Ottawa, Our Accessible City

Focus on Parks and Recreation and Children’s Services

The City of Ottawa, Parks and Recreation Branch, in consultation with clients, families, and service providers, is developing the service delivery model for parks and recreation programs/services to special needs clients. Prior to amalgamation, municipal mandates, service delivery methods, and resource allocations in respect of providing recreation programs/services to special needs populations varied.

Ottawa’s Special Needs Population:

· The Ontario Human Rights Code and the Ontarian’s with Disabilities Act defines “disability” as:

“Any degree of physical disability, infirmity, malformation or disfigurement that is caused by bodily injury, birth defect, illness due to diseases, brain injury, blindness, visual impairment, deafness, or hearing impairment, reliance on a service animal, remedial device or appliance, condition of developmental disability, learning disability or dysfunction, mental disorder, injury or disability for which benefits were claimed or received.”

· People with disabilities represent a significant and growing part of our population. According to Statistics Canada, one out of every six people in Canada is a person with a disability. In the City of Ottawa, 15% of the population has identified itself as having a permanent disability due to a physical, mental or other health-related problem. An additional 9% of the Ottawa population reported having a temporary disability of some form. As disability tends to increase with age, creating physical impairments in mobility, sight and hearing, it is estimated that, by 2020, 40% of the Canadian population will have some degree of disability.

Vision for Accessible Ottawa:

· The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (2005) recently received royal assent. The legislation focuses on the development, implementation, and enforcement of accessibility standards concerning goods, services, accommodation, facilities, buildings and employment. Improvements will be phased in, in five-year stages, moving towards a fully accessible Ontario by 2025.

· A number of the Ottawa 2020 Guiding Principles speak to City of Ottawa Council’s commitment to addressing the needs of special needs clients (espeically access to the basics, diversity and inclusion, safe and healthy communities).

· In August 2001, Council approved the Recreation and Culture Mandate. The Parks and Recreation Branch promotes its programs to the entire community to encourage participation of persons with physical, emotional, behavioural, developmental, medical, and social disabilities. The emphasis is on inclusion and integration into existing programs with appropriate supports subject to the City’s available resources. Specialized programs will be offered in instances where this better maximizes the participation of the person with a disability, the costs of integration would exceed the benefit to the client, or there are significant risks to the client, other program participants, or staff.

· In addition to Branch programs, there are a number of health, social service, and recreation agencies who provide programs, services, or supports to special needs populations.

Current Service Levels:

· In 2004, the Parks and Recreation Branch:

o offered over 50 special needs/therapeutic recreation programs serving an estimated 1,150 special needs clients

o assessed and supported the integration of 480 special needs clients into Branch recreation programs and 4 special needs children into municipal child care centres

o provided program assistance, through Children’s Integrated Support Services (CISS), to another 442 children attending licensed child care programs.

· The above statistics do not include other special needs clients who participate in Branch programs with no or minimal supports.

Therapeutic Recreation:

· is a process focused on the individual utilizing intervention (treatment), education and participation in recreation.

· enables individuals with moderate to high needs to acquire and/or maintain skills, knowledge, and behaviours that allow full participation and functional independence with the least amount of assistance.

· is provided in a clinical or community-based setting by trained, qualified professionals, bound by a Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice in the Province of Ontario.

· utilizes assessment tools prescribed for a particular client type based on a common prognosis, care plan, and functional outcomes.

· may involve consultation or case conferencing, with the prior consent of a special needs client, with other education, social service, and health professionals in the community.

· programs are designed with lower staff to participant ratios to address individual needs and require trained health care professionals.

· moves participants through a continuum of care by increasing independence.

· programs are offered in collaboration with several community partners (ie. Service Coordination, Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, Ottawa Children’s Treatment Centre) and, in most cases, are funded by the Province of Ontario.

Examples of Branch therapeutic recreation programs are: Acquired Brain Injury Program (ABI), Support Community Enhanced Learning (SCEL), Variety (Adult Day Program for People with Developmental Delay), and Spirit (Medically Fragile Children).

Social Recreation Programs:

· are offered at various community centres across the city to service children, youth and adults with mild or moderate needs.

· focus on enjoyment, social participation or skill development.

Examples of Branch social/recreation programs include:

Shared Care:

· is the assessment and allocation of additional trained staff and/or volunteers to support the inclusion of participants with mild or moderate disabilities in City of Ottawa, Parks and Recreation programs.

· is being offered on a pilot basis at 13 community centres on a city-wide basis for the summer of 2005.

· staff will remain at the program site for the entire summer, provided numbers warrant this, and may work with 1-3 participants in any particular week. A floater staff may also be arranged for families interested in a camp not offered at one of the 13 ‘Shared Care’ sites.

· is being offered at no additional cost above program registration costs to clients/families for the summer of 2005; there may be a need to recover costs in the future.

Service Delivery Challenges:

· Informational, geographic, physical, financial barriers.

· Program/service gaps: children/youth transitioning within, from the education system; programs which promote physical activity; re-integration of stroke survivors; programs for autistic children (east end of city); francophone programs.

· Supporting inclusion, integration and managing risk.

Future Directions:

1. Continuously improve access to recreation programs by special needs populations:

· Designation and communication through communication channels of more ‘accessible’ recreational facilities.

· Client/family education, development and refinement of intake, referral processes.

· Facility/park accessibility audits and renovations to accommodate special needs clients and others.

· Preliminary draft Special Needs Marketing Plan.

2. Continue to develop the Therapeutic Recreation model:

· Work with fellow service providers to develop programs to address community gaps (Programme de jour francophone Automne 2005, Post Stroke Pilot, Shared Care, new program for francophone special needs children by OCTC for fall ’05, ABI II pending additional funding MOHLTC).

· Development of improved client assessment tools (ie. SIRUS) to ensure consistent, appropriate, determinations of integration support.

3. Develop branch and community resources/expertise:

· Networks established with community agencies (ie. Hospital Connections Committee).

· One full time behaviour management staff has been hired through Children's Integration Support Services to support preschool children in licensed programs experiencing behaviour issues.

· Funding for one full time speech and language staff for Headstart programs has been restored.

· ‘Moving to Inclusion’ (MTI) training offered to all front-line 2005 summer camp staff and received rave reviews.

· Establishment and maintenance of special needs program inventory.

· Information sessions with recreation service delivery partners (fall 2005).

4. Procure additional funds to support integration of higher needs clients into Parks and Recreation programs:

· Increased program subsidy to 3 special needs child care programs to eliminate parent fees.

· Increased Program Assistant support to Children's Integration Support Services to assist with the integration of special needs children into licensed programs.

· Implement and evaluate summer 2005 ‘Shared Care’ pilot.

· Procure additional resources to expand ‘Shared Care’ to support integration of clients into fall/winter/spring sessions.

Other Directions?

Staff Contact:

Donna Quiggin, Portfolio Manager, Special Needs

Donna.Quiggin@ottawa.ca; (tel.) 580-2424 ext. 29289; (fax) 580-2845