Recreation Services for Youth (2013.CD23.1)
Recreation is vital to the health and well-being of youth community groups especially those who experience isolation due to poverty, immigration, cultural or language barriers. When people, especially youth participate in extracurricular actives and after school programming, they have better emotional health and perform better academically. In essence, recreational programs bring young people together by giving them a space to connect, engage and create dynamic and inclusive communities.
In November 2012, the City Council adopted the City of Toronto 2013-2017 Recreation Service Plan (RSP), which provides a guideline to Toronto’s planning and delivery of recreation programs and services for the next five years. An implementation Plan for this initiative was approved in July 2013.
In October’s City Council, the Youth Recreation Engagement Strategy was adopted to guide implementation of the Recreation Service Plan and planning for youth. This Plan was informed through outreach in summer 2013 that included input from approximately 1,600 individual youth and 80 community agencies.
Here is Community Recreation For All’s briefing notes on this report:
CRFA_Briefing
The following is the City Council decision (Motion Carried):
1. City Council approve the Youth Recreation Engagement Strategy attached as Appendix A to the report (September 4, 2013) from the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation.
2. City Council requests the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation to implement the following needs-based criteria in evaluating new youth spaces in Toronto: area household income; geographic need and access to other programming in the vicinity; demographic needs based on particular age groups or other populations need access to services; other specifically identified needs for recreation services.
3. City Council requests the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation to report back to the December 4, 2013 meeting of the CDRC on: the financial impact, criteria and capacity to implement an additional 10 new youth spaces. It also requests that staff consider the criteria as outlined by Recreation for All in the implementation strategy, specifically mapping current lounges, utilization, needs and gap assessment, best practices, hours, staffing loads, staff training, physical infrastructure and transit access; and further that the report be consistent with the Toronto Youth Equity Strategy;
b: expanding the proposed 3-hour/day Youth Space model with the full-time model as proposed by St. Stephen’s Community House and Community Recreation for All; existing training programs for Parks, Forestry and Recreation staff and report on implementation of any new training modules including anti-oppression and anti-racist frameworks on an expedited basis.
Reporting Back: Service Level Review – Community Development and Recreation Programs (2013.CD23.10)
Recently, the City of Toronto has moved a motion on Community Development and Recreation Programs recommended by the CDRC on the 8th of October, 2013. Based on previous meetings of July 16, 17, 18 and 19, 2013, the Council in consideration of item EX33.29, revised budget process for 2014 directing that “the review of divisional service levels activities along with any Standing Committee recommendations be referred to the 2014 Budget process for consideration and to guide staff during the 2014 administrative budget review process.”
Later, at its meeting of September 18, 2013, the Community Development and Recreation Committee (CDRC) received a service level presentation for City Programs. This included: Affordable Housing Office, Children’s Services, Emergency Medical Services, Long Term Care Homes and Services, Office of Emergency Management, Recreation, Shelter Support and Housing, Social Development Finance and Administration, and Toronto Fire. In consideration of the service level presentation, CDRC recommended that City Council direct the establishment of service levels in 6 City Programs. It has estimated the recommended service levels will have a full-year financial impact of $70,899,000 net on the 2014 operating budget.
On October, 8th – Motion to Amend Item moved by Councillor Janet Davis (Carried): City Council amend Community Development and Recreation Committee (CDRC) recommendations 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 by inserting the words “subject to the 2014 budget review process” after the word “cuts”.
Motions by City Council:
1. City Council directs that the following three service standards in Community Recreation should be included in Cluster A. The City also directs the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer to incorporate the necessary resources in the 2014 recommended budget. It suggests that these service level standards should include without any Division having to offset with Divisional service level cuts subject to the 2014 budget review process.
Community Recreation:
a. Drop-in youth programs should be expanded to include 10 new sites;
b. Expansion in the Priority Centre by including the implementation of 17 new centres, as approved by City Council;
c. Implementation of the Swim to Survive program, which is included in the approved Recreation Plan Implementation Strategy; and
d. Implementation of the Youth Leadership program, which is included in the approved Recreation Service Plan timeline and implementation strategy.
2. City Council direct that all leisure swim programs should have the same levels of service access as priority centre pools; all priority centres should also have equitable hours of programming with no centre losing existing hour of programming; and Welcome Policy users be maintained at 2013 levels. These provisions should be included in the 2014 Service Standards for the Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division. The Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer must include the necessary resources in the 2014 recommended budget.
3. City Council direct that the equity service standard for infant, toddler, pre-school groups be increased by 2% (528 spaces) and should be included in the 2014 Service Standards for the Children’s Services. The Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer include the necessary resources in the 2014 recommended budget.
4. City Council direct that the CPIP service levels be set based on the assessed high priority applications meeting all program criteria in the 2013 review cycle. This should be included in the 2014 Service Standards for Social Development, Finance and Administration, and that the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer include the necessary resources in the 2014 recommended budget.
5. The City Council directs that 2013 target of 1641 affordable rental housing be maintained in 2014 should be included in the 2014 Service Standards for the Affordable Housing Office. That the Deputy City Manager and Chief Financial Officer include the necessary resources in the 2014 recommended budget review process.
Child Care
Reporting Back: Expanding the Application of Operating Criteria for Child Care (2013.CD23.2)
The City of Toronto’s Operating Criteria is a quality assessment tool for child care. Annual assessments provide information about the child care environment and interactions that children are experiencing at the time of the assessment. The tool is currently administered to all licensed child care programs in Toronto with a service contract to care for children with fee subsidy. The criteria help ensure value for money as public funds are directed to quality programs which result in better outcomes for children.
This item seeks authority for the General Manager, Children’s Services to enter into agreements with other jurisdictions for the use of the Toronto Operating Criteria, which is Children’s Services’ quality assessment tool for licensed child care. The Operating Criteria is the only Canadian validated quality assessment tool for the preschool age group in child care. A number of jurisdictions have expressed interest in adopting the tool. With Council approval, Children’s Services will recover associated costs from partner jurisdictions.
On the 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th of October the City Council adopted this item authorizing the General Manager, Children’s Services to negotiate and execute on behalf of the City, agreements with other municipalities which set out the terms and conditions under which those municipalities can use the Toronto Operating Criteria and access support services from City staff; charge a fee to recover the full cost of services provided to other jurisdictions by City staff, including travel and testing, related to those jurisdictions’ adoption of the Criteria; and provide quality assessments to Toronto child care centres that do not have a service contract for fee subsidy with the City, when an assessment is requested by the centre, on a cost-recovery basis.
