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BC needs a real plan for a better future

Social policy framework would set out shared goals, lays groundwork for coordinated, strategic approach

BY CAROL MATUSICKY

Everyone knows you need goals and a plan if you hope to accomplish anything significant.

But in British Columbia, we’ve failed to take the basic steps to decide what kind of society we want and how we’re going to reach our goals.

In contrast, Alberta’s government approved a new, comprehensive Social Policy Framework this year. Other provinces, like Nova Scotia, Quebec and Newfoundland have launched similar policy initiatives.

A social policy plan makes obvious sense. Alberta’s sets out goals — what the province hopes to achieve with the billions that will be spent over the next decade. It includes priorities, targets and strategies for linking the efforts of government, community-based agencies, individuals and the private sector.

It’s simply sensible to decide what we hope to achieve — for a business, a non-profit or a family — and how we will get there. Without a plan, there is a great risk of wasted time, effort and money and no real way to measure success.

Nova Scotia’s Social Policy Framework Weaving the Threads is a useful example, which outlines how social prosperity, economic prosperity and environmental sustainability are all linked to provide a foundation for all of the province’s future social programming.

This process starts by acknowledging problems with the status quo: Policies that tend to address whatever issue seems most urgent at the moment; uncoordinated actions as different government departments and other players operate in “silos”; short-term thinking, while big issues, like child poverty, continue to go unaddressed.

A policy framework can change that by setting out shared goals and laying the groundwork for a coordinated, strategic approach involving all stakeholders.

That’s vital. Consider one example. Everyone wants children to do well in school. But by Grade 4, 30 per cent of B.C. students aren’t reading at the expected level and 32 per cent are falling short in math.

The typical response, based on the silo approach, would call on the Education Ministry to come up with a solution.

But we know that 30 per cent of children start kindergarten “not ready to learn.” Perhaps the best way to help children learn is to support at-risk families with infants and toddlers, address family poverty or increase access to quality childcare.

Or, most likely, a combination of all the above. That can only happen with a coordinated policy framework.

Social policy planning is — or should be — closely linked with economic planning, recognizing that social policy both responds to and helps bring prosperity. If, for example, Kitimat and Prince Rupert experience rapid economic growth, there will be large social impacts. It’s smart to anticipate and plan for a response.

Proper social policy planning also targets the big issues that don’t lend themselves to a short-term approach based on one budget or the election cycle.

The Alberta plan, for example, makes the growing gap between the rich and poor a priority. “Rising income disparity diminishes social cohesion and challenges the idea that all Albertans have an equal opportunity to be successful,” the framework says.

Addressing that requires a broad, long-term approach, involving tax policy, income assistance rates, economic growth, education and community services.

There is a natural fear that this becomes yet another long process with no guarantee of action.

The Alberta framework began as a 2012 election commitment. Work started in June. The process included broad consultation. There was a website, with resources and opportunities for interactive participation. Small grants were available to community groups for local workshops and consultation. Some 31,000 people and organizations participated.

And in less than nine months, the framework was complete and implementation began.

A long-term integrated framework with specific actions, targets and outcomes will not be a panacea, but at least citizens can look at the plan and judge government’s effectiveness in working with partners to achieve its goals.

While Alberta’s process might not have been perfect, it did engage the public in defining the kind of society citizens wanted, the strategies and actions needed to make that a reality and the ways in which success can be measured. It is certainly better than vague campaign commitments.

Voters should press all B.C. parties to promise a similar process to set out a clear, specific social policy framework over the next 24 months.

Dr. Carol Matusicky is the chair of the Board Voice Society of B.C. and is writing on behalf of the Roundtable of Provincial Social Service Organizations.

An easy way to let your candidates know community services matter

One week to go until election day.

Have you done anything to help ensure support for the community social services sector after the election?

It’s not too late. The Tyee has an excellent resource here, with links to the email addresses and Facebook pages of candidates in ridings across the province.

Take a minute to send your local candidates a message about the importance of community social services and the need for stable, adequate funding and a long-term partnership with the sector.

Tell them about your experiences. Remind them that preventive services - help  that allows a senior to stay in her home, support for a family in crisis - change lives and save money. 

Are you a participant in this election, or a passive bystander?

Two weeks to make your voice heard - act today

Two weeks until election day. Have you done anything to tell the candidates that community social services are important, and deserve stable, long-term commitments from government?

It’s easy. The Take Action! section at the top of this page provides everything you need to know to write a letter to the editor or send an email to the party leaders or your local candidates. It takes, literally, less than 30 minutes.

The best letters are based on your experiences. But the blog has a lot of background and information that might be useful.

For example, consider this:

“We’re experts at delivering essential services in the most cost-effective way.  The 64,000 people who work in the sector, and their agencies, are focused on meeting clients’ needs and maximizing the benefits of every dollar.  We are recognized leaders in innovation and have worked hard to ensure that we seize every chance to be more efficient and cost-effective.

“We’ve had to, as budgets have shrunk and needs increased.  But the sector is at a critical point.  Investment is badly needed to meet urgent needs of our fellow citizens.”

It’s not enough to say you support the sector, and the help it provides children, families, people with disabilities, seniors - thousands of British Columbians every day.

Are you a bystander in this election, or a participant?

Majority of British Columbians willing to pay higher taxes to strengthen community services

A majority of British Columbians not only want improved community social services, but are prepared to pay higher taxes to provide them.

That’s one intriguing finding from a poll conducted by Strategic Communications (Stratcom) for the Roundtable of Provincial Social Services Organizations of BC.

The same poll found there is a broad public perception that access to needed services has declined significantly, despite growing demand.

“We know services supporting seniors and families and children are important, and a good investment,” said Roundtable member Tim Agg, executive director of PLEA Community Services Society. “It was heartening to learn that a majority of British Columbians agree, and are willing to pay a little more in taxes to provide needed help to people.” 

The poll found 53 per cent of British Columbians supported increased funding to community social services, even if it meant they would pay higher taxes.

Support for higher taxes to provide needed services for children, families and seniors has increased 12 per cent since a similar survey in 2000, Agg noted.

The poll also found that 57 per cent of British Columbians felt current funding for community services is too low, with only six per cent believing it is too high.

Agg said the Roundtable engaged Stratcom, an international research company, to survey British Columbians on issues relating to the community social services sector.

The survey found British Columbians are less confident that services are available to prevent problems or crises than they were 13 years ago.

In 2000, 45 per cent of the public believed access to support services in their communities was good or excellent. Today, only 36 per cent give high ratings for access to services.

The survey found 74 per cent of British Columbia residents had used community social services themselves, or knew someone who had. That’s down from 81 per cent in 2000.

“Our fear is that the need is still there, but budget cuts have made it impossible for families to get help,” Agg said. 

Agg called on all political parties and candidates to heed the poll and commit to a long-term funding plan to provide needed community social services.

More than 90 per cent of those surveyed said services for youth, women who have experienced violence, people with disabilities and special needs, seniors, people with mental health and addiction challenges and families and children are important.

“People are pragmatic, and compassionate,” said consultant Tim Beachy, another Roundtable member. “They know it is right to provide seniors with supports so they can live in their own homes. And they know it is far less expensive than a care home.”

"The public also understands that years of budget freezes - and cuts - have left community agencies in crisis,” he said. “Waiting lists for help, even for urgent assistance like support for vulnerable children and youth, people with developmental disabilities and victims of violence, have grown."

Almost 80 per cent of British Columbians believe community social services have a positive impact in their communities. 

“The public gets it,” Beachy said. “But we need to hear the candidates and parties make clear commitments to fund these vital services.”

The poll was conducted April 9 to 11 and used a representative sample of 802 adult British Columbians.  Margin of Error is not reported for online polling, as it is not derived from a probability sample.

Community social services are provided by agencies and organizations across the province - large and small, non-profit and private, in big cities and small communities.

Agencies and staff work with children and families in crisis, women and children struggling with few options to leave violent homes, help people find jobs, counsel families dealing with addiction, support new parents and help seniors stay in their homes.  

See a report on the poll results here.

See the detailed data here.

Politicians should walk streets to see need for services

JUDITH LAVOIE 

TIMES COLONIST 

Rev. Al Tysick believes that if the leaders of B.C.’s political parties looked into the eyes of homeless people awakening on the streets of Victoria, the province would have a comprehensive poverty-reduction strategy.

As politicians gear up for the May 14 election, Tysick has challenged Premier Christy Clark and NDP leader Adrian Dix to join him on his daily 5 a.m. walk, when he distributes coffee, muffins and blankets to street people.

“We don’t believe party leaders are ignorant to issues of homelessness,” said Tysick, founder of the Dandelion Society. “But you can learn a lot by looking at the faces of the street, by speaking to a homeless person about their day, by putting a blanket on someone or by trying to connect with a mentally ill person who is wandering aimlessly.”

Tysick wants to emphasize the harsh conditions that saw 30 members of the Victoria street community die within four months last year.

“I did funerals for two more people a couple of weeks ago. This is a crisis,” he said.

“How many more people have to die before B.C. gets a comprehensive poverty-reduction strategy?”

Victoria, as the seat of government, should not be the city with the highest death toll for homeless people, Tysick said.

“If this was any other demographic, our politicians would pay attention.”

Tysick wants to see more support for those in unsafe housing and more discussion about raising and restructuring assistance rates.

“I want to see jobs created, but jobs that pay enough so that moms don’t have to go to the food bank to eat,” he said.

Dix and Clark were not available to comment.

However, Victoria-Beacon Hill NDP candidate Carole James, who has previously gone out on Tysick’s early-morning rounds, said she believes that once the election is over, newly elected MLAs should either go out with Tysick or on the streets of their own communities.

“I don’t think it’s going to happen during the campaign, but I think it is a good idea,” she said.

“It’s an important invitation and it should be there for every elected politician.”

A poverty-reduction plan is part of the NDP platform, James said.

“It will have real targets and specific measurements and we will report out to the public,” said James, adding she’s a “huge supporter” of Tysick’s work.

“He’s one of the heroes of our community. It’s thankless work and he’s out there speaking to some of the most troubled and most challenged members of our community.”

A statement from Rich Coleman, minister responsible for housing and Liberal candidate in Fort Langley-Aldergrove, said the B.C. Liberals will continue to support initiatives that help reduce homelessness and poverty in Victoria.

Tysick said the morning rounds tell him who is in hospital, arrested or in crisis.

They also offer a hard look at the darker side of homelessness, he said.

“It makes you realize we’ve created some terrible conditions. Poverty becomes very real when you’ve seen its heart, its face.”

Children's services need long-term commitment from government

'It’s easy to say we care about children. But what’s needed today is action, not more words. Ask your local candidates to commit to adequate long-term funding for these vital services. Push the parties for specific answers about what they will do to ensure services for family and youth are available when and where they are needed.'

BY REBECCA ATAYA 

Most British Columbians would say they care about children.

Not just their own. We’ve agreed, as a society, that when children and youth need help, and their families can’t provide it, it’s up to us.

Sadly, we’re not doing a good enough job. This election campaign is an important chance to press all candidates and parties for specific commitments on services for children and youth.

The good news is that we know what needs to be done to help families and children through tough times. We know effective, timely supports can change lives — and avoid the huge future costs that come when problems are ignored.

But, we haven’t acted on that knowledge. This has been tragic for some children, families and communities; particularly when families are struggling to provide safe, appropriate care for their children, and the state steps in to protect and support those families.

Some families need help developing better parenting skills. Some have to face addiction problems. Children might need counselling, or treatment for behavioural issues. Many are struggling with the impacts of living in poverty, or parenting with a chronic health condition. The range of needed services is enormous.

The children’s ministry receives more than 30,000 “protection reports” a year — warnings that a child might be at risk of abuse or neglect. In the most extreme cases, children are taken into government care. Some 8,000 children are in care today.

Often ministry involvement is focused on linking families with help and support so they can be successful. And that support is provided by community social service agencies across the province.

Quick access to services can help families overcome problems, the ministry report notes, and “prevent families’ challenges from becoming entrenched.”

Those of us who work in the community social services sector are only too aware of the problems undermining that approach.

For many families, quick access to services is impossible. Funding for agencies has been frozen or cut, while demand for services has increased dramatically. Waiting lists have grown. Problems become more serious while desperate families can’t get the help they need.

That’s wrong. And it’s wasteful. As a society, we will pay far more in future because we aren’t providing needed support to children and families today.

We are failing in other ways. Parents know, for example, that their children need continued support as they grow into adulthood — help with school costs, a safe home, support and encouragement.

Yet youth in government care are denied that support. On their 19th birthdays, they are basically left to fend for themselves.

The results are predictable. The Ministry of Children and Family Development released a report this month that found almost half of youth who “aged out” of care were on income assistance within six months.

That’s a grim life, with an income of $610 to $906 a month. (The higher rate is for people with disabilities; a majority of youth leaving care qualify.)

Attending school, finding work and a place to live, staying healthy — they are all difficult, perhaps impossible, for an unsupported 19-year-old.

The ministry recognizes the problem, and is looking for ways to extend support. But it lacks a clear mandate, and the needed resources.

We know that small supports can encourage those youths to stay in school, help them find safe housing, provide life skills and prevent bad decisions.

So far, we haven’t acted.

Part of the problem is a fundamental misunderstanding. People tend to think government, especially the children’s ministry, delivers the needed services. And government does play a large role, particularly in areas like child protection.

However, community-based agencies and foster parents deliver many of these government-funded services.

People facing these kinds of problems tend not to be effective advocates. Their focus is on getting through the crisis. And there remains a stigma around the whole issue of struggling to provide adequate care for your children.

So it’s up to the rest of us. Ask your local candidates to commit to adequate long-term funding for these vital services. Push the parties for specific answers about what they will do to ensure services for family and youth are available when and where they are needed.

It’s easy to say we care about children. But what’s needed today is action, not more words.

Rebecca Ataya is the interim executive director of The Federation of Community Social Services of BC and is writing on behalf of The Roundtable of Provincial Social Services Organizations of BC. This article originally appeared in the Vancouver Sun.

Making the economic case for community social services

We know timely support saves lives and money. It’s much less costly to provide community services to help a senior stay in his or her home, for example, than it is to provide residential care.

But there are broader benefits. British Columbia competes in a global economy. And it can’t afford to waste the potential of any citizen.

“We help people and thus the province reach their full potential.  The next Tommy Douglas could be struggling with addiction; the child who could grow up to discover a cancer breakthrough could be facing serious family problems that mean she won’t succeed in school.  Our job is to help them live happy, fulfilling lives.  And as a result, everyone benefits.”

Please,get the word out before election day. Visit the Take Action! section to see how you can support the sector, and ensure a brighter future for families, individuals and the province.

Time to tackle the high cost of poverty in the province

BY MARJORIE MACDONALD, SCOTT MCDONALD AND VICTORIA LEE, THE VANCOUVER SUN  

We all know poverty results in suffering and puts innumerable pressures on families. That alone should be reason enough to do something about it.

But when you add costs directly attributable to the health problems suffered by disadvantaged British Columbians, it's clear poverty reduction is something we need to act on right now.

British Columbians understand this, and expect something to be done. With the provincial election underway, those seeking public office should be aware that research by Vision Critical reveals 81 per cent of British Columbians agree that our provincial leaders need to develop a poverty reduction plan.

Instead of pouring more dollars into the acute care system, more investment is needed to proactively address the root causes of poverty-driven ill health.

Research by the BC Healthy Living Alliance shows poverty is costly and bad for our health. When you divide British Columbians into five groups based on income, those in the lowest income group are two to three times as likely to suffer from heart disease. For diabetes, it's two to five times higher. And the number of expensive visits to the emergency department is nearly double compared to those British Columbians in the highest income group.

In all, close to $1.2 billion in health care costs would be saved each year if all disadvantaged British Columbians were as healthy as those with higher education and incomes. Any poverty reduction would be money well spent. Government can reverse the trend by providing more investment in quality child care, affordable housing and income security. Action in these areas would lift many individuals and families above the poverty line.

B.C. has the second highest rate of child poverty in Canada. So policies and investments that break that cycle should be a priority. Research spanning decades shows that quality child care leads to better outcomes for disadvantaged children. They are much more likely to stay in school longer and earn higher wages.

Affordable child care also allows families to raise their household incomes through work, education or training. Economists in Quebec calculate that increased tax revenues, largely from working mothers, have more than paid for their universal daycare system.

Secure housing also contributes to better health. Studies show it costs less to house our homeless population and improve their physical and mental wellbeing. Although some progress has been made in recent years, there remains a shortage. Demand for social housing is projected to require an estimated 56,600 additional units by 2036. One in six renters spends 50 per cent or more of their income on housing. Housing for those in low-paying jobs often comes at the expense of healthy food.

Reasonable rents reduce stress and provide a better chance families will have enough money left for groceries, utilities and other basics. And those unable to work should be assured income assistance that covers the costs of rental housing and a nutritious diet.

Income security measures are the ultimate stopgap and do make a difference. In the 1970s, Canada had one of the highest levels of seniors' poverty among industrialized nations but today we have one of the lowest. Seniors' real income increased by 18 per cent between 1980 and 2003 with the introduction of public pension benefits.

Implementing a poverty reduction plan will make a difference, but requires leadership and accountability. B.C. needs a plan with legislated targets, timelines, measurements and a designated minister.

B.C. could take a lesson from Newfoundland and Labrador. They had the worst poverty rate in Canada when Premier Danny Williams introduced a poverty reduction strategy. Between 2004 and 2010 they were able to reduce it 44 per cent, and are on track to reach their target of having the least poverty in Canada by 2014.

All of us are paying a high premium for poverty. Those running for office on May 14 should put that money to better use and invest in prevention.

Dr. Marjorie MacDonald is president, Public Health Association of BC; Scott McDonald is chairman, BC Healthy Living Alliance; and Dr. Victoria Lee is chairwoman, Health Officers Council of British Columbia.

Three weeks until election day - and for you to act

Election campaigns are actually quite short. In just three, weeks, British Columbians will be voting to elect a government to guide the province for four years.

If you care about community social services, and believe the sector deserves attention, you have to act fast.

The Take Action! page above offers great tips and contact information to help you write letters to candidates and newspapers setting out your concerns.

The best letters are based on your experiences. But here’s another point that could you could use in discussing the sector.

"Helping families and individuals before things go wrong is a great investment.  Providing counselling and support for a teen experimenting with drugs and her family costs a few thousand dollars.  If help isn’t available, and she becomes an addict, then police, health care, crime and other costs can quickly top $100,000.  Supporting senior couples in their homes is a fraction of the cost of long-term care at $72,000 per year."

The election campaign is underway. You can be a bystander, or a participant. The sector - and the families, children and youth and individuals it supports - needs participants.

Election 2013: How to be a participant, not a bystander

Interested in writing a letter to the editor or to your local candidate about the importance of community social services, but not sure where to start?

The Take Action! page above offers great tips and contact information for candidates and newspapers.

The best letters are based on your experiences. But here’s help in explaining what the sector does, and why it matters.

 “We are the people and agencies who provide help when individuals and families are in need.  We work with children and families in crisis, help people find jobs, counsel families dealing with addiction, work with moms and dads to be the best parents possible and help seniors stay in their homes.  We work with some 320,000 people every year, helping them deal with life’s tough problems.  Wherever there’s a need for help, we’re likely there, building stronger families, communities and a better B.C.”

The election campaign officially starts today. You can be a bystander, or a participant. The sector - and the families, children and youth and individuals it supports - needs participants.

Targeted support services can help cut costly use of homeless shelters

‘Our findings suggest that housing and support services targeting the episodic and long stay users are likely to be the most efficient strategy for reducing the shelter population in Canadian cities.’

By Tim Aubry

Twenty years ago, Randy Kuhn and Dennis Culhane published the results of a groundbreaking study in the American Journal of Community Psychology showing that over 80% of people who use emergency shelters in large American cities experienced homelessness for short periods of time and most frequently as a one-time event in their lives. In contrast, a relatively small minority demonstrated a cyclical use of shelters with multiple episodes for short periods of time or a small number of stays but for long periods of time. Although these latter two groups were relatively small making up 10% each of the shelter population, they were shown to occupy over 60% of the shelter beds.

Recently, I collaborated with a group of colleagues (Susan Farrell, Stephen Hwang, and Melissa Calhoun) from the University of Ottawa and St. Michaels Hospital on a study that evaluated four years of shelter data from three Canadian cities of different sizes, namely Toronto, Ottawa, and Guelph (this study replicated the analyses of the influential Kuhn and Culhane study). In line with the results of the American study, our research identified three distinct and similar patterns of shelter stays in the three Ontario cities.

The largest group of shelter users, characterized as “temporary”, experienced a small number of homeless episodes for relatively short periods of time. This group comprised 88% of shelter users in both Toronto and Ottawa. We also found a smaller group of users that we defined as having “episodic” shelter use, who experienced multiple homeless episodes for short periods of time. This group represented 11% and 9% of shelter users in Toronto and Ottawa respectively. Finally, the smallest group of shelter users, representing 4% of shelter users in Toronto and 2% in Ottawa, had a relatively small number of homeless episodes but for long periods of time.

The two smaller groups of shelter users occupied over one half of the shelter beds in both Toronto and Ottawa. Similar to the American research, our findings suggest that housing and support services targeting the episodic and long stay users are likely to be the most efficient strategy for reducing the shelter population in Canadian cities. A paper on the findings of our research has been published in Housing Studies. The paper is available online here.

Biggest seniors' group backs community services

COSCO, the largest federation of seniors’ organizations in British Columbia, has released a special edition of its newsletter raising issues for all parties in the provincial election to address.

It includes a strong call for well-supported community-based services.

“COSCO is calling for univer-sal home care and home support services, based on need, available seven days a week to seniors and people with disabilities,” the report says.

“Such a service would make it possible for thousands of seniors to live with dignity and respect in their own homes, at a much lower cost than acute or residential care. It would strengthen our overall public health care system by re-ducing the pressure on acute care hospitals.

“As a matter of both human decency and common sense economics, providing universal home sup- port so people can remain in their own homes must be a priority for the next government of our province.”

Read the full report here.

And if you agree about the importance of community services - for seniors, families, youths and everyone - check our Take Action! page and become a participant in this election, not a bystander.

Aging Out': Tough road for teens too old to be 'in care'

You're 19, officially an adult. Happy birthday. Now get out of the house.

As parents, few of us would take such a brutal approach. Yet in our role as citizens that is exactly the style we adopt toward teenagers ‘in care’ of the Crown -- for whom the government is, institutionally speaking, their legal ‘parent.'

An excellent report by Pieta Woolley, on the lack of support for youth in care who “age out.” You can read the rest here.

The community social sector could help these youths make the transition into adulthood successfully, with the kinds of supports all young people need and deserve.

Let the candidates in this election know you think it’s important.

StatsCan confirms community services help seniors, save society money

Carol Matusicky

It’s not just right. Helping seniors to stay healthy and in their homes is smart and saves money.

That’s what we do in the community social services sector.

Across the province, agencies provide older British Columbians with support, from cleaning services to food deliveries to meals.

What if we didn’t?

Statistics Canada just provided some answers.

It reported that 34 per cent of Canadians over 65 - one in three - are at risk of malnutrition.

There are many reasons. For some, mobility issues make shopping or cooking difficult. Physical issues, like difficulty in swallowing, are factors, as are emotional issues like depression and loneliness.

And, of course, there is poverty.

Whatever the reasons, the results can be disastrous for the seniors, and enormously costly for society.

The StatsCan study noted “frailty, falls, hospitalization, institutionalization and death” are among the consequences.

Tragic for the people involved.

And damaging for the province. If a poorly nourished senior falls, or becomes ill, and requires an acute care hospital bed, the cost is $1,100 a day. If the person ends up in residential care, the cost could be $200 a day.

But a help with shopping, or a home visit with meals, costs perhaps $15 a day - and provides a better, happier life.

Many, many seniors are supported by family, or neighbours, or friends. We applaud that kind of caring, and the practical and emotional support it provides.

But it’s not there for everyone. In today’s society, children could be thousands of miles away. Seniors could have retired to a new centre where they have few connections. The death of a spouse, loss of a driver’s licence, illness all can bring unforeseen changes.

That’s why community services are critical in providing support when people need it.

It’s strange that we never doubt the need for hospital emergency room services. 

It should be just as essential to provide the services that keep people from needing to take that frightening ambulance ride to the ER after a fall, or when they become ill. That keep them from  occupying an acute-care bed when they should be at home.

Prevention is better, and cheaper, than dealing with the consequences of avoidable problems.

And, as StatsCan reports, “the absence of help with shopping and cooking” is among the contributors to the risk of malnutrition and the resulting serious risks.

It’s not just shopping and meal services that make a difference. Our agencies offer cleaning support, activities and outings, help with getting to doctors’ appointments - all things that keep seniors healthy, active and thriving.

At the same time, our frontline workers fill another role. It’s easy, as the study suggests, for the elderly to slip into loneliness or depression. Simply having guaranteed regular contact with a caring person makes a difference in the quality of life.

We need to talk about the importance of these issues in the coming election campaign. Waiting lists for these kinds of services have increased as funding has been frozen and even cut for years. 

Agencies have found ways to do more with less. But the system is in crisis. 

We need to need to let politicians and parties know that support for the sector, and a long-term commitment, is essential for the future of seniors, families and the province.

And they need to tell us that they understand, and that if elected they will deliver.

Carol Matusicky is the chair of Board Voice Society of BC, an organization reflecting the views of hundreds of Community social service boards of directors across the province.

People with disabilities also mobilizing for election

New laws, restoring cuts to community living on their agenda.

By Tom Sandborn

TheTyee.ca

Cathy Grant, born with cerebral palsy and confined to a motorized wheel chair, is determined to make her mark on B.C.'s fast nearing provincial election. The 54-year-old Vancouver resident told The Tyee she is pouring her efforts in fighting cuts to community living programs and supporting a pair of proposed new legal reforms. 

Many other B.C. citizens who, like Grant, live with disabilities, and their family members and advocates are mobilizing to affect the outcome of the May vote and make a better deal for British Columbians living with disabilities.

Kimberly Yanko's son Daniel lives with an as yet undiagnosed developmental disability that confines him to a wheel chair. Yanko says that Daniel, 22, is getting "hardly anything" from government programs since he came of age. 

"I worry what will happen to him when I am dead and gone," says the activist mother. She is part of a group of parents who call themselves CLBC Stop the Cuts. CLBC stands for Community Living BC, the Crown agency that delivers support and services to British Columbians with disabilities and their families.

On April 14, Yanko, Grant and others will gather at noon in Vancouver's Robson Square to protest items in next year's announced provincial budget that will cut funding for CLBC dramatically.

Read more here.

Writing letters to the editor: Learning from the pros

With less than two months until the election, the community social services sector needs to make its case to politicians and the public.

We know that the sector is in crisis, and children, youth, seniors, families, people with disabilities and others are being hurt as a result.

One good way to raise the issues is through letters to the editor. They’re easy to write, newspapers want them and they reach a lot of people. And at least some of those people will contact candidates to share your concerns.

The best letters are from the heart, and about your experiences. The posts on this blog might suggest topics, and provide facts to support your arguments,

And it’s easy to learn from the experts.

The political parties have guides to writing letters to the editors on their websites, and email addresses for newspapers across the province. 

And the BC Healthy Living Alliance has a useful list of letters to the editor email addresses here.

Write one today.

Even if plans for children in care were in place, services aren't there

"If those services don’t exist, or there are huge waiting lists, those plans are just pieces of paper in ministry filing cabinets."

It is, sadly, not surprising the provincial government is failing some 4,500 children in long-term care.

The latest audit by the Representative for Children and Youth found just five out of 100 children had plans of care that met the ministry’s requirements.

Plans of care are critical documents. Parents know their own children - their strengths and weaknesses, the areas where they need help, when it’s time to go to a dentist.

But children and youth in the government’s care routinely move through a succession of foster homes. Frontline workers are responsible for some 30 individuals.

Without a written plan of care, regularly updated with the participation of the youth and others, there is a real risk that children will fall through the cracks. They won’t get help or opportunities, and small problems will fester.

This isn’t a new, surprising program. It has existed since the ministry for children and families was created 17 years ago.

It is a critical failure. The government has acknowledged that and committed to improvements, including more funding as it is required.

Fixing the planning process is essential to identify the services and support children and youth need - from social workers, foster parents, schools, health professionals.

But if those services don’t exist, or there are huge waiting lists, those plans are just pieces of paper in ministry filing cabinets.

The community social services sector delivers many of those services and supports, through private and non-profit agencies across the province.

And today, the sector is in crisis. Underfunding and freezes have left agencies unable to meet even critical needs. 

That’s why anyone concerned for the future of children and youth, families, seniors and so many others who need a little help should be working to make support for the sector an issue in this election.

Conservative election platform shows big work ahead for sector

Mamie Hutt-Temoana

The BC Conservatives released their election platform today, the first party to reveal its plans if elected.

It’s a good reminder of the big job facing those who believe the community social services sector and the difference it makes in so many lives - and in the future of the province.

The Conservative platform is 24 pages long, and detailed in many areas. There are plans for budgeting and incomes and health and education.

But there is nothing about providing people in communities with the help and support they need.

The closest the platform comes even to acknowledging the sector are these two paragraphs.

“Strong and loving families are the bedrock of our communities – and are deserving of support from society and government,” says the platform. “We believe in a strong social-safety net for those who truly need assistance, and at the same time we encourage individuals to be productive and self- sufficient.”

Draw two conclusions from the platform’s lack of any plans for the sector or improving supports for seniors, children, families, people with disabilities - the some 320,000 people who will need help in any given year, even if briefly.

First, the sector has failed to make the case to the Conservatives - the party and the candidates - that its work is important. That every $1 invested in early child development brings $3 to $18 in benefits later in life, or that home care support costs 25% to 60% less than residential care. 

The platform, for example, calls for more spending on the justice system. But it does not recognize that our sector, working with youth at risk or dealing with addiction, keeps people out of the system, while making communities safer. Or that it costs $215,000 to keep a youth in custody, versus $20,000 to support them in the community.

And second, the sector and its supporters have failed to demonstrate to the Conservatives that this is an issue that matters to voters.

There is no reason to single the Conservatives out. We don’t yet know if three other main parties will address the sector’s importance, and its challenges, in their platforms.

But it’s a reminder that the elections is two months away.

The sector and its supporters need to use that time to ensure that all parties and candidates understands its importance and the issue it now faces.

That takes action. 

Write the parties, and your local candidates, and share facts about the sector and the support you are seeking. (This blog and the Community Counts Facebook page are good resources. The Tyee election website has contact information for local candidates.)

Write letters to the editor to make the same points.

Attend candidates’ forums, and speak to friends and neighbours.

So far, we haven’t done a good enough job of getting our message out.

That needs to change.

Mamie Hutt-Temoana is the executive director of the Association of Neighbourhood Houses of BC. 

Questions for candidates on support for seniors in our communities

The CCPA has a useful fact sheet on health care and community supports for seniors here.

Even more useful, it offers suggested questions citizens can put to all candidates and political parties on the issue.

It’s good to understand issues. It is better to act to make things better.

And that can be as easy as writing to candidates and parties and letting them know that why community social services - like support for seniors - matter. Or asking questions like the ones raised by the CCPA, either in letters to candidates or newspapers or at all-candidates forums and meetings.

Candidates and parties respond to issues that matter to the public. They need to hear the sectors’ concerns.

The Tyee has a good election site that includes contact information for many local candidates, so it’s easy to let them know why the issues are important. Party websites also have contact information.

And this blog and the Community Counts Facebook page are great sources of information.

Use them. Act.

How community services save money, not just lives

Supporting community social services is a matter of both decency and dollars and sense.

As the article below illustrates, services that provide meals and food to those in dire need result in a dramatic reduction in 911 calls. 

That means big savings. Kelowna RCMP estimate the basic cost of responding to a 911 call at $200. If the situation is complex, or fire and paramedics also respond, costs quickly soar.

In addition, the call can result in incarceration or a trip to the emergency ward, adding thousands of dollars more.

Providing support isn’t just the right to do.

It’s the smart thing to do.

Make sure the political parties and your local candidates understand and support the value of community social services in B.C.

And check here for information on how to let them know how you feel.

How a decent meals can keep people from brink

Research on people with mental illnesses in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside links better nutrition to fewer 911 calls.

By Colleen Kimmett

TheTyee.ca

On an empty stomach it's easy to find fault with my fellow transit passengers, even the littlest ones. I'm sitting on the 99 B-line trying not to openly scowl at a toddler who is planted on his mother's lap gnawing at a cracker. His chin is shiny with saliva, and soggy crumbs stick to his fat cheeks. Gross. I look away in disgust as his mom lovingly strokes his hair.

Karen Cooper

By the time I arrive at my destination -- a café in Kitsilano -- and wolf down a croissant, I'm feeling much better about the world. It's an appropriate start to my interview with Karen Cooper, who can relate to the anecdote.

Cooper, a professor at Corpus Christi (a small Catholic college on the grounds of UBC) understands well what happens to most people's thought patterns when they are deprived of glucose. For the past five years, she has been poring over scientific literature on the relationship between nutrition and mental health and conducting her own original field research in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.

Cooper is trying to quantify what most working and living in the neighbourhood already know: food, or lack thereof, has a big impact on people's moods and behaviour.

And she's found a novel way to measure this: by looking at the number of 911 calls to the neighbourhood's single-resident occupancy (SRO) buildings, before and after the introduction of meal programs.

Her research so far, she says, indicates that "Basically, anytime anyone introduces food, you get this enormous decrease in 911 calls, police fire and ambulance."

How much of a decrease? Although Cooper says she hasn't completely finished crunching and analyzing her data, conservatively, she says, the average drop in the total number of critical incidents involving all services (police, fire and ambulance) fell between 25 and 33 per cent across the residences she looked at. That's between a period several months before the introduction of meals on site, and a period 18 months to two years later. Police calls alone saw a drop of between 40 and 50 per cent, says Cooper.

Cooper looked at seven residences in total, and warns me that she needs to collect data from more in order to make her findings statistically relevant in an academic context.

"Having said that, I feel all the time like I'm trying to prove the obvious," she says. "Which is, if you don't feed people, bad things happen. If you don't feed mentally-unwell, addicted and often physically-unwell people, even worse things happen."

Read the rest here.

Child care advocates take election initiative

A good story from The Tyee on the Coalition of Child Care Advocate's plan to use the election to get action - or at least commitments - on better public child care.

And a lesson for the community social services sector and its supporters.

Politicians and parties respond to issue that they believe matter to voters.

And silence from the sector signals that its issues - underfunding, waiting lists, service shortages - don't matter.

Act - write letters, attend forums, follow the Community Counts Twitter feed (@communityvote) and like the Facebook page. Share the posts and tweets. And encourage anyone you know to do the same.

There less than nine weeks until election day on May 14.

Less than nine weeks for you to help create a better future for community social services and the province.

B.C. child-care advocates say sector in crisis

By YOLANDE COLE

Sharon Gregson has observed firsthand some of the challenges facing parents with young children, and early childhood educators in B.C.

Common situations that the long-time child-care advocate, who’s the director of child and family development services at Collingwood Neighbourhood House, has seen include families being forced to leave licensed daycares because they can’t afford the fees, and early childhood educators leaving the field because they are still making $16 an hour after more than a decade of work.

Sharon Gregson: Election initiative

It’s a reality that Gregson says is only getting worse, as costs continue to increase each year. And with the provincial election approaching, advocates are ramping up their campaign for politicians to address the issue.

“The biggest crisis for families with young children at the moment is childcare, and so that needs to be front and centre,” Gregson told the Georgia Straight by phone.

As a spokesperson for the Coalition of Child Care Advocates of B.C., Gregson is at the forefront of calls for a publicly funded child-care system that would cost parents $10 a day. Since the coalition, along with the Early Childhood Educators of B.C., released the $10-a-day proposal in 2011, Gregson said it has “taken off like a house on fire”. Supporters include labour organizations, more than 15 municipalities, and over a dozen school districts.

“What this has done now is increased expectations that it is going to be an election issue, and that the NDP has to put something better on the table than the Liberals have in their budget/election platform,” Gregson said. “And the message to those people who want to be elected in May is that if you commit to the goals of the $10-a-day plan, you’ll garner votes, and if you’re silent on it or ignore it, then you’ll lose votes.”

Read more here.