These guidelines support service provider organizations and individuals to fulfill their essential roles within a coordinated system of early identification and intervention services. They outline the foundational program elements in which service providers will:

  • Take a child- and family-centred, strengths-based approach founded on the F-words for Child Development and will support families in a way that is culturally safer, responsive, and promotes equity, anti-oppression, anti-ableism, and anti-racism, including dismantling anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism. Equally important is a recognition that young people are entitled to have an active voice in the decisions and experiences that impact them.
  • Collaborate to implement seamless, streamlined and integrated service pathways and equitable approaches to wait management centred on family experience.
  • Engage as leaders and collaborators with broader service system partners in the planning and delivery of child-centred services and supports in their communities.
  • Use quantitative and qualitative data to inform program planning, clinical decision-making, and outcome measurement.

The continuum of service delivery program elements described in these guidelines supports a coordinated system of early identification and intervention services that includes:

  • Access and Intake: Make information and services accessible to all Ontario children and their families, no diagnosis or referral required. The PSL program will be accessible to families with children until school start.
  • Early Intervention: Work collaboratively across sectors to raise awareness, build capacity, and develop alignment among related sectors and services towards optimal child development.
  • Assessment: Work collaboratively with families and others (with consent) to assess children’s skills, abilities and functioning, identify needs, provide further supports, and determine next steps.
  • Intervention: Employ a response to intervention (RTI) approach that supports decision-making based on continuous assessment of children’s responses to a continuum of tiered interventions and collaborate in a coordinated, team approach to support the needs of the child and family.
  • Supportive Transitions: Collaborate to support families at key transitions and minimize service gaps within the catchment.

What’s new?

Tiered approach to services delivery

The guidelines outline a new requirement for all service providers across the province to implement a tiered approach to service delivery, including universal, targeted, and specialized interventions. Providers are expected to use assessments combined with clinical judgement, both at intake and when evaluating progress using a response-to-intervention approach, to determine the appropriate tier of services for a client. This approach will allow more children to receive the right level of service at the right time.

Focus on equity

The guidelines focus on ways for service providers to support the diverse needs of families in culturally safer ways. All service providers are required to also promote equity, anti-oppression, anti-ableism, and anti-racism, including dismantling anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism.

Clear services pathways, including integration with SmartStart Hubs

The guidelines outline ministry expectations for PSL Lead Agencies and CTCs to collaborate across their catchment areas to implement seamless, streamlined, and integrated service pathways. Such pathways are meant to improve families’ experiences with transitions and service coordination and to promote equitable approaches to wait management.

Implementation

The ministry recognizes that these guidelines will require time, partnership development, coordination, and collaboration across the system with ongoing support to implement. Implementation supports will be available through Ministry Regional Offices.