Conference on National Disability Strategies
December 10, 2010
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The BC Context
The Disability Strategy
o  Vision
o  Areas of Focus
Measuring Success
Progress
Next Steps
Innovation
o  Government
o  CLBC
o  Community
BC as a Learning Organization
Reflections
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Rick Hansen
Terry Fox
Sam Sullivan
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Federal government responsibilities:
◦  Disability Benefits (Canada Pension Plan, Registered Disability Savings Plan,
Disability Tax Credit, Old Age Supplement/Guaranteed Income
Supplement)
◦  Employment Insurance Benefits (including medical)
◦  Non-Insured Health Benefits (for ‘Status Indian’ people)
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Provincial government responsibilities:
Disability Assistance (income support and health supplements)
Employment programming
Provision of equipment and assistive devices
Health care (acute care and home/community care)
Services for adults with developmental disabilities (CLBC)
Services for children with disabilities
Tax benefit programs (Motor Fuel Tax Refund,
Property Tax Deferment, Home Owner Grant)
◦  Other benefits (ICBC, WorkSafe, Victims of
Crime Assistance)
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More than 712,000 British Columbians have a disability
(16% of the population).
◦  Over 300,000 adults need assistive aids and devices
  37.7% have an unmet need
◦  Over 400,000 adults need help with everyday activities
  43.5% have an unmet need
◦  56% are employed (compared to 72% of the general population
◦  20% of working age people (18-64) receive provincial income
assistance
Total by Age
Children
Adults (19-64)
Seniors
Total
Total with
Disability
Percent with
Disability
921,940
41,000
4%
2,823,260
378,000
13%
636,400
293,000
46%
4,381,600
712,000
16%
Data from the 2006 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (Statistics
Canada), adjusted by age and population growth to July 2008.
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Vancouver Island
Health Authority
Representative for
Children and Youth
Community
Living BC
MPSSG
MARR
MCS
MCSCD
MCFD
BC Paraplegic
Association
Health
Canada
Service
Canada
MSD
MFIN
MED
MRESD
MHS
WorkSafe BC
Minister’s Council
on Employment
MTTI
GF Strong
Rehabilitation Centre
Canadian Red Cross
CanAssist
2010 Legacies Now
Family Support
Institute
BC Association
for Community Living
Personal Supports
Network
BC Aboriginal Network
on Disability Society
Rick Hansen
Foundation
Canadian Mental
Health Association
Planned Lifetime
Advocacy Network
Tourism BC
Public Service
Agency
Neil Squire Society
Disability
Services
Vancouver Foundation
MHLS
Home Medical Equipment
Dealers Association
BC Wheelchair
Sports
NIDMAR
Alliance for Equality
of Blind Canadians
UBC Centre for
Citizenship and Inclusion
BC Coalition of
Communication Assistance
Persons with Disabilities
for Young Adults
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The Disability Strategy...
◦  ...is a cross ministry initiative to assist in achieving Great
Goal 3, “the best system of support in Canada for
persons with disabilities.”
◦  ...is led by Ministry of Social Development, working with
various other ministries
◦  ...is a framework to develop and champion work that will
improve outcomes for persons with disabilities.
◦  ...represents the collaborative efforts of governments,
community organizations and persons with disabilities to
make British Columbia more accessible and
inclusive.
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BC is a leader in Canada as a place where
people with disabilities live the life they
choose, enabled by an innovative, integrated
system of networked services and personal
supports that generate and sustain welcoming,
accessible, and inclusive communities.
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The Disability Strategy is working toward an integrated,
citizen-centred system of services that supports persons
with disabilities to participate fully in society.
Like the Convention, the Strategy seeks to recognize and
incorporate an evolving understanding of "disability” and
disability supports.
The Strategy supports innovative approaches to rethinking
disability and combating discriminatory perceptions of
persons with disabilities.
The Strategy supports and promotes accessibility and
inclusion.
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  Integrated
Services and Citizen-Centred
Service Delivery
–  A new service delivery relationship with persons with
disabilities across government and the not-for-profit and
private sectors
  Personal
Supports
–  Quick and easy access to personal supports
  Housing
–  Improved access to housing for low-income persons with
disabilities
  Accessibility
and Inclusion
  Employment
and Income
–  The most accessible and inclusive jurisdiction in the world
for persons with disabilities
–  The highest employment rate in Canada for persons with
disabilities
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Integrating services
Examples
◦  Aligning program language, simplifying processes, and
improving information-sharing
◦  Implementing an Integrated Case Management system
◦  Using a Personal Strategy tool to provide services based
on an individual’s goals
Moving towards citizen-centred services
Examples
◦  Improving transition to adulthood for children and youth
with special needs (a multi-ministry protocol)
◦  The Personalized Supports Initiative for adults with FASD
or Pervasive Developmental Disorder (Autism Spectrum
Disorder)
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Making supports easier to access
Examples
◦  An innovative new initiative that provides
equipment and assistive technology to support
people with disabilities to achieve their employment
goals
◦  Issuing $3.75 million in grants in 2006/07 to help
the University of Victoria’s CanAssist team expand
its leading-edge technology development program
and move toward financial sustainability
◦  Funding the Communication Assistance for Youth
and Adults project
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Improving access to housing for low-income persons
with disabilities
Examples
◦  A new housing strategy that focuses people with lowincome and special housing needs (Housing Matters)
◦  Investing $432 million in 2009/10 and over $562 million in
2010/11 for housing programs, including:
  A commitment to create more than 4,000 supportive housing
units through the Provincial Homelessness Initiative
  1,066 units receiving funding commitments under Memoranda
of Understanding with local governments
  Expanding homeless outreach services to nearly 50 BC
communities
  The Homelessness Intervention Project – co‑ordinating
provincial and community social housing and support services,
including health and income assistance in 5 BC communities
◦  Economic stimulus package - $10 million allocated to new
housing for people with disabilities
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Working with communities to improve accessibility and
inclusion
Examples
◦  Supporting and promoting Measuring Up – a tool for communities to
access their level of accessibility and inclusion
  107 communities received grants from 2010 Legacies Now to create
Measuring Up communities.
◦  Accessible Tourism - making BC the foremost travel destination for
persons with disabilities, seniors and others with accessibility needs
  To date, over 1,700 businesses have met accessibility criteria.
◦  Accessibility Showcase – a three-day conference and exhibit to engage in
discussions and share innovations and best practices
◦  Supporting TYZE – private, personal online networks that help
groups of people organize support around anyone experiencing
a life challenge
  Pilots in BC, California and the UK
◦  Blusson Spinal Cord Centre
  BC has provided over $62M in the last 8 years for
spinal cord-related research, including funding to
the Rick Hansen Foundation
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Increasing employment of persons with disabilities and
supporting them to achieve greater financial independence
Examples
◦  Improving access to employment programming by developing
customized employment services for people with developmental
disabilities
◦  Partnering with the Vancouver Foundation to develop Endowment
150, which supports up to 30,000 low-income persons with
disabilities to save for their future needs
◦  Becoming the 1st province in Canada to exempt Registered
Disability Savings Plans from income assistance eligibility
◦  Challenging communities and employers to increase employment
for persons with disabilities by 10 percent by 2010
  To date, 93 communities have accepted the 10 by 10 Challenge.
◦  Return to Work (RTW) and Stay and Work (SAW) initiatives
  NIDMAR – disability management excellence
  BC Collaborative on Health, Productivity and
Disability Management
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Primary:
  Employment rate for persons with disabilities (current rate = 56.5%; target = 62%)
  Low-income rate for persons with disabilities (current rate = 17.2%; target = ?)
  Employment rate for persons receiving Disability Assistance
  Percentage of social housing provided to disability assistance clients
  Unmet need for assistive aids and devices (current ranking = 5th in Canada;
target = top 3)
  # of youth receiving the Person with Disabilities designation through the
accelerated application process
  # of communities registered for the 10 by 10 Challenge
  # of Measuring Up communities
  # of personal networks established for CLBC and Disability Assistance clients
Secondary:
  # of individuals receiving equipment and assistive technology through the
Equipment and Assistive Technology Initiative
  # of businesses receiving the Accessible Tourism designation
  # of individuals receiving services as a result of CLBC’s Personalized Supports
Initiative
  # of Queenswood Report recommendations implemented
  # of individuals/families choosing CLBC’s individualized funding payment option
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  Employment
is increasing
 28% of the employment growth from 2001
to 2006 is accounted for by persons with
disabilities
 The employment rate for adults 15-64 rose
from 52.1% in 2001 to 56.5% in 2006
  Low
income rates are falling
 From 25% (9th in Canada) in 2002 to 17.2% (6th in
Canada) in 2005
  Unmet
need for assistive technology is falling
 From 45% (worst in Canada) to 38% (5th in Canada)
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  The
employment rate has increased 8%
since 2001 (to 56.5%), 4th highest in Canada
  Persons with disabilities accounted for 28%
of job growth in BC between 2001-2006
  The provision of aids and devices has increased
by 18% since 2001
  Funding for Disability Assistance has increased by 150%
since 2001 (from $307 million to $771 million)
  The number of people with developmental disabilities
receiving community living support has increased by 31%
since 2005
  The Province provides approximately $5 billion per year
in disability supports and services
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Developing collaborative solutions to complex
social problems
External Stakeholders
External Stakeholders
Other government
ministries/agencies
Policy,
research,
legislation,
litigation,
Disability
Strategy
Policy,
research,
legislation,
litigation,
Disability
Strategy
Other government
ministries/agencies
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New Delivery
System
Disability Strategy
Programs &
Citizen Centred Service
Delivery
2. Personal Supports
3. Housing
4. Accessibility & Inclusion
5. Employment & Income
Work and
Contribution
1. Integrated
Personal
Supports
Accumulating
Assets
Personal
Networks
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Possible Approach – Change Lab
1.  Co-Sensing
Transforming
Perception
3.  Co-Creating
Transforming
Action
2.  Co-Presencing
Transforming
Self
©REOS Partners
http://www.reospartners.com/
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"In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity." Albert Einstein 
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Lack of data (federal government decision to
discontinue a portion of the census)
Limited resources
◦  Supporting citizen engagement activities
◦  Need for unpopular decisions
Supporting people with mental illness and addiction
Managing community expectations of government
Community perception that collaborative delivery =
“offloading”
Tension between employment and
community inclusion outcomes
Perception of disability (individual, family,
employers, public)
How to support employers
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Government as part of community – working together to
leverage resources for creative problem-solving
New financial instruments
◦  New mortgage instrument to support home ownership
◦  Legislative change to support the creation of Community Interest
Companies
◦  Creation of the Resilient Capital Social Enterprise Fund
◦  Exploring the potential of social impact bonds for government
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Effective use of the tax system
◦  Exploring the possibility of using the small business tax credit
program for social enterprises
Effective use of technology (existing and new)
Achieving the right balance between self, family,
community and government support
Engaging the private sector
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Equipment and Assistive Technology Initiative (EATI)
◦  Provides the equipment and assistive technology people need
to overcome barriers and achieve their employment goals
◦  Designed and implemented in collaboration with disability
community stakeholders (includes collaborative policy
development)
◦  Person-centred services
◦  Provides supports based on a functional assessment, not a
medical diagnosis
◦  Allows self-assessment in many circumstances
“You’re going strong. It’s like you’re in a race and suddenly, with
blindness or any other disability, that race has to come to a halt.
Suddenly it’s all over...and you say, ‘What am I going to do now?’
And...a program like this comes along and you say, ‘Life is not
over; it’s just beginning.’” -EATI Client
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Individualized Funding/
Individualized Planning
Personalized Supports Initiative
◦  New services for adults with FASD or
Pervasive Developmental Disorder
(Autism Spectrum Disorder)
Customized Employment
Demonstration Project
◦  Customized employment services to
British Columbians with
developmental disabilities
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Start with Hi Initiative
Service redesign
◦  Aligning services with individual
needs
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TYZE
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BC Personal Supports Network
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Bringing diverse stakeholders
together to develop solutions
(Disability Strategy change labs,
EATI)
  Encouraging experimentation (EATI)
  Sharing best practices (Accessibility
Showcase)
  Focus on outcomes (measuring
performance)
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Being a learning organization is a new imperative
for government, especially in the current fiscal environment.
Many things that make a real difference don’t cost money – friends,
family and neighbours and changing attitudes and beliefs
It’s not easy – it requires growth by and openness
of government, stakeholders, communities, families, and
businesses.
Some people, both within and outside government, will never be “on
board.” But many people will be.
The returns are often long term...and it will take longer than we
think.
Success must be shared (not hoarded).
Failures will be inevitable as we try new things and collaboration is a
basis for shared risk.
Building trust and creating a safe environment are crucial to success.
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