2024 Year in Review

Please note there are hyperlinks in this post

The year 2024 has been behind us for a few months now and just realized that we've been remiss in recapping all that we've done. The past year was full of both challenges and accomplishments.

While COVID has caused us to reset without a physical space, we remain dedicated to delivering respectful and effective supports to community members in an inclusive, non-judgmental environment that is LGBTQI2+ safe. We are also determined to continue our advocacy efforts and amplifying the issues that disabled / neurodivergent individuals and their families face.

So much work still needs to be done to make Ontario inclusive and accessible for all. We will continue to provide guidance and information to families; as well as push the government for systemic changes to the Ontario Autism Program (OAP), education, and ODSP.

A Year in Review

(1) Advocacy

In 2024, Balance SSCS actively engaged with MPPs and MCSSS staff (notably Assistant Deputy Minister Jennifer Morris, Director Sarah Hardy and Senior Policy Advisor Raymond Dell’Aera) to discuss ways to improve the OAP and draw attention to the lack of supports that other disabled / neurodivergent children face. We also had the pleasure of meeting Minister Michael Parsa twice at Queen's Park to share both our policy briefs and lived-in experience with accessing provincial autism supports for our children.

(2) Press Releases

February 2024 Our Statement Regarding the Student Elopement Incident at DDSB

April 2024 Our Response to the Ontario 2024 Budget

June 2024 Our Statement Regarding the Passing of Landyn Ferris

June 2024 A Follow Up to Our Statement Regarding the Passing of Trenton High School Student Landyn Ferris

June 2024 Statement Regarding the New Ontario Minister of Education Todd Smith

August 2024 Our Statement Regarding the New Ontario Minister of Education Jill Dunlop

November 2024 Our Statement Regarding the Government's Plan to Increase Core Service Capacity

(3) Community Engagement and Outreach

Balance SSCS reaches out to the community via our social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram. A few months ago, we made the move from X (formerly Twitter) and joined Bluesky. Our blog remains a place to access valuable resources about the OAP, community supports and education. We will endeavor to create content that is informative and relevant to families of autistic and neurodivergent individuals.

A monthly donation from Melaleuca helps with our operating and advocacy expenses. We continue to fundraise through Mabel's Labels and the sale of our two books - Colour Me Calm and Life: All the Details

Looking Ahead

While the OAP is an improvement over the previous program, there are still areas for improvement. We will meet with the government to provide feedback and recommendations. We will also continue to advocate for neurodivergent and disabled children/youths who don't have access to a comparable program like the OAP. An Ontario Disability Program (ODP) that provides supports for ALL disabilities is long overdue. Having a "needs based" program for just one diagnosis is discrimination. There is no reason why this province can't have an ODP that meets the needs of children and youths of all disabilities.

We also aim to bring awareness to the shortcomings other government programs such School Based Rehabilitation Services (SBRS) and Special Services At Home (SSAH).

Disabled and neurodivergent adults in Ontario continue to be forgotten.  It is inhumane to keep ODSP recipients in poverty. Balance SSCS will continue to push the government to provide the supports and services that they need.

We will also continue to advocate for a complete overhaul to Ontario's public education system. So much needs to change to make schools inclusive, accessible and neuro-affirming.

In addition to our advocacy efforts, Balance SSCS is committed to providing information and guidance to families navigating the system for their autistic/ND and disabled loved ones. We're currently working with an SLP to create some programming. We will continue to will explore partnerships with other organizations / not-for-profits dedicated to supporting individuals with diverse needs.

To our volunteers, members and friends - thank you. There are no words that can describe our gratitude for your continued support. With your allyship, we will continue to raise your voices, share our stories and strive for change.