600 combined views for 5 new modules.

Programs supporting Indigenous children, families and communities

Pathways to safety

Ontario continued to implement Pathways to Safety: Ontario’s strategy in response to the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, which was developed in partnership with the Indigenous Women’s Advisory Council. Ontario’s Strategy is a whole government response that sets the path forward to confront and address the root causes of violence and abuse so future generations of Indigenous women and their families are safe to live their lives free of violence.

This year's investments included $35.4M in annualized funding to 35 First Nations, Inuit, Métis and urban Indigenous partners to deliver the Family Well-Being Program, which was co-developed with Indigenous partners to help children, youth and their families to heal and recover from the effects of intergenerational violence and trauma. In 2022–23, the program reached over 80,000 Indigenous children, youth and adults across the province. The ministry also invested $1 million in the Indigenous Anti-Human Trafficking Liaisons Program, which help communities build capacity to address trafficking and support Indigenous survivors of human trafficking, and $2.3 million in the Kizhaay Anishinaabe Niin / “I am a Kind Man” program, a holistic education and healing program for men and youth that is founded on Indigenous teachings.

Indigenous healing and wellness strategy

The government continues to work with Indigenous communities and organizations to build thriving, healthy communities. This includes reducing family violence and violence against Indigenous women and children, and supporting the healing, health and wellness of First Nations, Inuit and Métis and urban Indigenous peoples and communities in Ontario through the longstanding Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy (IHWS).

As part of Pathways to Safety: Ontario’s strategy in response to the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, MCCSS continued to invest $2 million to stabilize funding for Aboriginal Shelters of Ontario to build Indigenous women's shelter system capacity, and to support new/expanded IHWS Healing Lodges.

Since 2018–19, under Ontario’s Roadmap to Wellness, MCCSS and Ministry of Health are supporting new or expanded Indigenous Mental Health & Addictions Treatment and Healing Centres and other mental health initiatives delivered through the Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy. MCCSS also continues to support community-led responses to the urgent need for mental health care and social crises in northern and remote First Nation communities.

Starting in 2023–24, through Ontario’s Roadmap to Wellness, MCCSS is investing in a new program that will provide Indigenous children and youth who have been sex trafficked with specialized trauma-informed care and access to mental health and addiction supports ($1.3 million in 2023–24 and $2.6 million in ongoing operating funding starting in 2024–25).

This innovative programming is the first of its kind — designed to support Indigenous children and youth who have been sexually exploited. The program will help address a key gap in specialized, Indigenous-led, wrap around supports for Indigenous children and youth.

In addition to MCCSS-led investments, Ontario provided funding to cross-government investments in Indigenous services under Roadmap to Wellness:

• A Plan to Build Ontario's Mental Health and Addictions System that includes $4 million to enhance and expand Healing Lodges and Indigenous MHA Treatment & Healing Centres through the Indigenous Healing & Wellness Strategy and $1.5 million to support a flexible approach to crisis response in First Nations communities through IHWS.
• Ontario also provided over $7.6 million in one-time social emergency response funding and $5.5 million in one-time Paediatric Recovery Funding to support Indigenous-led child and youth mental health and addictions programming. This includes crisis response and prevention programs, mental health programs, and the Indigenous Healthy Babies and Healthy Children program. Furthermore, Ontario provided a $1.3 million investment for all Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy Healing Lodges and Mental Health and Addictions Treatment & Healing Centres.

Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy partners also received over $4.4 million in 2023–24 through the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence to strengthen the gender-based violence sector through enhancements to existing programs and services.

Supporting Indigenous-led programs

The ministry continues to invest in a suite of Indigenous-led programs totaling over $96 million that improve the health and well-being of Indigenous children, youth, families, and communities.

Through these ministry programs, Indigenous partners deliver flexible, culturally grounded, holistic community-based programs and services for First Nations, Inuit, Métis and urban Indigenous children, youth and families across the province.

The Child Welfare — Indigenous Community Prevention and Supports programs are part of the continuing work of MCCSS under the Ontario Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy (OICYS) and are supporting the development of a distinct-Indigenous approach for Ontario’s Child Welfare system.

The Building Indigenous Women’s Leadership Program supports initiatives developed by Indigenous women to provide training and mentorship opportunities for Indigenous women to enable full participation of leadership roles in their communities.

The First Nations Student Nutrition Program (FNSNP) provides over $4 million for breakfast, lunch or mid-morning meals in 145 sites in 63 First Nations and 27 urban Indigenous communities to support learning and healthy child development. The FNSNP provides over 1.4 million meals to Indigenous children and youth each year.

In 2023–24, MCCSS provided an additional $900,000 in one-time funding to FNSNP partners to help address rising food costs and help more children and youth access healthy food. Ontario has also partnered with key organizations through the Health Students Brighter Ontario campaign to fundraise further supports for FNSNP.

The Family Well-Being program (FWBp) is a key investment under the Ontario Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy (OICYS) and the cornerstone of the child, youth and family well-being prevention architecture being built collaboratively by Indigenous communities and MCCSS.

The total annual investment for the FWBp is $35.4 million, including $5.4 million from the Ministry of Health’s Roadmap to Wellness Strategy investments. The FWBp was co-developed with Indigenous partners and supports Indigenous communities to determine how to lead and deliver holistic programs and services that meet the unique needs of their local communities. The long-term objectives of the program are to:

• End violence against Indigenous women
• Reduce the number of Indigenous children in child welfare and the youth justice systems
• Improve the overall health and wellbeing of Indigenous communities

FWBp services and programming include traditional land-based teachings and ceremonies, trauma-informed counselling, addictions support, safe spaces, and coordination of services. These services and programs help children, youth and their families to heal and recover from the effects of intergenerational violence and trauma, reduce violence, and address the overrepresentation of Indigenous children and youth in child welfare and youth justice systems.

Starting in 2023–24, $2.3 million is being provided annually for four years to the FWBp through the National Action Plan on Ending Gender Based Violence (NAP GBV).

In March 2023, Ontario signed a coordination agreement with the federal government and Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug (KI) to support the exercise of KI's jurisdiction as they lead the reformation of child and family services in their community, since they are in the best position to determine what is important for their children, youth and families. This coordination agreement outlines shared understandings, specific roles and responsibilities, and joint commitments to support the coordination of services for children, youth and families. The agreement also addresses fiscal arrangements for delivering child and family services, and sets out principles the parties will consider when developing such arrangements.

In Fall 2023, the ministry collaborated with First Nation partners to transition direct delivery of the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) to two early implementation sites (Mamaweswen, The North Shore Tribal Council and M’Chigeeng First Nation) serving nine First Nation communities. The expansion of ODSP delivery to First Nation sites improves services by enabling access to culturally appropriate, community-based social assistance supports for ODSP clients on-reserve. The ministry continues to work collaboratively with partners on plans to expand ODSP delivery to additional communities in 2024–25 as part of its truth and reconciliation efforts.

The ministry will continue to work with our First Nations partners in developing a separate plan to look at social assistance for First Nations communities that responds to their unique priorities and circumstances, as well as embraces substantial equality.

Services and supports for children and youth with special needs, including the Ontario Autism Program

The ministry is providing time-limited funding to 16 Children’s Treatment Centres (CTCs) as part of a coordinated project over three years to implement a new Client Information System (CIS).

The primary objective is to develop a comprehensive system that will modernize case management, data collection, reporting functions, and the protection of client data. Development of the new CIS is targeted to conclude by the end of 2024–25.

In 2023–24, the government made a $330 million investment in pediatric health services, which included up to $45 million in new annual funding for children’s rehabilitation services.

As part of the Leading Innovation for Transformation (LIFT) strategy, this funding is being used to reduce waitlists and improve access to clinical assessments, early intervention, and speech-language pathology, physiotherapy, and occupational therapy services.

With this investment, children’s rehabilitation services have received over $105 million in new annual funding since 2021 to ensure children with special needs can get the care they need when they need it.

To respond to the individual needs of children and youth on the autism spectrum and their families, the OAP offers a range of services and supports, including core clinical services, foundational family services, caregiver-mediated early years programs, an entry to school program, urgent response services, and care coordination.

In 2023–24, the government invested an additional $60 million in the OAP, a 10% increase in funding, to serve more children in core clinical services and increase sector capacity to deliver OAP services.

AccessOAP, the independent intake organization for the OAP, continued to invite children into core clinical services in the order they registered in the program. By March 2024, AccessOAP had enrolled over 20,000 children and youth in core clinical services.

In 2023–24, the ministry continued to invest in services and supports for families, including diagnostic services, workforce capacity-building projects and the OAP Provider List.

Through the first and second round of the Workforce Capacity Fund, the ministry awarded over 180 capacity-building projects delivered by children’s service providers and their community partners. Projects with a specific focus on building capacity in Northern, rural and remote communities, and projects focused on Indigenous and Francophone families were prioritized for funding. Round three projects will launch in April 2024.

Autism services and supports, including respite services and seasonal camps, continued to be provided to children and youth and their families.

The ministry continued to provide interim one-time funding to all eligible families who submitted their completed registration form for the Ontario Autism Program by March 31, 2021. This included renewing interim one-time funding payments of $5,500 or $22,000 for eligible families based on their child’s age as of April 1, 2023, so they can continue to purchase eligible services and supports they feel are most appropriate for their child.

Child welfare

In July 2020, the ministry announced the Child Welfare Redesign (CWR) Strategy with a mission to provide every child and youth that encounters the child welfare system with timely and responsive services that are in their best interests. Recognizing the overrepresentation of Indigenous children and youth in the child welfare system, a distinct Indigenous approach is being developed across all parts of the CWR Strategy.

In 2023–24, the ministry has continued to make progress across the three goals of the CWR Strategy:

• Providing enhanced early intervention that strengthens families and communities
• Addressing disproportionalities and outcome disparities in child welfare
• Improving the service experience for those that need protection services from societies and out of home care

As part of this work, to help licensees, placing agencies and other service providers improve the quality of care they provide in out of home care settings, the ministry released a comprehensive Quality Standards Framework (QSF) in 2020.

• The framework provides guidance on how to help better meet the needs of children and youth in licensed out of home care, and to support them to thrive, and achieve better outcomes.
• It encourages care that is strength-based, trauma informed, culturally competent, relevant and safe, and considers the unique needs and identities of children and youth.

To further hold licensees and placing agencies, including societies, accountable for the quality of care they provide, the ministry has embedded key parts of the QSF in regulation, which came into effect July 1, 2023. This includes:

• Improved service planning requirements
• New and enhanced requirements regarding safety plans and case management
• New qualification requirements for frontline staff and supervisors
• Consistent training requirements for foster parents

As part of work under the CWR Strategy, on February 15, 2023, the ministry announced a $68 million commitment in 2023–24 for the Ready, Set, Go (RSG) Program commencing April 1, 2023.

This program supports long-term financial independence and connects youth in the child welfare system with additional services and supports to better prepare them for life after leaving care. This includes life skills development, post-secondary education and pathways to employment. This commitment was bolstered in the March 2023 Ontario Budget: Building a Strong Ontario, making the total investment in the Ready, Set Go program $170 million over three years.

The ministry has been working closely with key stakeholders to implement the Ready, Set, Go program. This has included hosting regular engagement sessions to gather feedback from key stakeholders and working collaboratively across ministries to develop and release supplementary program resources. It also included issuing joint Ministers’ letters with the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, the Ministry of Colleges and Universities and the Ministry of Education that highlight education, post-secondary and employment-related programs and services for youth transitioning from care. In 2023–24, this new program supported almost 4,000 youth as they prepared for adulthood.

As part of Ontario’s Anti-Human Trafficking (AHT) Strategy, the government is providing dedicated, specialized supports to intervene early and better protect children and youth from sex trafficking.

In January 2024, the ministry announced the launch of community engagements on a new Children at Risk of Exploitation (CARE) Unit in the Kenora District, in addition to the two existing CARE units in Toronto and Durham, where children’s aid societies and police services partner to identify at-risk children and youth and connect them to appropriate services and supports.

Transforming child and family services is a significant undertaking and will take time, but we are committed to doing the work that is needed to promote safety and stability, and ensure that children, youth and families have access to the supports they need to succeed and thrive in their communities.

Child, Youth and Family Services Act review

The Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 (CYFSA) is the primary legislation governing child, youth and family services that are provided, licensed, or funded by the ministry including child welfare, adoptions, youth justice, community support and out-of-home care services.

As part of this legislation, a formal review and public report must be completed every five years in order to ensure that the CYFSA continues to promote the best interests, protection and well-being of children and youth across all services covered under the Act.

The ministry undertook a five-year legislative review of the CYFSA in compliance with sections 336 to 338 of the Act, assessing the effectiveness and relevance of the legislation and soliciting input on six key focus areas:

1. Child and youth rights
2. First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples
3. Equity and anti-racism
4. Prevention and community-based care
5. Quality services
6. Accountability

This review is the first since the CYFSA was proclaimed in 2018 and began in May 2023.

Gender-based violence

The government is continuing to take action to prevent and address gender-based violence in all forms. On December 6, 2023, the ministry launched Ontario-STANDS, a four-year action plan to better respond to gender-based violence, build safer, healthier communities, and support women’s well-being and economic opportunities.

The plan is funded through the federal NAP GBV and builds on Ontario’s existing investments of $1.4 billion to end gender-based violence and support victims. Ontario-STANDS will complement and bolster existing social services and strategies that are working to address gender-based violence. The plan is based on five key pillars:

• Supporting stabilization of critical programs — provide more funding to address immediate service system pressures, including staffing and operational challenges, in existing crisis-response programs and supporting continuous service improvements.
• Preventing gender-based violence — invest in innovative practices to help stop gender-based violence before it occurs. The action plan will do this by driving collaboration across sectors, responding to local and community specific needs, and building service provider capacity to understand, recognize and respond to gender-based violence and the needs of survivors and their children.
• Improving transitions to recovery — connect social services to support survivors in leaving and recovering from violent and abusive situations, and improving access to safe and affordable housing, child-care and mental health and addiction supports.
• Supporting safety and reducing recurrence — ensure perpetrators are held accountable through the criminal justice system, while expanding rehabilitation services to help individuals charged with a gender-based violence related offence from re-offending and providing targeted supports for men and boys to change attitudes and foster positive parenting.
• Promoting economic security — enhance programs that provide employment, pre-apprenticeship and entrepreneurship training to more low-income women facing social and economic barriers, including women at risk of or who have experienced gender-based violence.

In 2023–24, in addition to the NAP GBV funding, Ontario invested nearly $247 million to support victims of violence. The government also invested an additional $10.2 million for violence prevention initiatives.

Violence against women

In 2023–24, the ministry marked the third year of an $18.5 million Transitional and Housing Support Program (THSP) enhancement. The enhancement included an increase of $4.3 million in 2021–22 and $7.1 million in 2022–23 and 2023–24, to help survivors of intimate partner violence and human trafficking optimize housing benefits and supports, access safe and affordable housing, and benefit from the services they need to rebuild their lives.

As noted in Ontario-STANDS, the $7.1 million THSP enhancement will become annual funding beginning in 2024–25.

In February 2023, the ministry announced up to $6.5 million to help women and children who have experienced violence and survivors of human trafficking access the supports and services they need to stay safe and rebuild their lives. This includes $2.9 million for Children and Youth Services and Supports and $3.6 million for Rural and Remote Services and Supports, which will become annual funding beginning in 2024–25.

In December 2023, the ministry announced $5.5 million investment in the Women’s Economic Security Program to expand and increase training opportunities for low-income women, including those who have experienced or are at risk of intimate partner violence.

In 2023–24, the ministry continued to implement Year 2 under the Canada-Ontario Contribution Agreement on Crisis Hotlines Responding to GBV to support Ontario’s GBV crisis lines.

This $8 million in federal funding (over four years) builds on Ontario’s existing investments in crisis lines, helps address the increased demand for services, and supports improvements towards more robust, responsive and sustainable services across the province.

Anti-human trafficking

The province’s Anti-Human Trafficking Strategy (“the Strategy”) takes a comprehensive approach to combat human trafficking and the sexual exploitation of children and youth. It leverages interconnected programs and partnerships to maximize investment outcomes and supports a coordinated and aligned response to human trafficking in Ontario.

Approximately $307 million is being invested between 2020–2025 to raise awareness of the issue, protect victims, intervene early, support survivors and hold offenders accountable. This is the largest investment in anti-human trafficking initiatives in Canada’s history between all levels of government.

Building on existing funding provided through the Community Supports and Indigenous-led Initiatives Fund, of the $307 million, Ontario is investing $96 million in services for survivors of human trafficking over five years (2020–2025). This includes up to $46 million in new (since 2020) funding, for new community-based services, so more victims and survivors have access to the supports they need.

The Community Supports Fund and the Indigenous-led Initiatives Fund prioritizes projects that focus on early intervention, increased protection for children and youth who have been sexually exploited, and dedicated survivor supports developed and delivered by survivors of human trafficking.

These organizations provide wrap-around, trauma-informed supports, and culturally responsive care to help rebuild lives. Furthermore, a number of the programs are designed for and by Indigenous-led organizations and communities, and/or survivors of human trafficking, or have survivors working within the organization to help inform and develop the program.

In 2023–24, a new program was funded through the Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy (IHWS) that will provide Indigenous children and youth who have been sex trafficked with specialized trauma-informed care and access to mental health and addiction (MHA) supports ($1.3 million in 2023–24, and $2.6 million in ongoing funding as of 2024–25).

Funded as part of Ontario’s Roadmap to Wellness (R2W), this innovative programming is the first of its kind — targeted to support Indigenous children and youth who have been sexually exploited, and will address a key gap in specialized, Indigenous-led, wrap around supports for Indigenous children and youth.

As part of Ontario’s Anti-Human Trafficking (AHT) Strategy, the government is providing dedicated, specialized supports to intervene early and better protect children and youth from sex trafficking.

We are investing $11.5 million over three years in two Children at Risk of Exploitation (CARE) Units in Durham Region and the City of Toronto. CARE Units pair and train police officers and child protection workers, including Indigenous workers, to identify and locate children ages 12–17 who are being sexually exploited and/or sex trafficked and connect them to services.

Community engagements are underway to plan a third CARE Unit in the Kenora District in 2024.

An additional $28 million over five years is being invested in group out-of-home care settings for children and youth. Two licenced settings for trafficked children and youth were established in the same jurisdictions as the CARE Units to serve up to six children at a time.

A third licensed out of home setting would be implemented alongside the CARE Unit in the Kenora District.

Building on the Strategy, additional supports were announced as part of the 2021 Budget, to help survivors of human trafficking find and maintain affordable housing.

This is in addition to the legislation that was passed in June 2021 to strengthen a cross-sectoral and long-term provincial response to human trafficking, further protect victims, better support survivors, and hold offenders accountable. This cross-government approach speaks to the magnitude of the situation and the need to work across sectors and across levels of government to stop this horrific crime in our province and country.

Announced February 21, 2024, aligned with legislative requirements, the province is undertaking a review of the current Anti-Human Trafficking Strategy. This review will involve hearing from the public, including survivors of human trafficking, as well as individuals, frontline service providers, communities and organizations that are most adversely impacted. The feedback we receive will help inform Ontario's next steps in combating human trafficking — including how best to support survivors and protect people who experience greater risks of being targeted and trafficked.

Victim services

The government is committed to standing up for victims of crime and creating safer communities in every region of the province, including Northern and rural communities.

As part of Ontario’s commitment to strengthen Ontarians' access to responsive and resilient victim services no matter where they live, we invested $2.1 million over three years, beginning 2021–22, to strengthen frontline services in underserved areas of the province. This funding will now be ongoing to help ensure supports are available for victims and survivors of sexual violence.

In 2019, the province began a comprehensive review of victim services across Ontario and engaged with stakeholders to explore opportunities for a more integrated, effective, efficient, and client-centred victim services system.

As part of the review, by April 1, 2022, nine victim services programs were transferred from the Ministry of the Attorney General to the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services as they better align with the ministry’s mandate and fit within the current system of community-based services, including the Anti-Human Trafficking Strategy, Violence Against Women services and programs related to violence prevention.

In 2023–24, the government invested $49.9 million in eight of the transferred victim services programs, with an additional $8 million invested in the Supervised Access Program.

Family responsibility office

The Family Responsibility Office (FRO) is enhancing the way it works to increase efficiency and address client service issues so that more money can get to families and children, enabling them to plan for their future. This enhancement has been achieved through investments in service improvements and technology, including alternative service channels for clients; accessible, efficient and proactive case management processes; and improvements to FRO’s case management IT system. Additionally, FRO has successfully moved to electronic processing of writs, shortening transactions that could take up to three months to 48 hours or less.

Ontario is also helping more families and children by implementing the Hague Convention on International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance ratified by Canada in October 2023. This international treaty adds 38 jurisdictions that Ontario can work with to enforce and collect spousal and child support when parents or spouses live abroad, enabling enforcement in a total of more than 55 countries.

Youth justice modernization and programming

The Youth Justice modernization plan is focused on developing a comprehensive and sustainable youth justice services system to meet the needs of youth in, or at risk of, conflict with the law, including youth in custody/detention and on probation. The plan also focusses on rehabilitation and the important role that plays in supporting youth and enabling active participation in, and positive contributions to, their communities.

To help inform the government’s work toward improving outcomes and providing more opportunities for youth in conflict with the law, the ministry established the Youth Justice Task Force to provide policy advice and recommendations to the Minister. The Task Force will draw on their knowledge and expertise in the administration of justice and policing, clinical interventions and mental health, human resources, and working with racialized youth. The Task Force will provide their report to the Minister in September 2024.

The ministry is committed to addressing the overrepresentation of Indigenous and Black youth in the justice system through enhanced services and supports that are culturally responsive and community driven.

As part of this commitment the ministry has:

• Enhanced funding to top up three Indigenous Youth Justice Mental Health Programs and continued funding to sustain two additional programs
• Implemented community-driven prevention initiatives for Indigenous children, youth and their families in six Remote First Nation Communities
• Dedicated funding to sustain and enhance four (4) existing community-led, culturally responsive diversion programming for Black and Indigenous youth
• Launched Calls for Proposals to targeted Indigenous and Black-led organizations and communities to support new culturally relevant and responsive programming to Black and Indigenous youth in or at-risk of justice involvement

In addition, the ministry secured funding to sustain and enhance three youth justice Gender-Based Violence Prevention/Intervention Programs that aim to reduce risk factors that contribute to male youth who engage in gender-based violence.

Two of the programs are targeted for Indigenous and Black youth at risk or who have committed gender-based violence. These programs build on the government’s commitment to address violence against women and girls.

Lastly, the ministry has provided one time funding to support program enhancements of the Black and Indigenous diversion and gender-based violence programs.

Poverty reduction strategy

The ministry is responsible for the province’s Poverty Reduction Strategy. It leads the development of an updated cross-government strategy every five years. The strategy sets a target and contains indicators of poverty reduction to measure progress.

In December 2020, the province launched Building a Strong Foundation for Success: Reducing Poverty in Ontario (2020–2025). The government is providing supports and services to meet the strategy’s target of increasing the number of social assistance recipients exiting to employment each year from 36,000 in 2019 to 60,000 by 2024.

In 2023–24, more than 28,000 social assistance recipients exited to employment. This number is an improvement over 2020, and 2021 and 2022.

The strategy also includes indicators that measure poverty, education and employment outcomes.

Under the Poverty Reduction Act, the province must report annually to the Legislative Assembly on the government's strategy, including progress towards the target and updates on indicators and initiatives related to poverty reduction. In 2023–24 the ministry released the fourth annual report of this strategy.

Infrastructure

The ministry partners with approximately 750 transfer payment recipients that deliver MCCSS-funded programs and services across 4,500 sites that are essential to the successful delivery of ministry programs and services that support vulnerable and at-risk Ontarians. These physical assets act as the foundation for providing services in safe, accessible, and appropriate spaces to Ontario’s most vulnerable populations and are essential to the delivery of the ministry’s programs and services.

Key infrastructure highlights include:

• The ministry provided more than $21 million in funding to various children’s and social services agencies across Ontario to assist with necessary facility upgrades and repairs to improve accessibility and better support programming — so staff can continue to support people at facilities that are safe and accessible.
• Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario — Ontario committed capital funding to this project in 2023. Construction is underway to build an approximately 200,000 sq. ft.Children’s Treatment Centre in Ottawa that will expand the centre’s service capacity, reduce wait times and modernize services. Completion of this project is expected for Fall 2027.
• Grandview Children’s Treatment Centre — Construction of this 106,000 square foot centre in Ajax has been progressing well since October 2022 and is targeted for completion in Fall 2024. This new centre will create more treatment spaces, with shorter wait times in a modern facility so families in Ajax and the Durham Region can access the care they need sooner.
• Children's Treatment Centre of Chatham Kent — The ministry is investing in the construction of an approximately 58,000 sq. ft.centre, which is anticipated to be completed in 2026–27. This new construction will allow for expanded service delivery in Chatham-Kent and its surrounding communities, which includes Indigenous, Francophone, and low-income individuals.
• Ronald McDonald House Charities — The ministry provided one-time major capital funding to support the construction of an approximately 25,000 sq. ft.expansion of the existing RMHC building in Ottawa. The project will add 8 new rooms to the existing 14 to accommodate up to 36 families who are away from home while their child is receiving care at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario.

Cross-ministry collaboration on social policy priorities

The ministry is leading collaboration across ministries to develop effective solutions in response to complex policy and service delivery challenges. Leveraging our designation as an Inter-Ministerial Data Integration unit, MCCSS is collaborating across government to increase use of evidence and data in decision-making, continuing to actively identify and lead forward-looking, outcome-focused, and integrated social policy to improve the lives of Ontarians.

MCCSS has been working in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and other partners, in response to the unprecedented volume of asylum claimants arriving to Ontario resulting in service and funding pressures on various sectors including shelter and housing, settlement, and social assistance.

MCCSS will also continue to partner with ministries such as the Ministry of Health, and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing on social policy initiatives to ensure strategic alignment across the various transformation initiatives, such as the Roadmap to Wellness Mental Health and Addictions Strategy and the Action Plan for Supportive Housing.

MCCSS is building upon existing relationships and current collaborations on actions to end violence against Indigenous women through Pathways to Safety, Ontario’s government-wide strategy in response to the Final Report into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). Pathways to Safety includes initiatives across 10 ministries as Ontario continues to build on its initial commitment with new actions and initiatives that address the National Inquiry’s Calls for Justice.

MCCSS worked in collaboration with several ministries to develop Ontario-STANDS, Ontario’s four-year action plan to prevent, address and respond to gender-based violence. To help the province move towards more integrated solutions, ministries will work together to implement actions that span across education, social services, housing, health and justice sectors.

MCCSS incorporates activities across a range of ministries as part of Ontario’s anti-human trafficking strategy. Ontario’s cross-government action plan raises awareness of the issue through training and public awareness campaigns, empowering frontline service providers to prevent human trafficking before it occurs and take action early, supporting survivors through specialized services, and giving law enforcement the tools and resources they need to hold offenders accountable.

Detailed financial information

Table 2: Combined operating and capital summary by vote

Historic trend table

For additional financial information, see:

• Expenditure Estimates
• Public Accounts of Ontario
• 2024 Ontario Budget

Contact: Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services

Agencies, Boards and Commissions (ABCs)

The mandate of the Soldiers' Aid Commission (the commission) provides financial support to all eligible Veterans and their immediate family members in the province under the Soldiers’ Aid Commission Act, 2020. The commission provides eligible applicants with up to $2,000 over a 12-month period per household for eligible expenses. This funding supplements support offered by Veterans Affairs Canada.

MCCSS provides the commission with annual funding for payments to applicants approved for financial assistance to support the program.

The commission's board of directors shall consist of at least three members and no more than 11 members appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council. The majority of the members of the board of directors shall consist of Veterans or individuals who are either the parent, spouse, child or sibling of a Veteran.

The relationship between SAC and the ministry is governed by a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the commission and the minister. The Chair of the Commission reports directly to the minister.

In 2023–24, as part of the government's commitments to supporting Ontario's vulnerable Veterans, MCCSS provided $1,004,850 in funding from the Commission's allocation to True Patriot Love Foundation to support a range of Ontario-based initiatives for'Veterans and their families with a focus on mental-health and well-being.

Ministry organization chart

• Deputy Minister — Denise Allyson Cole
  • Director, Legal Services Branch — Elaine Atkinson
  • Director, Communications — Murray Leaning
  • Executive Lead, SA Renewal — Jason Stanley
  • Executive Assistant to DM Cole — Brigitte Marleau
  • ADM, Social Assistance Programs — Cordelia Clarke Julien
    • Director, Social Assistance Program Policy — Laura Belfie
    • Director, Social Assistance Performance and Accountability — Jeff Bowen
    • Director, Social Assistance Central Services — Andres Laxamana
    • Director, Social Assistance Service Delivery (Central, East and North Regions) — Nancy Sauvé
    • Director, Social Assistance Service Delivery (West and Toronto Regions) — Colleen Hardie
    • Director, Business Innovation and Implementation — Sunny Sharma
    • Director, Social Assistance Strategy and Transformation — Natalie Prystay
  • ADM, Youth Justice — Trevor Sparrow
    • Director, Strategic Innovation and Modernization — Breanne Betts
    • Director, Quality Assurance and Oversight — Mateen Khan
    • Director, Programming, Interventions and Evaluation — Bridget Sinclair
    • Director, Service Delivery — Sonia Bozzo
  • ADM, Child Welfare and Protection — Linda Chihab
    • Director, Child Welfare Operations — Sandra Bickford
    • Director, Child Welfare Secretariat — Peter Kiatipis
    • Director, Children and Youth at Risk — Saba Ferdinands
    • Director, Child Well-being — Chester Langille
  • ADM, Children with Special Needs — Jennifer Morris
    • Director, Autism Branch — Sarah Hardy
    • Director, Children’s Facilities — Shannon Lebrun
    • Director, Integration and Program Effectiveness Branch — Stacey Weber
    • Director, Child Development and Special Services Branch — Ziyaad Vahed
  • ADM, Community Services — Karen Glass
    • Director, Community and Indigenous Supports Branch — Harriet Grant
    • Director, Developmental and Supportive Services Branch — Jody Hendry
    • Director, Community and Developmental Services Policy Branch — Laura Summers
    • Director, Implementation and Reporting Branch — Christine Kuepfer
    • Regional Service Delivery Directors — Karen Singh (Central Region), Jeff Gill (East Region), Eden Cantkier (West Region), Sherri Rennie (Toronto Region), Sandra Russell (North Region)
  • ADM, Business Intelligence and Practice — Alex Coleman
    • Director, Data Strategy and Solutions Platform — Binh Lu
    • Director, Analytics and Measurement — Cindy Perry
    • Director, Integrated Analytics Exploration — Heidi Gordon
  • ADM, Strategic Policy — Rupert Gordon
    • Director, Policy Development and Collaboration — Mike Bannon
    • Director, Policy Alignment and Intergovernmental Relations — Anshoo Kamal
    • Director, Delivery Planning and Implementation Support — Chris Ling
    • Director, Policy Research and Insights — Garima Talwar Kapoor
    • Director, Child, Youth and Family Services Act Review Project — Aly Alibhai
  • Chief Information Officer, Children, Youth and Social Services, I&IT Cluster — Alex Coleman
    • Director, Community and Social Services I&IT Solutions — Aleem Syed
    • Director, Children and Youth I&IT Solutions — Joachim Kabiawu
    • Director, Shared and Community Services I&IT — Sheena Samuel
    • Director, Cluster Management Office — Kelly Garant
    • Director, I&IT Operations — Jairo Muñoz
    • Director, Enterprise Architecture Office — Alvin Lourdes
  • ADM/CAO, Business Planning and Corporate Services — Shella Salazar
    • Director, Business Planning — Teuta Dodbiba
    • Director, Controllership and Fiscal Reporting — Rosie Teng
    • Director, Operational Finance — Angela Allan
    • Director, Strategic Business Unit — Patricia Kwasnik
    • Director, Community Services Audit Services — Gordon Nowlan
    • Director, Capital Planning and Delivery — Tony Lazzaro
    • Director, Corporate Services — Christie Hayhow
    • Director, Operations — Seema Chhabra
  • ADM, Family Responsibility Office — George Karlos
    • Director, Client Liaison — Bani Bawa
    • Director, Case Triage and Resolution — Eric Dorman
    • Director, Strategic and Operational Effectiveness — Kelly Burnham
    • Director, Client Operations — AnnMarie Connell
    • Director, FRO Legal Services — Hari Viswanathan
  • ADM, Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity — Jacqueline Cureton
    • Director, Strategic Policy and Analysis — Vena Persaud
    • Director, Program Integration — Vena Persaud

Annual report

Overview

The integrated Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services was created in June 2018. The ministry brought together several major community programs and social services that support Ontarians. This year’s focus was on streamlining program delivery and reducing costly and unnecessary administrative work to improve outcomes for people.

2023–24 Results

Developmental and community services

In 2023–24, Ontario invested approximately $3.4 billion in services for people with developmental disabilities. This includes funding dedicated to providing supportive living services and supports.

Services provided may include supported accommodation and help participating in the community or with activities of daily living. Some individuals may require higher levels of support like full supportive living care and other specialized services.

As of December 31, 2023, the Passport program supported 65,146 adults with a developmental disability by providing direct funding to support activities of daily living, community participation and caregiver respite. This included 4,450 approvals completed by Passport Agencies as of December 31, 2023.

Interpreting services

Interpreting services facilitate communication between adults who are deaf, deafened, hard of hearing, or deafblind and those with hearing and/or who do not use American Sign Language (ASL), la langue des Québécoise (LSQ) or other non-standard forms of visual language in a variety of health, mental health, and community settings.

Further, in keeping with the recognition of equality rights under the Charter identified in the Supreme Court of Canada’s Eldridge decision (1997), Interpreting Services enable the administration and funding of emergency sign language Interpreting Services as it pertains to health or mental health services.

Ontario funds Canadian Hearing Services to provide Interpreting Services to people who are deaf, deafened, hard of hearing and deafblind. In 2023–24, funding will provide services for approximately 3,470 people for over 14,000 hours of services.

In 2023–24, the ministry invested approximately $7.7 million for Interpreting Services.

Intervenor services

Intervenor services provides auditory and visual information to people who have a combined loss of hearing and vision to enable them access to services, information, and facilitate communication so that they can participate in their communities, make informed decisions, and achieve and/or maintain independence. 

Ontario funds approximately 23 transfer payment recipients to provide Intervenor Services to people who have a combined loss of both hearing and vision. In 2023–24, the ministry invested approximately $56.9 million for Intervenor Services to serve approximately 450 individuals.

Services and supports for children with special needs including the Ontario Autism Program

The ministry funds programs, services and supports for healthy child development and children and youth with special needs, including those diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

It also supports access to specialized assessment, treatment and intervention through the ministry operated Child and Parent Resource Institute — a facility operated in London that serves approximately 2,200 children and youth each year with the most complex combinations of special needs.

The ministry funds Children’s Treatment Centres and Preschool Speech and Language Lead Agencies to provide services for children and youth with special needs in schools and community locations. In 2023–24, the government made a new $45 million annual investment to reduce wait lists and ensure children can get the care they need when they need it.

The ministry is also supporting initiatives that help better connect children and youth with complex special needs to care and services. In 2023–24, MCCSS and MOH began funding the Integrated Pathway for Children and Youth with Extensive Needs initiative. This three-year pilot initiative is providing integrated care to children and youth with complex needs, including developmental and intellectual disabilities, mental health concerns and/or chronic health conditions.

The Ontario Autism Program offers a range of services and supports designed to respond to the individual needs of children and youth on the autism spectrum, and their families.

In 2023–24, the ministry made significant progress on OAP service pathways and program supports:

• AccessOAP continued issuing invitations for core clinical services based on the child’s date of registration in the Ontario Autism Program, as recommended by the Autism Advisory Panel. Core clinical services include applied behaviour analysis, speech language pathology, occupational therapy, mental health services including counselling and/or psychotherapy, and technology, program materials, and/or therapy equipment at the recommendation of a regulated professional or Board Certified Behaviour Analyst.
• By March 2024, AccessOAP had enrolled 20,000 children and youth in core clinical services.
• Urgent response services provided time-limited services and supports to respond rapidly to eligible children and youth who are experiencing a specific, urgent need to help stabilize the situation, prevent crisis, and reduce the risk of them harming themselves, others and/or property.
• Uptake and participation in the caregiver mediated early years program and entry to school (ETS) program continued to increase, with record ETS registration in 2023–24 to support children who will be entering school in September 2024. These programs are free of charge and are available to all families whose children meet the eligibility criteria to enroll.
• Care coordinators supported families throughout their journey by providing orientation to the program, service navigation and help with managing transitions.

In April 2023 AccessOAP, the Independent Intake Organization, moved into their second full year of operations. AccessOAP is a single point of access to the Ontario Autism Program and is playing a key role in administering key elements of the program including intake and registration, service navigation and family support, as well as carrying out the determination of needs process and providing more families with funding to purchase core clinical services for their children and youth.

Invitations for core clinical services are currently being issued by AccessOAP to families who have created their account with AccessOAP, in the order they registered for the Ontario Autism Program, as recommended by the Ontario Autism Advisory Panel.

Eligible families with young children receive invitations to access early years programs and supports such as caregiver-mediated early years programs and entry to school, upon registering for the Ontario Autism Program to support their development and goals.

The ministry continued to provide interim one-time funding to eligible families who submitted their registration form and supporting documentation by March 31, 2021. This included renewing interim one-time funding payments of $5,500 or $22,000 for eligible families, based on their child’s age as of April 1, 2023, so that families could continue to purchase eligible services and supports that they feel are most appropriate for their child.

Starting on April 1, 2023, families of children with behaviour plans began to transition into core clinical services based on their behaviour plan end date. All behaviour plans ended as of September 30, 2023. All children and youth with behaviour plans who have transitioned to AccessOAP have been invited to enroll in core clinical services.

Overall, in 2023–24, the Ontario Autism Program supported more than 42,000 children and youth through behaviour plans, childhood budgets, interim funding, caregiver mediated early years programs, the entry to school program, and core clinical services. Additional children and youth may have been accessing foundational family services and/or urgent response services.

Social assistance

In 2023–24, the ministry continued to advance its service delivery transformation plan to build a more responsive, efficient, and person-centred social assistance system for the approximately 960,000 Ontarians who received some form of monthly social assistance.

This included:

• The government’s proclamation of amendments to the Ontario Works Act, 1997 that would enable realignment of roles between municipalities/DSSABs and the province.
• Continuing the centralization of benefits administration for 17 local Ontario Disability Support Program offices (for all 47 offices as of March 2024), with over $199 million dollars in benefits processed through the centralized model to date.
• Decreasing the time it takes for applicants to receive a determination about Ontario Disability Support Program eligibility by over 35% by implementing a new, streamlined medical information adjudication approach. This has supported the government’s plan to build a more responsive and efficient system by connecting those who qualify to supports in a shorter time frame.
• Partnering with ServiceOntario to enhance the experience for applicants. Incoming calls from applicants are triaged by ServiceOntario, allowing calls related to the application process to promptly reach the appropriate staff member. In 2023–24, the partnership was expanded to allow ServiceOntario to provide phone application support for all Ontario Works offices across the province.
• Continuing support for the rollout of integrated employment services for Social Assistance recipients as part of the Employment Services Transformation (EST) initiative in partnership with the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD).
• Successfully transitioning ODSP for on-reserve recipients from the province to two First Nation sites: North Shore Tribal Council and M’Chigeeng First Nation. The ministry continues to work collaboratively with First Nation partners on the plan to expand Ontario Disability Support Program delivery to additional First Nation sites.

In addition, the ministry successfully delivered on the government’s commitment to annually increase disability income support rates. Effective July 1, 2023, Ontario Disability Support Program rates, as well as the maximum monthly amount for the Assistance for Children with Severe Disabilities program payments, were increased by 6.5% and all future increases are now tied to inflation.

This brought Ontario’s total increase in social assistance disability payments to almost 12% since September 2022. The annual rate indexation will help recipients keep pace with the rising cost of living and pay for life’s essentials.

The ministry has also continued to make progress on advancing digital delivery to provide social assistance applicants with access to faster, simpler and more convenient service options while reducing manual work for staff, implementing ways to process financial assistance faster, and improving access to employment and training services. Advancing Digital Delivery has included:

• Streamlining the process of applying for Ontario Works by enabling applicants to conveniently save and resume their online application and send messages and documents digitally. These new features make it easier for staff to request and receive information from applicants and to more easily process applications.
• Launching new features to improve online access for applicants and clients such as access to decision letters and reporting employment changes.
  • Increased online uptake and usage: 350,000 social assistance clients have registered to use MyBenefits as of December 2023, representing a 37% increase since December 2022
  • As of February 2024, over 6.5 million messages have been sent and received through MyBenefits since full rollout in June 2021
  • As of December 2023, 80% of Ontario Works applications are submitted online, increased from 33% at the launch of Social Assistance Digital Application (SADA)

The ministry also continued to advance use of data and digital tools to enhance program integrity, improve service delivery and reduce administrative workload through the use of advanced data analytics and other digital tools that ensure eligibility decisions are consistently based on the best information available. For example: in 2023, the ministry saved more than $14M through the use of advanced data analytics to identify anomalies within social assistance caseloads.

Employment services transformation

The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development have been working together to strengthen employment services for those on social assistance.

Building on the initial implementation of the transformed and integrated employment service (IES) delivery model in three prototype areas — Region of Peel, Hamilton-Niagara, and Muskoka-Kawarthas, in January 2021 — the new IES model was further rolled out in Phase 1 catchment areas including Halton, York, Stratford-Bruce Peninsula, in April 2023 and, in October 2023, to the Kingston-Pembroke catchment.

The Phase 2 catchment areas of Durham, London, Ottawa, Windsor-Sarnia and Kitchener-Waterloo-Barrie have transitioned to the new IES model as of January 2024. The service system managers for the final phase with Toronto and the Northern catchments are expected to be announced in Spring 2024 with an anticipated transition to IES by Spring 2025.

Child welfare

Following broad engagement in July 2020, the government announced Ontario’s multi-year Child Welfare Redesign (CWR) Strategy.

The CWR Strategy focuses on services that prioritize safety and protection, are high-quality, culturally appropriate, and responsive to the needs and circumstances of children, youth and families. This includes supporting families early, to reduce the need for more intrusive child welfare services.

Accomplishments over the last year include:

• In the March 2023 Ontario Budget: Building a Strong Ontario, the Government committed $170 million over three years for the Ready, Set, Go (RSG) Program that connects youth in the child welfare system with additional services and supports they need to prepare for and succeed after leaving care, and aims to improve their long-term financial independence through life skills development, post-secondary education and pathways to employment. In 2023–24, this new program supported more than 4,000 youth as they prepared for adulthood.
• In March 2022 statutory amendments to the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 received Royal Assent. These amendments intended to respond to calls from Indigenous communities for a child welfare system that better reflects the central and unique role that First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples play in the well-being of their families. Regulatory development work to operationalize these amendments is ongoing through 2023–24.
• Ontario is implementing the Quality Standards Framework by requiring licensees and placing agencies, including children’s aid societies, to be in compliance with new and amended regulations, which came into effect on July 1, 2023. The ministry is supporting service providers to understand the new and updated requirements by providing guidance documents, information sessions, updates to ministry IT systems, and other supports.
  • The new requirements include staff qualifications, caregiver training, and enhanced safety and service planning obligations. The aim is to improve the quality of care and better hold licensees and placing agencies, including children’s aid societies, accountable for the quality of care they provide to children and youth.
• In March 2022, Ontario concluded coordination agreement negotiations and entered into a coordination agreement with Wabaseemoong Independent Nations and the Government of Canada under the Federal Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families. A second coordination agreement was signed in March 2023, following negotiations, with Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug and the Government of Canada.
• The ministry continues to participate in negotiations under the Federal Act and appreciates the significance of the Act to many Indigenous representatives as a means of supporting the development and implementation of Indigenous-led models of child and family service.

Gender-based violence

On December 6, 2023, Ontario released Ontario-STANDS: Standing Together Against gender-based violence Now through Decisive actions, prevention, empowerment and supports. Ontario-STANDS is a four-year action plan to better respond to gender-based violence, build safer, healthier communities, and support women’s well-being and economic opportunities.

Through Ontario-STANDS, the ministry invested an additional $18.7 million in 2023–24, which includes an additional $18.14 million to approximately 400 gender-based violence service providers across the province to help stabilize services to survivors and their dependents and an additional $546,000 for the Women’s Economic Security Program and Investing in Women’s Futures program to create more opportunities for women to build skills, gain employment and become financially independent.

Investments under Ontario-STANDS are supported through an agreement with the Government of Canada that will provide $162 million over four years to support the implementation of the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence (NAP GBV) in Ontario. This funding builds on the province’s existing investments of $1.4 billion over the next four years to end gender-based violence and support victims.

Violence Against Women (VAW) services

In 2023–24, the ministry invested approximately $167 million to provide services and supports to women and their children who have experienced violence, or are at risk of experiencing violence, including gender-based and domestic violence. This funding directly supports community-based agencies across the province including Indigenous organizations providing supports to Indigenous women and children.

The ministry also continued the following fiscal investments:

• Transitional and Housing Support Program (THSP): $7.1 million in funding in the final year of the three-year $18.5 million THSP enhancement to help survivors of intimate partner violence and human trafficking optimize housing benefits to access safe and affordable housing, and benefit from the services they need to rebuild their lives.
• As noted in Ontario-STANDS, the ministry indicated that the $7.1 million THSP enhancement will become ongoing annual funding beginning in 2024–25.
• Rural and Remote Services and Supports: Up to $3.6 million for rural frontline agencies to increase collaboration, strengthen service delivery, improve culturally relevant supports for Indigenous women, and reduce geographic and transportation barriers to accessing services and supports.
• Children and Youth Services and Supports: Up to $2.9 million for prevention and early intervention services and supports for children and youth in VAW emergency shelters, and in Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy shelters, Healing Lodges and the Family Violence Healing Program.
• As part of Ontario-STANDS, funding for Children and Youth Services and Supports and Rural and Remote Services and Supports will become ongoing annual funding in service contracts beginning in 2024–25.

Anti-human trafficking

Ontario’s Anti-Human Trafficking Strategy, the largest investment in dedicated Anti-Human Trafficking supports in Canadian history, was announced in 2020. The strategy invests up to $307 million over five years and seeks to: Raise awareness of the issue through training and public awareness campaigns, empower frontline service providers to take early action to prevent human trafficking before it occurs; support survivors through specialized services; and give law enforcement the tools and resources they need to hold offenders accountable.

In 2023–24 the ministry moved forward on developing and implementing a number of strategic initiatives to help combat human trafficking and to better support survivors in 2022–23. These included:

• A new program through the Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy (IHWS) that will provide Indigenous children and youth who have been sex trafficked with specialized trauma-informed care and access to mental health and addiction (MHA) supports beginning in 2024–25 ($1.3 million in 2023–24, $2.6 million in operating funding as of 2024–25, funded as part of Ontario’s Roadmap to Wellness (R2W).
• Specialized training on understanding and working with sexually exploited youth (SEY) that includes an Indigenous-specific component is underway with capacity building activities complete — to continue delivery throughout the Strategy. Ten rounds of training have been completed, with approximately 300 frontline workers trained.
• This intensive training focuses on frontline professionals in sectors where the likelihood of encountering or working with children and youth at risk of/being trafficked is high (e.g., child welfare, police, victim services, violence against women organizations, youth justice).
• Public awareness initiatives are ongoing as there is continued work to expand the province wide education efforts to further raise awareness about this crime and ensure that everyone knows where to get help, especially to those most vulnerable such as our children and youth. To-date 260,000 materials have been disseminated at 980 locations via ministry partners.
• Developing public education materials to respond to specific sector needs and expanding distribution of existing awareness materials through partnerships across government and sector.

Victim services

In 2019, our government began a comprehensive review of victim services and engaged with stakeholders to explore opportunities for a more integrated, effective, efficient, and client-centred victim services system.

In 2023–24, the government allocated $49.9 million to eight of the victim services programs transferred from the Ministry of the Attorney General in 2022, with an additional $8 million invested in the Supervised Access Program.

• These community-based programs are designed to reduce the negative impacts of crime and violence on individuals and communities and serve a wide range of populations, including, but not limited to those who are impacted by: domestic violence, intimate partner violence, internet exploitation, sexual violence, homicides, human-trafficking, and hate crimes.

Indigenous community and prevention supports

The government continues to work with Indigenous partners to reduce family violence and violence against Indigenous women and children, and support the health and wellness of First Nations, Inuit and Métis and urban Indigenous peoples and communities in Ontario.

In 2023–24, through the longstanding Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy, Ontario invested over $99 million through pooled government funding (MCCSS, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Indigenous Affairs) in a continuum of healing, health and wellness programs across the province that are designed and delivered by and for Indigenous peoples.

The network of Indigenous-led programs and services funded through the Strategy includes Healing Lodges, Community Wellness Workers, Crisis Teams, Family Violence Shelters and Healing programs, Mental Health and Addictions Treatment and Healing Centres, and capacity building programs. Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy programs are delivered from more than 240 sites across the province and provide over 650 full time jobs for Indigenous peoples.

In addition, the ministry continues to invest $96 million annually in Indigenous-led prevention-focused community-based programs that support improved outcomes and well-being for First Nations, Inuit, Métis and urban Indigenous children and youth, families, individuals, and communities and reduce the over-representation of Indigenous children and youth in the child welfare and youth justice systems.

Through these Child Welfare — Indigenous Community Prevention and Supports programs, Indigenous partners deliver flexible, culturally grounded, holistic community-based programs and services for First Nations, Inuit, Métis and urban Indigenous children, youth and families across the province.

These programs include the Family Well-Being program, Systems Planning, First Nations Student Nutrition Program, Indigenous Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder — Child Nutrition Program, Akwe:go — Wasa-Nabin, Youth Resiliency, Integrated Rehabilitation for Northern and Rural First Nations Program, Prevention focused customary care, Community Support-Native Services on Reserve, Northwest Prevention Initiative, Child Welfare Native Services on Reserve, and Child & Family Intervention — Native Services on Reserve.

The Child Welfare — Indigenous Community Prevention and Supports programs are part of the continuing work of MCCSS under the Ontario Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy (OICYS) and are supporting the development a distinct-Indigenous approach for Ontario’s Child Welfare Redesign (CWR) Strategy.

The Family Well-Being program (FWBp) is a key investment under the Ontario Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy (OICYS) and the cornerstone of the child, youth and family well-being prevention architecture being built collaboratively by Indigenous communities and MCCSS.

The FWBp was co-developed with Indigenous partners and supports Indigenous communities to determine how best to lead and deliver holistic programs services that meet the unique needs of their local communities. The co-developed long-term objectives of the program are to:

• End violence against Indigenous women
• Reduce the number of Indigenous children in child welfare and the youth justice systems
• Improve the overall health and wellbeing of Indigenous communities

FWBp services and programming include traditional land-based teachings and ceremonies, trauma-informed counselling, addictions support, safe spaces, and coordination of services. These services and programs help children, youth and their families to heal and recover from the effects of intergenerational violence and trauma, reduce violence, and address the overrepresentation of Indigenous children and youth in child welfare and youth justice systems.

In 2020–21, as part of the Ministry of Health’s Roadmap to Wellness Strategy investments, $5.41 million was invested to expand the Family Well-Being program, increasing the total annual investment to $35.4 million.

The increased investment in the FWBp is not only supporting the achievement of the program’s long-term objectives but is also supporting Indigenous-led solutions to improve the mental health and well-being of communities.

In addition, starting in 2023–24, $2.3 million will be provided annually for four years to the FWBp through the National Action Plan on Ending Gender Based Violence (NAP GBV).

Since 2019–20, the FWBp has served an average of 75,000 Indigenous clients and community members per year at over 200 sites throughout the province. This includes providing an average of 42,000 supports and services to Indigenous children, youth and adults, including one-to-one and individual counseling supports, family support sessions, group sessions, and community events.

Through the First Nations Student Nutrition Program (FNSNP), MCCSS is providing over $4 million to provide funding for breakfast, lunch or mid-morning meals in 145 sites in 63 First Nations and 27 urban Indigenous communities to support learning and healthy child development. The FNSNP provides over 1.4 million meals to Indigenous children and youth each year.

In 2023–24, MCCSS provided an additional $900,000 in one-time funding to FNSNP partners to help address rising food costs and help more children and youth access healthy food. Ontario has also partnered with key organizations through the Health Students Brighter Ontario campaign to fundraise further supports for FNSNP.

Women’s social and economic opportunity

The ministry believes in an Ontario where all girls and women reach their full potential. The ministry, through the Office of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity, is proud to support services and programs that advance gender equity and equality for women and girls. We collaborate with women’s organizations and across government to advance women’s equality, support their safety and well-being and improve their economic security and prosperity.

The Office also supports the delivery of economic empowerment and gender-based violence prevention initiatives for women that focus on advancing equity, supporting women’s safety and improving women’s economic security. Examples of programs include:

• Women’s Economic Security Program (WESP): Provides employment, pre-employment, pre-apprenticeship, entrepreneurship training and wraparound supports to low-income women to equip them with the skills, knowledge and experience to find a job or start a business and increase financial security in high-demand sectors.
• Investing in Women’s Futures (IWF): Supports 33 community organizations to deliver a range of flexible services and employment supports that prevent gender-based violence, promote healing and wellness and assist women gain the skills they need to become economically self-sufficient and secure employment.
• Building Indigenous Women’s Leadership: Delivered by the Ontario Native Women’s Association and Equay-Wuk (Women’s Group), this program provides leadership training and mentorship opportunities to Indigenous women to increase their full participation in leadership roles in their communities.
• Preventing Gender-based Violence Program: Seeks to change the harmful norms, attitudes and behaviours that perpetuate gender-based violence and its escalation to femicide in Ontario.
• Kizhaay Anishinaabe Niin (an Ojibway phrase translating to “I am a Kind Man”) Program: Delivered by the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres, Kizhaay is a community action initiative to address violence in Indigenous communities and foster overall community wellness. The program engages Indigenous men and youth to end violence against Indigenous women and girls by increasing men’s understanding of traditional roles and responsibilities in ending violence, promoting resiliency and resolving trauma.
• The Office also facilitated the successful negotiation and signing of the Bilateral Agreement between Canada and Ontario to implement the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence (NAP GBV), announced in November 2023.

Engaging indigenous women leaders

In June 2020, Ontario established the Indigenous Women’s Advisory Council (IWAC) to provide input on actions related to human trafficking and child, youth and family well-being to the Associate Minister of Women's Social and Economic Opportunity.

The Council includes First Nations, Inuit, Métis, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ leaders on violence prevention who also provide input on Pathways to Safety: Ontario’s strategy in response to the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. In 2022–23, the Council has held 14 meetings to ensure culturally relevant and effective changes are made to policies to address violence against Indigenous women and girls.

The Indigenous Women’s Advisory Council (IWAC) mandate has been extended to March 2025. The Office will continue to work with the Council on key violence prevention issues and the implementation of Pathways to Safety.

In May 2021, Ontario released Pathways to Safety: Ontario’s strategy in response to the Final Report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. Co-led with the Ministry of Indigenous Affairs, this strategy is a five-year, cross-government commitment that seeks to address the root causes of violence so Indigenous women and children can live in safety and security.

Throughout this past year Ontario continued collaboration with the Indigenous Women’s Advisory Council and Indigenous partners to deliver on the strategy, as well as providing other services, supports and investments in collaboration with 12 other ministry partners.

In March 2022, Ontario’s first Progress Report on Pathways to Safety was released, profiling progress on 37 initiatives ranging from education and health to justice and anti-Indigenous racism. Both the Pathways to Safety strategy and Progress Report were well-received by Indigenous partners.

On December 22, 2023, Ontario released its second progress report, which highlights progress on key Indigenous-led initiatives as well as broader government initiatives and strategies that support Indigenous communities across the six pathways. Ontario will continue to work with the Indigenous Women’s Advisory Council and communities as the strategy continues to be implemented in 2023–24 and beyond.

Youth justice services

The ministry administers or funds programs and services for youth in, or at risk of, conflict with the law between the ages of 12 and 17 at the time of offence.

The objectives of the youth justice programs provided or funded by the ministry are to reduce re-offending, contribute to community safety and prevent youth crime through rehabilitative programming, holding youth accountable, successfully transitioning youth out of custody and creating opportunities for youth at risk.

There are a range of community-based and custody-based programs for youth who come into conflict with the law that support and respond to the individual risks, needs and strengths of each youth, including:

• community programs for police to refer youth as an alternative to charging them
• community programs as an alternative to formal court proceedings
• community programs that support reintegration, treatment and rehabilitation
• community-based program options for courts and providing alternatives to custody that address the needs of youth and provide appropriate supervision

All youth justice programs are aligned with the principles and provisions set out in the federal Youth Criminal Justice Act and the provincial Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017.

The Youth Justice Continuum of Services includes prevention, diversion, probation, custody and detention, reintegration and rehabilitation, and community-based programs. Included in this continuum of youth justice services are culturally relevant and gender-responsive programs intended to respond to the diverse needs of youth.

Since the Youth Criminal Justice Act (YCJA) came into force in April 2003, there has been an increased focus on prevention, diversion and community-based programs. The success of these programs has led to an 87% reduction in the number of youths admitted to custody and detention in Ontario from 2004–05 to 2022–23.

While the overall story of the youth crime rates in Ontario since the implementation of the YCJA is positive, a post-pandemic trend appears to be emerging in the rise of incidences of youth violent crime. Statistics Canada reported that the 2022 youth violent crime rate in Ontario was 35% higher than levels in 2021.

Soldiers’ Aid Commission

The Soldiers’ Aid Commission (SAC) provides financial assistance to Ontario’s eligible veterans and their families in financial need. The program provides financial support of up to $2,000 over a twelve-month period for home, health, specialized equipment, employment and personal supports to eligible Ontario Veterans and their eligible family members.

Over the past year, the ministry and SAC implemented a communication and outreach plan to increase awareness of SAC. A full suite of materials was developed, including a Minister’s letter to MPPs, posters and postcards for MPPs and The Royal Canadian Legion (Legion) to distribute locally, content for stakeholders’ newsletters, and social media posts.

The ministry launched a new webpage (Ontario.ca/Veterans) to act as a hub for all veteran services in Ontario, and added information about the SAC to the Ministry of Finance’s benefit finder.

In late 2023, a cheque insert was added to all Social Assistance recipients’ monthly payment to increase awareness of available financial support for Ontario veterans through SAC.

As a result of additional and dedicated outreach activities, there has been a significant increase in the number of applications received this fiscal year.