Partnerships with other divisions and organizations

• Employment services
• Neighbourhood Action
• Ontario Disability Support Program
• Services for children
• Services for newcomers
• Social Development, Finance & Administration

Employment and Social Services has partnerships with other City divisions, levels of government and community organizations. These partnerships result in coordinated and enhanced services for residents across the city.

In addition to the partnerships described on this page, you can also read about ways that Employment and Social Services partners with other City divisions and organizations through these projects and initiatives:

You can also read about our current partnerships with employment services organizations and training providers.

Employment services
Employment and Social Services regularly partners with the Toronto Public Library to run community events such as job fairs. The divisions work together to run these events to make sure residents can connect with employment opportunities and services in the community.

Employment and Social Services Community and Labour Market Managers participate in local Employment Service Delivery Networks with representatives from:

• employment services agencies
• the Ministry Training, Colleges and Universities, and
• federal government ministries.

These networks meet regularly to:

• discuss labour market trends and identify opportunities for people who are unemployed
• coordinate services between agencies and the governments that fund them
• identify community needs for training and employment support, and
• plan and promote new and improved employment programs.

Neighbourhood Action
Neighbourhood Action is an important part of the City’s Community Safety Plan. Employment and Social Services is proud to support Neighbourhood Action Teams and Neighbourhood Action Partnerships in Toronto’s priority areas.

These teams and partnerships work to address local needs, coordinate services and build community capacity. Neighbourhood Action brings together many different individuals and organizations, including:

• a number of City divisions and boards
• other government offices
• representatives from school boards
• community agencies, and
• local residents.

Community members play a significant role in making decisions about projects that are needed in their neighbourhoods. Examples of Neighbourhood Action projects include:

• job fairs
• programs for young people in conflict with the law
• beautifying public parks
• facility improvements for libraries and community centres
• cultural programs, and
• anti-gang training programs.

These initiatives aim to increase resident involvement, improve services and increase employment opportunities for youth.

For more information on priority neighbourhoods, read about:

• City Council’s priority to strengthen neighbourhoods, and
• The Strong Neighbourhoods Task Force

Ontario Disability Support Program

Employment and Social Services works with the ODSP to help people by:

• providing financial benefits and support from Ontario Works while applying to ODSP
• assisting people receiving ODSP to access medical supplies and services and other benefits they are entitled to from Ontario Works
• helping people receiving ODSP and their non-disabled spouses access financial benefits for volunteering
• helping spouses and adult children of people receiving ODSP with Ontario Works employment programs and benefits

Services for children
Employment and Social Services and Toronto Children’s Services work together to support residents who need child care.

Staff from these two divisions meet on a regular basis to:

• review the current status of child care availability
• streamline the application process for available child care, and
• review eligibility requirements for subsidized child care.

The Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation Division helps low-income families with children access recreation programs through the Welcome Policy. This Division also offers After- School Recreation Care Programs. Employment and Social Services advises people who are receiving Ontario Works of these supports to encourage families to participate in available programs.

Employment and Social Services’ Learning, Earning and Parenting (LEAP) Program supports young parents in completing their high school education and improving their parenting skills. To make this program a success, Employment and Social Services engages Ontario Early Years Centres and community agencies and also has a formal referral process in place with Toronto Public Health. This referral process with Toronto Public Health is part of a larger partnership that has been formalized since 2006, when the divisions signed a "Declaration of Commitment" and agreed to coordinate services.

These partners provide LEAP participants with referrals to educational and parenting programs, health and counselling services or other supports as needed.

Services for newcomers
Employment and Social Services helps deliver information sessions to community agencies who serve newcomers. These sessions help agency representatives stay informed about the range of City services that are available for newcomers to Canada.

These sessions are the result of a partnership with other City divisions including:

• Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation
• Toronto Public Library, and
• Toronto Public Health.

Social Development, Finance & Administration
Employment and Social Services works with Toronto’s Social Development, Finance & Administration (SDFA) division to improve services and build safe, strong neighbourhoods and communities.  

Community Development Officers from SDFA work in partnership with Employment and Social Services and community agencies to support residents through Neighbourhood Action in the city's designated 13 priority neighbourhood areas.

Toronto youth are supported through various Community Development programs. The Youth Employment Toronto (YET) program provides a  mobile employment assessment, referral and case management service to those aged 16-29 who are out of school and work, requiring support in reaching their vocational goals. Caseworkers make referrals to YET Vocational Workers and these staff meet with the youth at Employment and Social Services’ offices.

You can read about other SDFA youth employment initiatives that Employment and Social Services support and promote:

• Youth Employment Partnerships (YEP) is a City initiative established to create and support a network of non-profit youth employment agencies that offer job placement services to employers across Toronto at no cost.  YEP provides a coordinated entry point for employers to access the resources they require to recruit employees.
• EASE (Employers Access to Support & Employees) is a project that created the ‘Toronto’s Youth – Hiring Made Easy' Employer Toolkit to link employers to the resources and supports they require in attracting and retaining a young workforce to meet their hiring needs.
• Toronto Youth Job Corps (TYJC) is a 21-26 week pre-employment preparation program that supports youth aged 16-29 who are out of school and unemployed and facing barriers to employment.  The program provides the opportunity for youth to enter the work force in stages with the support and resources they require to be successful.

The Community Services Partnerships program through SDFA also helps to meet the needs of vulnerable Toronto residents by providing grants for community-based programs and initiatives. These programs provide a stable, varied community-based sector across the city that supports people receiving Ontario Works and others with local resources for community building and individual needs.