The Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) is developing a service framework to better support children and youth with special needs (CYSN) and their families. The framework will guide how the ministry provides and funds CYSN programs and services ready for implementation in April 2020.

We understand that the service framework cannot be created in isolation and want to capture the experience of families and service providers as they support these children and youth. The ministry is working with two research firms to identify opportunities to improve access, quality and coordination of CYSN services and programs:

• For community workshops and surveys for Indigenous families: Reciprocal Consulting
• For community workshops and surveys for families, including but not limited to Indigenous families and communities, and gathering information to help the ministry better understand the current state of CYSN services, click here for KPMG Survey.

This research will inform the service framework and support continuous improvement, and is not evaluating programs and services. Rather, KPMG and Reciprocal are focused on gathering information to help us better understand the landscape of the current service delivery system.

There will be sessions within communities throughout the province and an opportunity to provide insight into CYSN programs through service participant and a provider surveys. Links for these opportunities are embedded in the attached invitations.  The ministry would appreciate your assistance in sharing the attached invitations from Reciprocal Consulting and KPMG with your networks. These invitations provide information on the research and stakeholder participation and engagement opportunities throughout the province.

We are very grateful for community members participating in these research projects and encourage families and service providers delivering MCFD-funded CYSN services to participate in the survey. To find out more about this project, opportunities to get involved and the CYSN Service Framework that is under development, visit the Ministry’s Special Needs webpage.

If you have any questions about this research or the CYSN Service Framework, please contact us MCF.ChildrenYouthSpecialNeeds@gov.bc.ca.