On Tuesday, February 7, Ontario Campaign 2000 presented its recommendations at the Ontario 2017 pre-budget consultation held in Markham Ontario.

The 2017 Ontario budget is an important opportunity for the province to provide sufficient and sustainable funding to a variety of key areas to end poverty in the province. Child and family poverty continues to be a serious problem in Ontario. The latest tax filer data show 18.8% of children under the age of 18, and 20.4% of children under the age of 6 live in poverty in Ontario according to the Low Income Measure After Tax (LIM-AT). With the increasing costs of housing, child care, hydro, and other necessities, and the increasing precarity of employment in the province (with the growth of part-time, contract, temporary, and shift work with low wages and few or no benefits), effective policy changes coupled with sufficient and sustainable funding are needed to ensure no child and family in Ontario live in poverty.

Read Pre-Budget Submission to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs.

Ontario Campaign 2000 releases its 2016 annual Report Card on Child and Family Poverty on Thursday, November 24 at Queen’s Park, Toronto.  2016 marks the half-way point in Ontario’s second Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS). While small steps have been taken to address child and family poverty in the province, greater action is needed to achieve the goals set out in the PRS.

Ontario children continue to face high rates of poverty. Our 2016 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty “The Time To Act Is Now: Ontario Children Can’t Wait” reports one in six (18.8%) children under 18 and one in five (20.4%) children under six in Ontario live in poverty in the province. Read our media release in full, in English or French.

On the same day, Campaign 2000 releases its national report card along with report cards from several Campaign 2000 provincial partners in Vancouver, British Columbia; Regina, Saskatoon; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Saint John, New Brunswick; and Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.

Please click on the following links to read and download the press releases, infographic and new report cards:

Ontario Report Card on Child and Family Poverty, 2016, in English and French
Ontario Report Card on Child and Family Poverty, 2016 press release in English and French
Ontario Campaign 2000 shareable infographic

For the national report card or other provincial report cards, please visit Campaign 2000 website

Ontario Campaign 2000 will release its annual provincial Report Card on Child and Family Poverty on Thursday, November 24 in Toronto. The report, THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW: Ontario Children Can’t Wait, will be launched at the Turning The Tide Against Poverty Event (an event hosted by ISARC-Interfaith Social Assistance Reform Coalition).

Presentation will be at 1:15p.m., interviews will be available between 12:30 p.m.-1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m.- 2 p.m.

Read media advisory in English and French.

On November 24, 2016, Ontario Campaign 2000 will release its 2016 Annual Report Card on Child and Family poverty in Ontario at an event in Queen’s Park, Toronto.

On the same day, several provinces and the national Campaign 2000 office will also release their annual report cards.  The national report card release will take place in Ottawa.  The other provincial report cards will be released simultaneously in capitals across the country in BC, SK, MB, NB, NS and PE.

Stay tuned for all the related info and all the new report cards.

Toronto continues to be the child poverty capital of Canada: it has the highest rate of low-income children among large urban centres according to the Toronto Child and Poverty Report Divided City: Life in Canada’s Child Poverty Capital. The report was co-released Nov. 14 by Children’s Aid Society of Toronto, Family Service Toronto (Ontario Campaign 2000), Social Planning Toronto, and Colour of Poverty-Colour of Change.

The report draws from new data to update the 2014 report, The Hidden Epidemic: A Report on Child and Family Poverty in Toronto and it describes the level – and unequal distribution – of poverty and its effect on children and families in Toronto.

Just as the Toronto City Council is considering cutting up to $600 million in spending on City-funded programs and services, the report reminds us that 27 per cent of Toronto children were living in low-income families in 2014, topping the list above Montreal (25 per cent), Winnipeg (24 per cent ) and all other urban areas with over 500,000 residents.

The report found huge neighbourhood disparities in child poverty levels, which reflect other inequities. For example, racialized families, new immigrant families, lone parent families and families with disabilities are up to three times more at risk of living in poverty. “When you cross Laird Avenue to go from Leaside to Thorncliffe, the rate of child poverty rate increases from 4 to 52 per cent” said Jessica Mustachi of Family Service Toronto. “This divide shows how we can and must do more to provide quality services to support low-income residents.”

The report also found that low-income children are struggling to succeed: children in schools in low-income neighbourhoods are less likely to be meeting provincial standards in Grade 3 math, reading and writing than children in higher-income schools.

Read Full Report and see Jessica on Global News at 5:30 pm on November 14.

Read Toronto Star article: Kids suffer most as Toronto clings to title of child poverty capital.

Campaign 2000 is endorsing the National Housing Day of Action on Nov. 18 – an initiative of The Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario (ACTO).

In 2015, an estimated 235,000 people experienced homelessness across Canada (with one in every seven shelter users being a child). Over 730,000 renter households spent more than 50% of their income on rent putting them at risk of homelessness. In its 2015 Annual Report Card, C2000 urged the government to develop a  comprehensive national housing strategy reflective of the needs of local communities and First Nations in partnership with provinces, territories, municipalities, First Nations, the non-profit sector and the private sector.

The Canadian government has promised to fix the affordable housing crisis with Canada’s first ever National Housing Strategy to be announced on Nov. 22.

ACTO is organizing a Toronto march for the right to housing on Nov. 18, 12 p.m. at Queen’s Park to ensure our National Housing Strategy will guarantee everyone the right to safe, adequate, and affordable housing.

Find out more about the event and register now.

As children and youth prepare for back to school, families with low income face the anxiety of affording new school supplies and clothing on top of ongoing struggles to put food on the table and provide other necessities.

Ontario Campaign 2000’s 2015 Report Card update, “Let’s Do This: Let’s End Child Poverty For Good” finds that one in five children under 18 and 15.4% of families with children live in poverty in Ontario. Despite recent policy changes and benefits many families with children are still struggling.

The report urges the Ontario government to implement concrete policy changes to assist families out of poverty. Eradicating child and family poverty is possible and the government must act to assist families in securing safe and affordable housing, obtaining good jobs access affordable high quality child care.

Have you experienced living in poverty?
Are you a parent, or guardian?
Are you interested in helping to end child and family poverty in Ontario?

Ontario Campaign 2000 is creating a Parent Advisory Committee to help guide the Coalition in ending child and family poverty in the province and is looking for parent and/or guardian volunteers from across the province to join the committee.

We are looking for parent advocates to create an ongoing space for self-advocacy and involvement and assist with campaign ideas and events. Ontario Campaign 2000 recognizes that many parents across the province have contributed to their families and communities in various ways and have utilized their strengths, strong voices, and ideas in advocacy work to end child and family poverty.

It is our hope that the Parent Advisory Committee will assist and guide Ontario Campaign 2000 in advocating for concrete changes to end child and family poverty in Ontario.

If you are interested please contact us by: August 2, 2016
Email: [email protected] or Call: 416-595-9230 ext. 241

Visit our website for more general information about our work: https://ontariocampaign2000.ca/

 

Ontario’s most vulnerable children will receive a gift from the province this Canada Day. Starting tomorrow, children and families in Ontario will see a significant boost in their incomes, as the provincial government confirmed that children who live in families on social assistance will receive the full benefit of the new Canada Child Benefit (CCB). Ontario Campaign 2000 commends this move by the provincial government and believes this is an important step forward to lift families on social assistance out of poverty and end child poverty in Ontario. Read full media release