Access Service

One of the Key Access Points for child and youth services:  Contact Brant provides coordinated access to Ministry-funded child and youth services and other community resources and support for families of children and youth with a developmental disability, Autism, FASD, dual diagnosis and cross-sectoral service needs.

Single-point access for children and youth with Complex and Multiple-sector Service Needs:  Contact Brant is the single access point for children and youth with complex and special needs, and the following services:  Coordinated Service Planning, FASD Service Coordination, Complex Special Needs services, and the Hamilton-Niagara Region’s Ontario Autism Program’s Urgent Response Service.

Case Resolution Mechanism: Contact Brant facilitates the service resolution process in Brant to ensure that children and youth with urgent and complex needs are planned for by developing appropriate service options to reduce the risk of harm.  Children and youth should be connected to Coordinated Service Planning.

Case Resolution facilitates problem-solving, with agencies often able to be flexible and creative within their individual agency mandates and available resources to collectively meet the needs of these children.  Where services and resources are not able to fully meet the service needs of the child or youth, and the child/youth is considered “imminently at risk”, and there is a clinical recommendation for a specialized service to stabilize the situation, these recommendations are short term and time-limited and must include a plan to return the child or youth to locally funded services.

Residential Placement Advisory Committee (RPAC):  Contact Brant coordinates the review of the appropriateness of a child/youth’s residential placement as outlined in the Child, Youth, and Family Services Act.

Planning for Transitional Aged Youth:  Contact Brant supports families in planning for key transition points in every child’s life, such as the transition into school, change in classrooms or teachers, starting secondary school, and graduation from secondary school. Life events such as the birth of a sibling, family moving, separation, etc., can also affect a child or youth.

The transition to adult services at age 18 is especially important because there will be significant changes in services and school. Early planning for this transition, starting at least by age 14, is supported by Contact Brant as well as your school and community services. Planning includes thinking about what the youth and their family would like for the future, including living arrangements, connections to family and friends, employment and leisure activities. The most successful transitions happen when youth, their family, school and services work together to develop a plan for the future and build skills that will help the youth participate fully in their community as an adult. There are many resources to help you plan for this transition.