Services delivered: alternative dispute resolution

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Component: child welfare - community and prevention supports

Legislation: Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 (CYFSA)

Service objectives

To provide alternative dispute resolution (ADR) to society staff and families whose children are or may be in need of protection that will assist in resolving any issue related to the child or a plan for the child’s care; and/or prevent or reduce court involvement.

Service description

The intent of the ADR program is to improve outcomes for children who are or may be in need of protection and their families by offering a strengths-based, inclusive and collaborative approach to resolving child protection issues or disputes. It encourages the involvement and support of the family, extended family and the community in the planning and decision-making processes for children.

The use of ADR is set out in the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 as follows

if a child is or may be in need of protection, a children’s aid society shall consider whether a prescribed method of ADR could assist in resolving any issue related to the child or a plan for the child’s care (section 17(1))
As well, there are provisions in the Act for adjournment to allow for ADR to proceed
the court, at any time during a proceeding, and with the consent of the parties, may adjourn the proceeding to permit the parties to utilize a prescribed method of ADR to attempt to resolve the issues in dispute (section 95)
On applications to vary or terminate an openness order before or after an adoption, the court may, with the consent of the parties, adjourn the proceeding to permit the parties to utilize a prescribed method of ADR to attempt to resolve any disputes related to the proceeding (sections 198(8) and 207(9))

Program/service features

(The Program/services contracted by the ministry will reflect the following features)

Further to Directive CW 005-06, the type of ADR provided must be one of the following methods

Child protection mediation (CPM)

A process where child protection workers and the family (including the child where appropriate) and any other person putting forward or proposing to participate in a plan for the child, work together with the aid of a trained and impartial child protection mediator who has no decision-making power
Must be facilitated by a child protection mediator who is on the provincial roster

Family group conferencing (FGC)

A process that brings together the family (including the child where appropriate), the child’s extended family and community, child protection workers, and service providers to develop a plan that addresses the protection concerns identified
Must be facilitated by a family group conferencing coordinator who is on the provincial roster
Indigenous approaches to alternative dispute resolution (IAADR)
Traditional methods of dispute resolution, including circle processes, which have been established by First Nations communities or Indigenous organizations
Must be facilitated by a person who is recognized by the First Nations community with whom the child is affiliated or by an Indigenous organization, as qualified to engage in Indigenous Approaches to ADR, as set out in the policy directive

Other methods

Must be assessed and approved by the executive director of the children’s aid society involved
Must be facilitated by a person who meets all the qualifications outlined in the policy directive, including
completion of a post-secondary degree or diploma in the social service or children’s services or equivalent
experience in the social service or children’s services; and three satisfactory professional references
All facilitators providing ADR services must be impartial with no decision-making power. Facilitators must comply with the applicable provisions of Ontario Regulation 155/18 under the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017 (https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/17c14), including and as it relates to confidentiality of and access to records and information, and have a satisfactory criminal record check completed within the last three years.

Program goals

Services will be

effective and responsive to individual, family and community strengths and needs
accountable to the individual, family and community
sensitive to the social, linguistic and cultural diversity of families and communities, including Indigenous and Francophone families and communities
staffed by individuals with the appropriate range of skills and abilities necessary to respond effectively to the needs of adults, children and their families
provided by facilitators who have the experience and qualifications as outlined in the ministry policy directive
based on the individual's assessed needs, preferences and available individual, agency, community and contracted ministry resources

Ministry expectations

The transfer payment recipient will coordinate access and payment to ADR facilitators who have the experience and qualifications for delivering a prescribed method of ADR as set out in the policy directive. The transfer payment recipient will

Have the organizational infrastructure and capacity to coordinate and/or deliver ADR services
Establish a process to expedite payment to individuals or other entities providing direct ADR services
Establish a process for and ensure consistent practices in working with societies and the office of the Children’s Lawyer
Provide information and promote the full spectrum of ADR services available in the community to societies and to families and children involved with societies
Participate in local and provincial forums, including community consultations and decision-making processes, to inform how best to deliver ADR services in the community; and
Where applicable, record and track the use of ADR services as set out in the ministry’s reporting requirements in the policy directive

Reporting requirements

The transfer payment recipient will monitor and evaluate the interim and annual data collected through Transfer Payment Ontario to ensure service objectives are being met.
The following service data will be reported on at an interim and final stage. Please refer to your final agreement for report back due dates and targets.
# of children 0-5: ADR completed no resolution
Number of children served ages 0-5 where a referral reached no resolution (annual only)

Service Data Name	Definition
# of new case post society CPM	Number of new case referrals post society court involvement for Child Protection Mediation (CPM) (semi- annual only).
# of new case post society IAADR	Number of new case referrals post society court involvement for Indigenous Approaches to ADR (IAADR) (semi-annual only).
# of new case post society Other	Number of new case referrals post society court involvement for other types of ADR (semi-annual only).
# of new case pre society IAADR	Number of new case referrals pre society court involvement for Indigenous Approaches to ADR (IAADR) (semi-annual only).
# of new case pre society other	Number of new case referrals pre society court involvement for other types of ADR. (semi-annual only).
# of new case pre society for CPM	Number of new case referrals pre society court involvement for Child Protection Mediation (CPM) (semi-annual only).
# of new case pre society for FGC	Number of new case referrals pre society court involvement for Family Group Conferencing (FGC). (semi-annual only).
# of children 0-5	Number of children served ages 0-5 (annual only).
# of children 0-5: ADR completed full resolution	Number of children served ages 0-5 where a referral reached full resolution (annual only).
# of children 0-5: ADR completed no resolution	Number of children served ages 0-5 where a referral reached no resolution (annual only).
# of children 0-5: ADR completed partial resolution	Number of children served ages 0-5 where a referral reached partial resolution (annual only).
# of children 16+	Number of children served ages 16+ (annual only).
# of children 16+: ADR completed full resolution	Number of children served ages 16+ where a referral reached full resolution (annual only).
# of children 16+: ADR completed no resolution	Number of children served ages 16+ where a referral reached no resolution (annual only).
# of children 16+: ADR completed partial resolution	Number of children served ages 16+ where a referral reached partial resolution (annual only).
# of children 6-15	Number of children served ages 6-15 (annual only).
# of children 6-15: ADR completed full resolution	Number of children served ages 6-15 where a referral reached full resolution (annual only).
# of children 6-15: ADR completed no resolution	Number of children served ages 6-15 where a referral reached no resolution (annual only).
# of children 6-15: ADR completed partial resolution	Number of children served ages 6-15 where a referral reached partial resolution (annual only).
# of new referrals	Number of new referrals made to the program (annual only).
# of referral terminated by society prior to service initiation	Number of referrals terminated by the society (when the society feels ADR or method is no longer appropriate) prior to service initiation. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals terminated by ADR practitioner following service initiation	Number of referrals terminated by ADR practitioner (if the practitioner deems ADR to be not appropriate) following service initiation. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals terminated by ADR practitioner prior to service initiation	Number of referrals terminated by ADR practitioner (if the practitioner deems ADR to be not appropriate) prior to service initiation. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals terminated by family following service initiation	Number of referrals terminated by family (when the family chooses to not move forward) following service initiation. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals terminated by society following service initiation	Number of referrals terminated by the society (when the society feels ADR or method is no longer appropriate) following service initiation. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals terminated following service initiation	Number of referrals terminated following service initiation. Following ADR referral, and following the society Intake Meeting, and some intervention but before the ADR meeting, the referral is ended (semi-annual only).
# of referral terminated by family prior to service initiation	Number of referrals terminated by family (when the family chooses to not move forward) prior to service initiation. (semi- annual only).
# of referral terminated full resolution	Number of terminated referrals that reached full resolution of issues achieved. (semi-annual only).
# of referral terminated no resolution	Number of terminated referrals that reached no resolution of issues. (semi-annual only).
# of referral terminated partial resolution	Number of terminated referrals that reached partial resolution of issues achieved. (semi-annual only).
# of referral terminated prior to service initiation	Number of referrals terminated prior to service initiation. Following ADR referral, but prior to the society Intake Meeting, the referral is ended. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals carried over	Number of referrals carried forward from the previous year. (annual only).
# of referrals completed following meeting	Number of referrals completed following ADR meeting. Referral initiated and intervention results in completed ADR meeting. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals completed following meeting full resolution	Number of referrals completed following ADR meeting that achieved full resolution. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals completed following meeting no resolution	Number of referrals completed following ADR meeting that resulted in no resolution of issues. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals completed following meeting partial resolution	Number of referrals completed following ADR meeting that achieved partial resolution of issues. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals completed resolved other	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution issues involving “other”.
# of referrals completed resolved VYSA	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to a Voluntary Youth Service Agreement (VYSA).
# of referrals completed resolved access	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of access issues.
# of referrals completed resolved communication	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to poor communication between worker and parents.
# of referrals completed resolved extended society care	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to extended society care orders/reviews.
# of referrals completed resolved long term care	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of long term care issues.
# of referrals completed resolved openness	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to openness.
# of referrals completed resolved parent/teen	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of parent/teen conflict issues. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals completed resolved parenting plans	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of conflict with creating parenting plans.
# of referrals completed resolved placement	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of placement issues.
# of referrals completed resolved society/parent	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of foster parents/society/parent issues.
# of referrals completed resolved supervision orders	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to supervision orders.
# of referrals completed resolved temp care agreement	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to the expiration of a temporary care agreement. (semi-annual only).
# of referrals completed resolved time in care	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to the length of time in care and conditions for return.
# of referrals completed resolved youth transitioning out of care	Number of completed referrals involving the resolution of issues related to youth transitioning out of care.
# of new case post society FGC	Number of new case referrals post society court involvement for Family Group Conferencing (FGC) (semi- annual only).
Alternative Dispute Resolution: Ministry-funded agency expenditures	Total ministry-funded expenses for the transfer payment recipient to administer and/or deliver this service in the reporting year (cumulative).

Updated: June 29, 2023

Published: May 23, 2023