Laurel Broten, Minister of Children and Youth Services
We want to help provide children and youth with supports and opportunities so their abilities will not be overshadowed by the challenges that they experience in life. So that is why I am so delighted to announce today that starting in 2010-2011 our government is investing an additional $216,000 in the Children's Treatment Centre of Chatham-Kent and that this new funding is part of an additional $9 million annual investment in children's treatment centres across the province to help speed up services and deliver those services to kids.
Paula Grail, Chair of Ontario Association of Children's Rehabilitation Services
Your government's pledge of $9 million annually will allow thousands of anxiously waiting children and youth from across the province to enter their local treatment centre and receive the vital rehabilitation services and supports they require in order to reach their potential. Ontario's children's treatment centres will pledge to make every dollar of your investment count.
Vicky Earle, Executive Director of Grandview Children's Centre in Oshawa
Children's treatment centres are phenomenal organizations that are community-based and help children perform or live their lives to their fullest potential. Every child matters and every kid matters as OACRS says.
Linda Kenny, CEO of Ontario Association of Children's Rehabilitation Services
Whenever you have to tell a family that have to wait for services it's a very devastating thing to do as a service provider and particularly devastating for families. So, with this investment today across Ontario there will be less families and less children waiting for services.
Donna Litwin-Makey, Executive Director of the Children's Treatment Centre of Chatham-Kent
Now, we're going to be in a position of increasing staff, addressing the kids on the waiting list and being more stable so that we can not only see kids for occasional times but as often as they need and in the right place. So, that is the best news we've had in several years and we're thrilled.