ORIENTATION PACKAGE

Table of Contents

Introduction to LCPC / 2
Member Organizations / 3-4
Terms of Reference / 5-10
Relational Chart / 11
Committees, Working Groups and ad hoc Committees / 12-15
Participation Agreement / 16
Meeting Schedule / 17
Commonly Used Acronyms / 18-19

Introduction

The Lanark County Planning Council for Children, Youth and Families (LCPC) provides leadership and coordination to enable optimal development and healthy living for Lanark County children, youth (0 – 18 years of age), and their families. The Council is committed to providing leadership and innovation in the following areas:

  • Service integration
  • advocacy
  • planning and evaluation
  • information sharing
  • community education
  • professional development

The Lanark County Planning Council for Children, Youth and Families was formed in 2007. The mandate of this council is to provide leadership and coordination to enable optimal development and healthy living for Lanark County children, youth (0-18 years of age), and their families. The geographic community of Lanark County includes both the rural areas and town centres that make up the County of Lanark, including the separated Town of Smiths Falls.

The Planning Council meets on a monthly basis. There are three predetermined work groups of the Planning Council whose task it is to focus in on issues related to three age groups: 0-6, 7-12, and 13-18. Work groups are also struck when a specific issue is identified in the community.

The membership of this Planning Council includes organizations and agencies in Lanark County that provide services to children, youth and their families. The majority of members are senior management, executive directors, networks or people appointed by agencies. There is representation from the Ministry of Children and Youth Services and other provincial ministry offices.

The Planning Council is supported in their work by a community coordinator (or planner) who is funded through the Ministry of Children and Youth Services and the Ministry of Education. There are other such planning groups in South Eastern Ontario and the planners meet regularly to share ideas and issues of common interest.

Lanark County Planning Council

Member Organizations

Family and Children’s Services of Lanark, Leeds and Grenville

Open Doors for Lanark Children and Youth

Ministry of Children and Youth Services

Lanark County Interval House

Language Express Preschool Speech and Language

RNJ Youth Services

Child Development Centre (Hotel Dieu Hospital)

Lanark County Community Justice Program

Lanark Renfrew Health and Community Services - North Lanark CHC

Rideau Community Health Services – Smiths Falls CHC

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lanark County

South East Community Care Access Centre

Champlain Community Care Access Centre

Upper Canada District School Board

Catholic School Board of Eastern Ontario

Children’s Resources on Wheels (CROW) including

Ontario Early Years Centre (OEYC)

Data Analysis Coordinator (DAC)

Lanark Community Programs, including

Infant and Child Development

Early Integration

Speech and Language Development

Behaviour Development

Therapeutic Riding

Family Relief

Early Start Autism Initiative

Connections

Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit

Lanark Leeds-Grenville Mental Health and Addictions

United Way of Lanark County

Kelford Youth Services/Cornerstone Landing

OPP

Smiths Falls Police Services

Lanark County including

Lanark County Children’s Services

Youth Centre Coalition, including

Almonte - MMYC

Carleton Place –CORE Youth Services

Lanark Highlands - LHYC

Perth - YAK

Smiths Falls – SFDCY

The Table, Perth

Libraries of Lanark County, including

Mississippi Mills Public Library

Carleton Place Public Library

Perth and District Union Library

Carleton Place Public Library

Smiths Falls Public Library

Lanark Highlands Public Library

Healthy Community Partnership of Lanark, Leeds-Grenville

Lanark County Situation Table

Mills Community Support Corporation

Victims Services Lanark County

Parents Lifeline of Eastern Ontario – PLEO

Lanark County Food Bank – The Hunger Stop

Best Start Member Organizations

Family and Children’s Services of Lanark, Leeds and Grenville

Open Doors for Lanark Children and Youth

Ministry of Children and Youth Services

Language Express Preschool Speech and Language

Child Development Centre (Hotel Dieu Hospital)

North Lanark Community Health Centre

Upper Canada District School Board

Catholic School Board of Eastern Ontario

Lanark County Childcare Centres

Children’s Resources on Wheels (CROW) including

Ontario Early Years Centre (OEYC)

Data Analysis Coordinator (DAC)

Lanark Community Programs, including

Infant and Child Development

Early Integration

Speech and Language Development

Early Start Autism Initiative

Connections

Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit, including

Healthy Babies Healthy Children

Lanark County including

Lanark County Children’s Services

Libraries of Lanark County, including

Mississippi Mills Public Library

Carleton Place Public Library

Perth and District Union Library

Carleton Place Public Library

Smiths Falls Public Library

Lanark Highlands Public Library

Terms of Reference

Name:

Lanark County Planning Council for Children, Youth and Families

(Referred to as the Council in the Terms of Reference)

Mission/Mandate:

The Council provides leadership and coordination to enable optimal development and healthy living for Lanark County * children, youth (0-18 years of age), and their families.

* The geographic community of Lanark County includes both the rural areas and town centres that make up the County of Lanark, including the separated Town of Smiths Falls.

Guiding Principles:

The Council’s activities are guided by the following principles:

1. All children, youth and their families in Lanark County require a long-term community commitment to the creation and maintenance of the best conditions for their optimal development.

2. The needs of all children, youth and their families in Lanark County must be acknowledged and responded to. Children, youth and families who are at risk and those with special needs require additional supports. Positive childhood experiences, and the active participation and engagement of youth, have critical long-term impacts on the health and well-being of individuals in later years.

3. All stakeholders in the community, including children, youth and their families, formal and informal community supports, are engaged in the process of identifying needs, resources, setting the direction, providing leadership and building capacity.

4. The health and well-being of children, youth and their families is supported by high quality, coordinated programs, services and information resources that are accessible and close to home.

5. Relationships within the Council, based on goodwill, mutual respect, open-mindedness and a shared purpose, will support innovation and strengthen the community.

6. Inclusive practices, timely and open sharing of information, knowledge and expertise amongst all stakeholders supports the planning and decision-making processes.

Goals, Objectives, Purposes:

The Council is committed to providing leadership and innovation in the following areas:

service integration, advocacy, planning and evaluation, information sharing, community education, and professional development.

Service Integration

Service integration is most usefully defined as an on-going process whereby local agencies engage in progressively greater degrees of joint service activity along an integration continuum defined by four service integration domains: Awareness, coordination, collaboration and integration. . Community-based integration requires clear and accountable local leadership that fosters trusting partnerships. Integration requires communities to respond to locally-defined needs with teamwork, open communication and a willingness to explore the re-engineering of programs and approaches to build something “larger than the sum of its parts”.

The Council will:

  • Work to ensure that children, youth and families in Lanark County have access to timely, accessible, appropriate and coordinated services, information and programs.
  • Provide leadership in determining priorities and opportunities to better serve the needs of children, youth and families in Lanark County.
  • Increase awareness, coordination, collaboration and integration among service providers, funders, families and community supports
  • Facilitate the integration of services to achieve the Mission.

Advocacy

The Council will:

  • Speak with a strong and unified voice that represents children, youth and their families.
  • Advocate as an independent group for common interests and concerns, keeping the needs of children, youth and their families at the forefront.

Planning and Evaluation

The Council will:

  • Work collectively and collaboratively with all stakeholders to identify needs, monitor trends, and anticipate vulnerabilities to the health and well-being of children, youth and their families in Lanark County
  • Facilitate collaborative planning, building on the existing strengths and expertise from across Lanark County.
  • Develop and evaluate the progress of an evidence-based long-range plan, recognizing the accountability requirements and governance structures of stakeholders.
  • Provide objective and evidence-informed advice to funders, policy-makers and community stakeholders on all matters relating to outcomes for children, youth and their families in Lanark County.
  • Provide input to the regional planning process based on identified needs in Lanark County.

Information Sharing, Community Education and Professional Development

The Council will:

  • Identify common needs and support learning opportunities, including evidence-based, for stakeholders to improve, enhance and develop their skills.
  • Expand public awareness of the needs of children, youth and their families through innovative and proactive ways which support and enhance the development of a quality environment for Lanark County.
  • Establish clear communication mechanisms and linkages which enable all levels of the Council to be informed and engaged in the work of the Council.
  • Act as a conduit for information sharing back to respective sectors regarding the initiatives, efforts and work of the Council.

Roles and Responsibilities of Members and the Council:

  • Members provide county-wide representation from a broad sector of service providers.
  • Membership on the Council is designed to provide a balance between an inclusive membership and maintaining accountability as a planning body.
  • The Council offers its membership and expertise to the broader community as a reference group for planning processes.
  • The Council is identified as the planning body to funders for specific targeted purposes.
  • The Council will reflect the principles of consensus and integration in all its operations.
  • The primary responsibility of members is to link the Council to the community and organizations in Lanark County, and to act as a conduit for information sharing back to respective sectors regarding the initiatives, efforts and work of the Council.
  • The Council will be an advocacy body for the health and well-being of children, youth and their families.
  • Members bring the thoughts and values of their member agencies or network to the Planning Council. Under the consensus model, if a vote is necessary, members have the authority of their agencies or networks to vote, or will recuse themselves as appropriate. Advance notice will be given, if possible of potentially significant issues where a decision is required. Email decisions by consensus, or voting, if necessary, will be permitted if required. Each member organization has one vote.

Structure and Meeting Frequency:

Stewardship Committee

  • Meets monthly, as set by membership
  • Membership should include LCPC Co-Chairs, Chair of Best Start Working Group or designate, representatives from the transfer payment agencies as well as a member-at-large. The Community Coordinator will serve as the resource staff.
  • The member-at-large is elected for a two year term, and is elected at the same time as Co-Chairs of LCPC
  • Meets to set agendas, approve budget, provide general direction to Community Coordinator
  • Identifies issues and develops work-plan

Council

  • Identifies issues and explores possible action plans
  • Works with the community, work Groups, and regional process to further the action plans
  • Represents Lanark County’s interest at regional tables
  • Functions as an advisory group
  • Ensures information flow across all levels and sectors
  • Meets monthly, generally the 1st Thursday of the month
  • Co-Chairs are elected by Council in October for two year term.
  • The Co-Chairs will be elected at the same meeting. Members will be asked to declare their interest in a position. When there are two candidates for a position, a majority of 50% plus one will determine the outcome.
  • The Community Coordinator supports Council by working with the Chair to develop agenda, take minutes, research issues and provide information to Council and Work Groups as required by the Council
  • Membership of the Council constitutes the voting membership. Each member has one vote, even if they represent two groups or organizations.
  • Organizations that provide direct funding to the Lanark County Planning Council are considered non-voting members; ex officio members include the DAC and the Community Coordinator
  • The Council shall review the orientation package and the Terms of Reference annually in September.

Work Groups

  • based on three age categories 0-6, 7-12, 13-18, or issue specific
  • meets monthly, or as required
  • membership
  • Chair elected by Work Group for the duration of the issue or project. Members will be asked to declare their interest in the position. When there are two candidates for the position, a majority of 50% plus one will determine the outcome.
  • Determined by issue
  • On a voluntary basis
  • Consumer representation (parents and youth) is encouraged on each Work Group to ensure all perspectives are presented
  • Members of working group do not have to be members of the Planning Council

Accountability:

Accountability of the Council is to other Council members, notwithstanding the existing accountability relationships of members to their Boards of Directors, to funders and to the community at large. Consistent participation by an organization’s representative will enable the Council to build its internal capacity to realize its goals. Work Groups of the Council will maintain accountability to the full membership of the Council.

Decision-Making:

A consensus building approach will be pursued whenever possible. However, in certain situations a vote may be required in order to move the process forward or for clarity. The Chair decides when consensus cannot be reached and when a vote is necessary.

Consensus exists when members are able to accept a specific decision. It does not necessarily mean everyone completely agrees. It means that objections to the decision have been given a full hearing, are understood and have been considered in coming to the decision. An objection may still exist but those with the objection may judge that they do not hold this dissenting view so strongly as to block the consensus. The Chair may then test for consensus by re-stating the position that is being supported by the members. If there are no blocks to consensus, then the Chair announces that a decision in favour of the position has been made. If there are areas of disagreement, then the issue is taken to a vote. If the voting is tied, the Chair may vote.

Quorum: A quorum exists when there are 12 voting members present. To pass a motion, Fifty percent plus one of the members present is required. Decisions are decided by simple majority, indicated by show of hands. Proxy voting is not permitted, however, alternates may vote if the Council is notified of the alternate’s attendance prior to the meeting. An electronic vote may be called if the matter is urgent, and the same rules of quorum will be used. Each member organization, updated annually, has one vote

Conflict of Interest:

The following provisions shall be applicable to issues regarding possible conflicts of interest by members of the Committee.

A conflict of interest arises when a person is able, or is perceived to be able to, influence a decision whether by official vote, moral or intellectual persuasion, is liable to gain:

Some personal advantage from the outcome of the decision in which they are involved and/orsome advantage for an organization in which the individual is directly involved, as a director, member, partner, shareholder, staff member, or has a financial interest.

Terms of Reference – Review:

The Terms of Reference will be reviewed annually at the first meeting in the fall. This will ensure they adequately reflect the mandate and structure of the Lanark County Planning Council for Children, Youth and Families.

Relational Chart

TheCommittees, Working Groups, and ad hoc Committees of the Planning Council

Lanark County Planning Council: meets the 1st Thursday of the month from 9:30 to noon in the Council Chambers at the Lanark County Administration Building located at 99 Christie Lake Road in Perth. Membership is by invitation, and is generally open to agencies and organizations serving children and youth in Lanark County. The agency representative is usually at the executive director level, and is someone able to make decisions on behalf of the organization.

There are two committees of the Council that have no decision making abilities: the Stewardship Committee and the Communications Committee. The function of these committees is to support the LCPC.

Working Groups are roughly organized into age specific or issue specific mandates. The members of the working groups of the Planning Council are more often managers or front-line staff. Each working group acts independently and has its own Terms of Reference and approves its own actions.

Ad Hoc Work Groups are formed as needed and have a short and defined span of activity.