COMPLAINT PROCEDURE
If you believe you have a complaint about the services you have received from the Society, then we would like to know. KHCAS tries hard to offer the best possible service to children, youth and families in our community. If there is a problem or a difference of opinion, we want to do our best to work it out.
If you are not a service recipient of the Society but have a complaint, call the office and ask for the Director of Service. They will put you in touch with the appropriate staff member to hear your concern.
If you are a service recipient of the Society, please make sure you have first spoken to your worker about the problem and have given them a chance to work out the matter with you.
Our goal is to listen and talk with you so we can satisfy your concerns as early as possible in the complaint process. The goal of this procedure is to ensure your concerns are listened to in a fair manner and that reasonable efforts are made to find a resolution.
A copy of the complaint procedure is available through the link on this page.
STEP 1
TALK TO A SUPERVISOR
Ask your worker for the name of their supervisor. Contact the supervisor with your concerns. It would be a good idea to ask for a meeting so that you can discuss the matter in-person. You can bring one person to support you at the meeting, as well as one representative of your Band or Indigenous community. Come prepared to give a clear explanation of the problem. The supervisor will want to thoroughly understand the issue so that they can try to find a solution. You will hear back from the supervisor within seven days and a letter will be sent to you with their response.
STEP 2
TALK TO A DIRECTOR OF SERVICES
If you are not satisfied with the response of the supervisor, ask for an appointment with their Manager. They are highly skilled in settling differences of opinion and have no direct connection with the handling of your case. Again, they will want to know what your complaint is, so that a solution can be found. You will hear back within seven days with a letter that states the outcome of your discussion.
STEP 3
INTERNAL COMPLAINTS REVIEW PANEL
If you are not satisfied with the response from the Manager, you may request a meeting with the Society’s Internal Complaints Review Panel (ICRP). This request must be made in writing to the Executive Director. The Executive Director will arrange for you to present your complaint to the Internal Complaints Review Panel. The Executive Director will provide the Panel with a written summary of your complaint and the efforts made to resolve the matter. You will receive a copy of the summary. The Internal Complaints Review Panel will determine if Agency policies and procedures were properly followed and will reach a solution to your concern, if possible. You will receive a letter within seven days of the meeting giving the response of the Internal Complaints Review Panel. If a solution has not been found, then options for further review of your complaint outside of the Society will be provided. There is a copy of the ICRP application in a link on this page. Should you require a paper copy of the application form, please contact your worker and request a paper copy be sent to you directly.
CHILD & FAMILY SERVICES REVIEW BOARD (CFSRB)
You may ask the Child and Family Services Review Board to review your complaint if the complaint meets one of the following criteria:
You claim that our Agency has:
- Refused to proceed with a complaint;
- Failed to respond to your complaint within the required timeframe;
- Failed to comply with the complaint procedure outlined on this page, or in the attached brochure,
- Not given you an opportunity to be heard regarding a decision affecting your interests or concerns about the services you received,
- Failed to provide you with the reasons for a decision that affects your interests.
- Your request for a review at the Child and Family Services Review Board must be made in writing on the prescribed form available through the Child and Family Services Review Board.
CHILD & FAMILY SERVICES REVIEW BOARD
1075 Bay Street, 7th Floor, Toronto, ON M5S 2B1
(416) 327-4673 or 1-888-728-8823
TTY: (416) 327-9247 | Fax: (416) 327-0558
www.cfsrb.ca
OFFICE OF THE ONTARIO OMBUDSMAN
In the event that your concerns have not been satisfied through the internal complaints process and through engagement with the CFSRB, a complaint can be made to the Office of the Ontario Ombudsman.
The Office of the Ontario Ombudsman cannot begin an investigation until the complaint has already been addressed through the Children’s Aid Society’s Internal Complaint Process and/or through the Child & Family Services Review Board (CFSRB).
Following the completion of every investigation, the Ontario Ombudsman will release a public report outlining their findings and recommendations.
OFFICE OF THE OMBUDSMAN OF ONTARIO
483 Bay Street
10th floor, South Tower
Toronto, ON M5G 2C9
Toll-free (Ontario only): 1-800-263-1830
Outside Ontario: 416-586-3300
TTY (teletypewriter): 1-866-411-4211
Fax: 416-586-3485
Toll-free Fax: 1-866-863-2560
Email: info@ombudsman.on.ca
KHCAS Complaint Procedure Brochure
Know Your Legal Rights – Resource Guide
Formal Complaint to a Society’s Internal Complaints Review Panel (ICRP) (EN)
Plainte Officielle au Comité Interne d’examen des Plaintes (CIEP) (FR)
