INFORMATION UPDATE — Transition Process
Ministry of Children and Family Development
September 2008
The Decision to move Children’s Services to the Ministry of Children and Family
Development and retain Adult Services with Community Living British Columbia:
Over the last three years, government has received input from families, many of whom
believe that the division of responsibility for services to children with special needs and
their families is confusing and not responsive to the needs of families.
The transfer of services for children and youth with special needs to the Ministry of
Children and Family Development (MCFD) will ensure there is clarity about where
services or programs can be accessed and will better enable integration of services
between provincial ministries. This will also complement work that is well underway to
create a cross-ministry framework for children and youth with special needs.
During the last several months, Ministry staff has been working very closely with staff in
Community Living British Columbia (CLBC) to develop a smooth transition process and
one that will ensure no disruption in service delivery. This includes a streamlined transfer
of service contracts from CLBC to MCFD to ensure continuity of supports for families
and children; ensuring all information about the children and families being supported is
available and transferred and the associated information systems are accessible and:
establishing agreement on staff transfers, budgets and associated resources, and current
protocols with other ministries and agencies are updated to ensure a smooth,
uninterrupted transfer of services.
The transition of responsibility for CLBC from MCFD to the new Ministry of Housing
and Social Development (MHSD) will also ensure a more streamlined process to access
an array of supports for adults. The change will see financial, housing, medical and
employment supports available under one umbrella.
Impact on the System of Support:
MCFD and MHSD will work closely to assist in successfully transitioning youth with
special needs to effective adult supports, including those transitioning to adult
community living supports, where eligible. To this end, the Office of the Advocate for
Service Quality, for adults with developmental disabilities supported by CLBC, will also
continue to be available to assist in addressing any issues relating to the transition
planning process for youth with special needs who are between the age of 17 and 19.
The Transition Plan:
Ministry staff has been working very closely with staff at CLBC and MHSD to ensure a
smooth transition process and one that will ensure no disruption in service delivery. As a
key aspect of the transition process, CLBC and MCFD regional “leads” have been
established in each of the five regions of the province. Under their leadership. each of the
respective regions is now in the process of planning region and community specific
transitions.
Impact on Children’s Services:
The recently amended regulation to the Community Living Authority Act that outlines
eIigibiut~ for adult community living services does not impact how CLBC and MCFD
are currently delivering children’s services. There is no intent through the amended
regulation to change the current eligibility for children’s services.
Impact on Staff:
Staff have rights under their collective agreements that address this type of occurrence.
Our commitment to work with the British Columbia Government Employees’ Union
(BCGEU) will ensure there is as little disruption during this process as possible. The
development of a transition plan for staff will take some time.
Impact on Service Delivery Partners:
Service delivery contracts will be transferred from CLBC to MCFD and will reflect all
current funding levels and contract deliverables.
The expectation is that MCFD will continue to provide services in an increasingly
integrated manner. In the same way we are building a collaborative framework in
communities to support the development of a cross-ministry framework for children and
youth with special needs, we hope to do the same in other areas of the ministry’s work.
MCFD will continue to engage with community partners and stakeholders in any change
processes that may result from integrated approaches in supporting children and families.
Community Engagement:
As part of the transition process involving children’s services, there will be an
opportunity for families, care providers and service partners to make suggestions on
service delivery improvements. This will include the development of service delivery
structures that enable uninterrupted service, support the transitions envisioned, while
building on the positive experiences of CLBC. MCFD regions will facilitate community
engagement to ensure family and community perspectives are considered in the
development of MCFD service delivery models.
Timeline for Transition Process:
We anticipate that the transition process will take several months and be finalized prior to
fiscal year end, March 31, 2009.
