Using evidence-based social policy and measuring success
Reducing poverty means investing in the right supports. Poverty is a complex issue and our resources are limited. It’s more important than ever that we make the most effective investments, based on evidence, lessons learned and best practices.
Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy Indicators
Causes and consequences of poverty are multi-dimensional, and with limited resources, we need to be strategic with our investments. That’s why our strategy has a dedicated focus on measuring success and investing in programs that work.
Indicators give an important picture of the impact of poverty in our province. They help us track our progress and, assessing where we have made progress, uncover lessons and solutions that we can replicate elsewhere.
We are measuring the following indicators:
- Healthy birth weights
- Children’s readiness to learn in school by kindergarten
- Students meeting academic standards (Grade 3 and 6)
- High school graduation rates
- Children living in poverty
- Children living in deep poverty
- Young adults not in education, employment or training
- Adults unemployed for more than six months
- Poverty rates of vulnerable groups
- Housing affordability
We are also developing new ways to track homelessness.
We made progress on all the indicators we tracked in the first strategy. Between 2008 and 2014, we made important gains in education, which is a critical contributor to children and youth’s success and reducing child poverty.
Evidence-based achievements 2008-2014
Since the launch of the first Poverty Reduction Strategy, evidence shows that many of the programs and services we have invested in are working. Since 2008, we have seen:
- a decrease in the child poverty rate from 15.2 per cent in 2008 to 13.6 per cent in 2011
- the percentage of children living in deep poverty fall from 8.5 per cent in 2008 to 7.7 per cent in 2011
- an increase in high school graduation rates from 79 per cent to 83 per cent
- an increase in level of children in Grade 3 and 6 that meet or exceed the provincial standards of literacy and numeracy from 67 per cent to 72 per cent
- an increase in school readiness among children from 71.5 per cent to 72.4 per cent
Read the 2014 Annual Report.
The Local Poverty Reduction Fund
The Local Poverty Reduction Fund is a $50 million fund that supports innovative and sustainable community-driven projects and initiatives that measurably improve the lives of people in poverty. Using evidence gathered from these projects, the government will work with community partners to expand successful programs and initiatives and apply best practices across the province to help even more people who are working hard to leave poverty behind.