Best Start Network Planning Meeting

Best Start Network Planning Meeting

Minutes

September 12, 2013

Brockville Rowing Club

9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Present:

Maxine Weber, Autism Intervention (co-chair)

Leah Fournier, CDSBEO

Gillian Jackson, DSLG-ICCP

Margaret Fancy, EKIOC

Marci Bruyere, CRCHC

Susan Turnbull, CRCHC

Linda Chadwick, L&G Public Libraries

Erin Jansman, DSLG

Alexis Green, Health Unit

Karla Friedman-Diboin, DSLG

Shannon Brown, UCLG

Jacqueline Hoogwerf, UCDSB

Ann Stocks, Child Development Centre

Cathy Gladu, St.John Bosco Children’s Centre, Ange Gabriel

Dixie O’Reilly, ICDP

Rachell Blanchette, Ministry of Education

Lesley Benderavage, MCYS

Jenny Smith, ABA (L&G)

Beth Steel, YMCA

Paul Mantha, CDSBEO

Emily McFadden, FCSLLG

Kevin Kalper, CMHLG

Tom Jordan, CDSBEO

Lynda Earl, Health Unit (recorder)

9:30 – 10:00 a.m. Coffee and Sign In

10:00 Opening Remarks and Outline of Goals of Day –Maxine Weber (co-chair)

Maxine thanked everyone for taking the time today to attend the planning meeting.

Review of what we have accomplished, and what direction we are going. Moving towards family and children centre; what is unique about our community and how we got there; look at our strengths, demographics.

Brainstorming about our next steps on how to get there!

10:10 Exercise: Acronym Exhaustion – Gillian Jackson

Gillian handed out “Acronym Exhaustion” which listed a number of acronyms for both provincial and local agencies and services. Each table was to get as many as possible within 3 minutes.

10:20 Leeds, Grenville Best Start Network Where we’ve Been

Overview – Vision, Mission, Terms of Reference, Priority Actions – Margaret Fancy

Reviewed the Terms of Reference

Membership:

Add ECC working in the school setting

Add Child Development

Where We Are – A Summary

Key Themes and Activities

1)  Service Integration

Ø  Service Coordination guidelines developed with accompanying training provided

Ø  Online training modules developed and posted – Survey to determine use and needs, identify mentors/develop a strategy

Ø  Graphed functions of Early Years Service providers – map and identify gaps/overlap

Ø  Parent fact sheet developed and distributed – how is it being used?

Ø  Researched and developed report on Use of Social Media to Reach Rural and Hard to Serve Families – provided Level 1 training -- Develop policies and training plan (with broader planning table)

Ø  Family resource brochures developed/distributed

Ø  Revise Red Flags resource

Ø  Develop Parent Engagement Framework with Training (with SEregion BSNs)

2)  Healthy Development

a)  Universal Screening Developed Logic Model for Comprehensive Strategy for Distribution of Nipissing Screening Tool (NDDS)

Developed and implemented a 3 Level Screening Plan

Revitalization of 18 month strategy/enhanced baby visit (in progress)

b)  Support for Literacy

Read to Every Kid Every Day (beginning Year 5) –

Literacy workgroup to align practices/resources related to literacy in early years

3)  Transition to Kindergarten

Ø  Participation in Regional Early Learning Program Committee

Ø  Special Needs Reference group supports meaningful inclusion of children with special needs (Tri-County)

Ø  Gananoque Pilot (Small Steps Big Strides) -- promotes meaningful inclusion of all children entering the school system through strong parent engagement practices.

Ø  Continue to work with School Boards to develop a common process for transition to Kindergarten Parent Engagement Strategies – present at all Welcome to Kindergarten events

4)  Joint Professional Development

Ø  Survey of Early Years Service Providers to Determine PD Needs –PD Plan

Ø  Lunch and Learn Sessions 3 times per year in 4 communities

5)  Data Driven Community Planning

Ø  Implemented Strategies in EDI Logic Model – Awareness Training, Use of EDI planning tool at agency level – continue training as needed

Ø  Plans to develop online training modules for EDI and to create reports, brochures/resources for the community to understand EDI results

6)  Support for Recruitment/Retention of ECE’s

Ø  Resource developed for promotion at high schools

Ø  Survey of current staff in licensed childcare – report shared

Ø  2 job fairs at EEC

Ø  Advocacy at SLC to offer courses on campus

7)  Support for Special Populations

Ø  Maintain/expand connections with French language Best Start Coordinator and Regional French Language Network – identify opportunities to provide resources in French

Ø  Develop plan to support Aboriginal populations – resource links on website, training,

Ø  Outreach

Themes that Guide our Work

·  Service Integration

·  Healthy Development

·  Support for transition to kindergarten

·  Professional development

·  Data driven community planning

·  Support for ECE Recruitment/Retention

·  Support for Aboriginal Population

·  Support for French Language Population

ACTION: Margaret will email out the “Documents Guiding our Work”

ACTION: Margaret will email out the link from Canadian Living article “Social Media”

Setting the Context for Child and Family Centres

a)  Updates: Rachel Blanchette, Ministry of Education; Lesley Benderavage, MCYS)

·  Reviewed the 2013 Ontario Early Years Policy Framework

Reviewed the Vision for the Early Years (pg 2)

“Ontario’s children and families are well supported by a system of responsive, high-quality, accessible, and increasingly integrated early years programs and services that contribute to healthy child development today and a stronger future tomorrow.”

Reviewed: This framework also identifies priority areas for action. Our framework focus will be to: (pg 3)

·  Continue with the implementation of full-day kindergarten by September 2014

·  Create an effective approach to implementing Best Start Child and Family Centres by Sept 2014

·  Improve the delivery of speech and language service

·  Stabilize and transform the child care sector

Reviewed: Guiding Principles to Support the Vision (pg 7)

·  Programs and services are centred on the child and the family

·  Programs and services are of high quality

·  Strong partnerships are essential

·  Programs and services are publicly accountable

Reviewed: Our Commitment to Partnership (pg 9, 10, 11)

·  The Role of Municipalities

·  The Role of First Nations

·  The Role of School Boards

·  The Roles of Community Partners

Reviewed: Create an effective approach to implementing Best Start Child and Family Centres (pg 15)

Reviewed: Letter from Ministry of Children and Youth Services to Early Years Partners

Rachelle asked: What is important to reach families in Leeds and Grenville?

b) Review of Planning to Date: Marg Fancy and Shannon Brown

Planning June 2011

·  Conducted by representative of OMSSA

·  Integrated service system planning for the prenatal to 12 child and family service system

·  Looked at vision, outcomes, guiding principles, common language, structural elements

·  Prioritized strengths, gaps

·  For a copy of the planning tool contact:

Identified in our community – 4 areas we should be focusing on

·  Common Language (Foundational Element)

·  Parent/Family Engagement (Structural Element)

·  Alignment/Time (Structural Element)

·  Local Flexibility (Structural Element)

11:20 Parent Engagement Activity

PowerPoint Presentation: Engaging parents at various stages of child’s life – Gillian Jackson

LUNCH

12:45 p.m. Planning for Child and Family Centres

PowerPoint Presentation: Confirming the Vision – Maxine Weber

Aligning our Actions with the Guiding Principles – Margaret Fancy

Planning June 2010 – What we Said

It is important to plan for families and children in an integrated way because:

·  Avoid duplication and fill gaps

·  We don’t miss anyone

·  Build in communication plan

·  Easily accessible

·  Gives families a more integrated, family-friendly experience

·  Families are integrated

·  Holistic rather than an agency plan

·  More cost effective

·  Look at all the needs of the family

·  Get better outcomes

·  Make us all accountable together

·  More services are available

·  Easier to share learning with other communities

Our Guiding Principles for Best Start Child and Family System

·  Family centered

·  No wrong door

·  Intentional support

·  Shared understanding and shared practice

·  Appropriate human and financial capacity

·  Cultural responsive

·  Improved outcomes for children and families

EKIOC Priorities

·  Transportation

·  2-1-1

·  Triple P (parenting)

·  Municipal engagement

·  Collaboration with school boards

Planning Activity:

Principle: Family Centred

Priority #1 - Read to Every Kid Every Day

·  How to reach the families, who have 0-3 yrs old children, don’t use libraries, don’t go to OECY’s, don’t go to school yet … marketing campaign? Corporate sponsor?

·  Currently a professional kick-off. How to make it a community kick-off?

·  Target less engaged townships/municipalities

·  Social media

Priority #1 – Family/Parent Engagement

·  Parent to parent survey – have parents develop survey

·  Focus groups held at already established group locations (e.g. OEYC, After Triple P seminars, informal parent support groups)

·  Advertise for parents to join Best Start working group

Priority #2 – Parent Support – not just teaching parent how to support child family

·  Focus/support group – childcare provided or cost of covered

Principle: Improved Outcomes for Children and Families

Priority #1 - Using EDI Data

·  Collaboration /coordination with all services that could support addressing an indentified EDI need

·  Committee or coordinator to examine EDO and identify program needs and pull partners in to address

·  Centre would promote community focus

Priority #2 – Transportation

·  Reduce cost or subsidy system where a transportation is available (municipalities & transport systems work together)

·  Volunteer driver system – carpooling

·  Expand school bus use to transport parents (i.e. at down times)

·  Subsidize driver training programs

·  Owner car system/program

Principle: Appropriate Human and Financial Capacity

Priority #1 – Back pack program

·  Collaborate with business to support

·  Coordination between agencies to identify need

·  Focus information /awareness relative to EDI and centre

Priority #1 – Having a Voice at the Table

·  ensure that representation at decision level advocates for communities know the needs of the communities and its partners

·  ACTION: Provide Board leads with knowledge/language to actively participate in 2013/2014 Educational Budget Consultations.

Priority #2 – Food Programs – every centre, school, community

·  Service every school

·  Examine EDI

·  Coordinate between partners that support

·  Identify volunteers

Principle: No Wrong Door

Priority #1:

·  BSN partner will make a commitment that: Agencies need to expect that staff to be knowledgeable around community services; Provide anyone coming thru the door an answer or a resource – BSN to provide resources and ensure distribution; Accountability piece back to BSN; Training and customer service

Priority #2:

·  211

·  Accountability /commitment to BSN that the agency updates are done

·  Huge training piece yet opportunity

·  Reduce re-telling one story to a number of agencies

Priority #1: Shared Practice of Customer Service”

·  Clear navigation

·  Awareness of progress & services within organizations

·  Common language

·  Common procedure for direction

·  Develop a distribution process for common resources so all organizations are providing the same messages

·  Increasing awareness of service providers within the network

Priority #2: Social Media/Internet

·  Utilize to be able to have “child development” for teachers

·  Develop an app to help people to find community resources, GPS

Principle: Intentional Support

Priority #1: Common Language

·  Protocol developed for 0-6 service providers – this is a consistent expectation re: collaboration and making/accepting referrals from other service providers

·  Training – know enough of other service providers to explain to parents

·  0-6 broad service provider network in L&G have consistent opportunities to attend informal events for networking (not unlike lunch & learns)

Priority #2: Local Flexibility

·  Within the screening clinics – built in practice re: making referrals on the spot

·  Communicate our Best Start Network work and goals to lunch & learns in an appropriate and timely manner

Priority #1: Acting purposefully every provision of sense has a purpose

·  WTK – refine, tweak

·  Start planning now; we have a full year to refine and make it better

·  Nippissing

·  WTK

·  Goals: More consistent / std approach at each school so that BSN participation more effective and value of is maximized

Principle: Culturally Responsive

Priority #1

·  Being sensitive to how few diverse families we have

·  Aware that we don’t have a lot of experience with families of diverse cultural backgrounds

·  Update websites

·  Monitoring our demographics for trends of an increase in diversity

Priority #2

·  Share information with other networks that have more experience with families of a variety of cultural backgrounds

·  Identify within each organization who can speak other languages

·  Create inventory awareness about translators in the community for a network resource

Principle: Shared Understanding and Shared Practice

Priority #1: Communication between childcare partners and school boards

·  Regular contact/meetings

·  Facilitate positive relationships with teacher/principals/childcare

·  Create a manual/binder that defines and supports the partnerships

Priority #2 Using schools for community events and not just educational purposes

·  Evaluate the effectiveness of an online booking system for CUOS

·  Communicate to partners how CUOS can work for them

Priority #1: Central/Common Intake/Common Consent

·  Form a workgroup – formed & TOR by Dec 31st

·  Research – who/where has had success in these areas – consent, common intake form tools, documents, processes

·  Mention: Peel/Durham Simcoe-York CTC

·  Done by workgroup or group finds someone else to do the research by March 31/14

·  Report back to BSN – issues, recommendations, next steps by April 30/14

·  Move to implement as agreed by BSN – may require workgroup composition; identification of $ resources, etc.

1:50 p.m. Next Steps and Closing

Evaluation

How have we moved forward today?

·  Absolutely

·  Ensure we are part of no door is the wrong door

·  I have a clear understanding of the priorities and the direction of our network is moving toward

·  By being more aware of what the BSN has accomplished over the past year

·  Increased understanding, increase motivation

·  Reconnected with BSN plan

·  Concrete/action oriented – feel like we have engaged members

·  Review membership

·  The group developed several action items that will help the group direct future initiatives and planning