Good afternoon, Chair and members of the Committee. My name is John Campey, Executive Director of Social Planning Toronto, a non-profit organization engaged in independent social planning, community research and policy analysis. I am also speaking on behalf of the Social Planning Network of Ontario, representing the fifteen Social Planning Councils from across the Province of Ontario.

As an organization committed to social and economic justice and equity, we would like to endorse the Worker’s Action Centre’s submission on Bill 18, the Strong Workplaces for Stronger Economy Act. We are very pleased that you have brought to the table the need for better protections for workers. We strongly support the several amendments to the Bill proposed by the Workers’ Action Centre, and would like to talk specifically about two of them.

SPT has produced 22 fact sheets ahead of the upcoming Municipal Election. These sheets provide an introduction and analysis of important city-wide issues and include questions to candidates and links to further resources for residents.

Seven most important fact sheets have been translated into 13 languages by SPT partners and other community organizations. You can view these fact sheets by visiting our election website at www.election2014.ca, “Fact Sheets” section.

(For direct link to this section, click http://election2014.ca/?page_id=275)

Please use these resources and share them with your friends, colleagues and community members.

SPT would like to thank the following organizations for translating the fact sheets:

• Chinese Canadian National Council –Toronto Chapter
• Council of Agencies Serving South Asians
• African Canadian Social Development Council
• West Neighbourhood House
• Multilingual Community Interpreter Services

A team of SPT staff and volunteers have developed summarized versions of comprehensive survey responses fromcandidates. These summaries provide a quick overview of candidates’ views, positions and policies on many important city-wide issues. Residents now have the convenience of comparing the positions and views of several mayoral candidates as well as City Council and Toronto District School Board (TDSB) candidates running in their ward.

You can view these summary sheets by visiting our election website at www.election2014.ca. For a direct link, please click here.

Please read these summary sheets, share them, and don’t forget to vote on Monday, October 27th!

Monday, October 6
1-3 PM
Toronto City Hall
Members' Lounge

Celebrate the important work of the nonprofit community sector, and the vital role that the City of Toronto plays in this work!

• Meet and greet with community and sector leaders, and candidates for City Council
• Report release: "Building Toronto, Creating Community: The City of Toronto's Investment in Nonprofit Community Services"
• Our stories: Impact of community services in neighbourhoods across Toronto
• Lessons from the arts community
• "My First Time" video showcase
• "Community Services: Building Toronto" campaign launch

Organized by Commitment to Community & Social Planning Toronto

REGISTER: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/community-services-day-tickets-13283887465

Contact: Mary Micallef at 416-351-0095 x251 or [email protected]

Download flyer here

Toronto the Good party, held annually by fellow architects, designers and artists each year, took place at the Fermenting Cellar in the Distillery District on September 11 to bring together about 700 people to mingle with the Toronto mayoral candidates. Social Planning Toronto, along with other community organizations promoting civic engagement ahead of the October 27th municipal election, hosted a table and introduced participants and candidates to its work on civic engagement and community research. Fact sheets on important City services and flyers on most recent research projects by Social Planning Toronto were distributed to participants.

IMPORTANT - CHANGE OF VENUE:  Due to overwhelming demand, we have relocated this event to a larger venue.  The forum will take place at College Street United Church, 452 College Street (corner of College and Bathurst).

Join us on Tuesday, February 11 from 9:30 a.m. to noon for an SPT Research and Policy Forum - Social Impact Bonds: The Future of Non-Profit Funding?

Speakers:

Social Planning Toronto
2013 Frances Lankin
Community Services Award

 Social Planning Toronto is pleased to announce that the Frances Lankin Community Service Awards for 2013 will be presented to Rob Howarth, and posthumously to Colin Hughes and Charlotte Maher. 

 Rob Howarth

growing income gap and the missing middle in
Scarborough
community forum

Wednesday December 5
6:00pm – 9:00pm
University of Toronto –
Scarborough Campus
(1265 Military Trail)
Instructional Centre
Room: IC 230

Everywhere we look we see the encroachments on the hard work that we have done over the last decade to help improve community access to space. We are disturbed to hear new stories about fee increases and public buildings that are erecting barriers to access. At the same time we are inundated with concerns around violence, obesity rates and mental health.

How do we unite these conversations and get key decision-makers on board to protect and properly fund access to public space - so essential to the offering of community programming?

SPT and community partners are calling on Toronto City Council to save the City’s Hardship Fund – a program that offsets emergency medical costs for low income seniors, particularly senior women, and people with disabilities who have no access to provincial support.  At its September meeting, City Council narrowly voted down a motion to spare the Hardship Fund from elimination in the 2012/13 budget, with 22 Councillors voting in favour of saving the fund and 23 voting to consider eliminating it in the upcoming budget.  In 2010, the Hardship Fund cost the average property taxpayer just sixty cents on an annual property tax bill of about $2,400.

How did your Councillor vote?