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| Q. |
Who is eligible for services? |
| A. |
CLBC is mandated under the provisions of the Community Living Authority Act to provide supports and services to individuals with developmental disabilities and children with special needs.
Developmental disability, as defined in the Community Living Authority Act, means significantly impaired intellectual functioning that:
- manifests before the age of 18 years
- exists concurrently with impaired adaptive functioning
- meets other prescribed criteria
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To be eligible for CLBC services, an individual must meet all the requirements of developmental disability as defined above in the Act.
CLBC confirms the presence of a developmental disability through assessments provided by registered psychologists.
In assessing the elements of developmental disability, registered psychologists apply the “Diagnostic Criteria for Mental Retardation” including the criteria for age of onset, intellectual functioning and adaptive behaviour as cited in the DSM IV.
A child with special needs:
- has significant impairments in one or more of the following areas: health, cognition, communication, sensory motor, social/emotional/behavioural or self help (adaptive), and
- requires specialized supports to enhance or improve their health, development, or participation in daily activities at home, in school and in their communities.
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For more information on eligibility, please visit our Policies section.
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| Q. |
What is the difference between a community living centre and a quality service office? What is a satellite office? Which one do I go to apply? |
| A. |
Community living centres are places where people can get books and brochures about CLBC services and policies, and meet with a facilitator. Quality service offices are the offices that analysts work out of. A satellite office is an office in a smaller community. It generally acts as a community living centre.
Your primary point of contact is your nearest community living centre. You will go there to apply for services and support or meet with a facilitator. It is the first place to go or call when you have questions. Visit the Your Community section for contact information for community living centres, satellite offices and quality service offices. |
| Q. |
What is an individual support plan? |
| A. |
An individual support plan is a document that helps people tell us about their hopes, dreams, needs and wants. You create individual goals based on your needs to help you live your life as you imagine it. You might choose to make this plan on your own, with the help of family members, with a service provider, or with the help of a CLBC facilitator.
Your plan says what kinds of things will help make your dreams come true. These things might include help from your community, support from family and friends, as well as support and services funded by CLBC. With a plan, services can be designed for you to help achieve your goals. |
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| Q. |
What happens after I have created a plan? |
| A. |
When you are finished your plan, you will send it to a CLBC quality service analyst. This person will decide if there is enough money for your CLBC-funded support or service. If there is not enough money available for your plan at the moment, you might only carry out part of your plan, or go on a waitlist. |
| Q. |
What is a facilitator? |
| A. |
A facilitator is the person at CLBC who can provide information, advice and support. They can help connect you with your community, CLBC and service providers. Facilitators can advise you if there is a waitlist for services in your area and put your family’s name on the waitlist. If you are requesting CLBC-funded services, they can help you develop an individual support plan. CLBC facilitators are responsible for confirming eligibility. They base their decision on the written assessment of developmental disability, as completed by registered or certified psychologists or registered psychological associates. Facilitators work in community living centres or from satellite offices in smaller communities. |
| Q. |
What is an analyst? |
| A. |
An analyst decides how much money you will receive based on your plan. They also make sure that your plan meets CLBC’s health and safety standards if you live away from your family home. Analysts are responsible for figuring out what improvements the current system needs. They work in quality service offices. |
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| Q. |
What is a waitlist? |
| A. |
If there is not enough money to pay for all or some of the services you want, you can choose to have your request put on a waitlist. Each area has its own waitlist managed by the quality service office. Whoever has been waiting the longest time with the greatest need will get the needed support or services first. If you do not want your request on a waitlist, you can work with your facilitator to change the plan. Facilitators will help you find other services that cost less money or no money at all.
For more information, please visit our Policies section.
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| Q. |
What can I do if I have a complaint about CLBC's services? |
| A. |
The CLBC Complaints Policy clarifies what recourse individuals and families have when they are dissatisfied with a service provided by CLBC or disagree with a decision made by a CLBC staff member. The intent of this policy is to ensure that concerns people may have with CLBC are dealt with in a fair and timely manner. It is also to create an environment where staff is supported in making decisions that meet the needs of people being supported by CLBC.
Complaints can be initiated when an individual or family is dissatisfied with a service provided by CLBC or disagrees with a decision made by a CLBC staff member. Individuals may make a complaint if they believe they have not been treated fairly or respectfully. Individuals or families who have complaints related to contracted service providers are encouraged to discuss these directly with the service providers. Each contractor must have a system for responding to complaints. Where an individual or family is reluctant to go directly to a service provider with a complaint, they can discuss it with CLBC staff or process a CLBC complaint.
Please visit the Policies section of our website for more detailed information, or to download the Complaints Form.
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| Q. |
What do Community Councils do? |
| A. |
We have created community councils throughout the province. These councils tell us how CLBC can help the community include people with developmental disabilities. The councils also come up with some new and creative ideas for supporting people and their families.
The councils review financial information about CLBC’s budget and participate in determining how to best utilize limited resources. They also work with CLBC managers to identify gaps, overlaps, issues and service delivery problems within the area. In addition, they help set priorities for new or existing funding and participate in determining the impacts of financial decisions.
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| Q. |
Do parents have to create choices to meet the needs of their child? |
| A. |
Our goal is to provide individuals and families with a range of options. People will have the opportunity to select support and services from existing services, from generic support already existing in the community, or work with CLBC facilitators to develop new support.
The intention of the Innovation project is to develop innovative residential and community support options for adults living with a developmental disability. This project will generate new knowledge and understanding of person-centred lifestyles, as opposed to fitting people into existing service models. |
| Q. |
Why is it so much more difficult to access support once a child graduates from school? |
| A. |
Unfortunately, there is not enough money to provide day support for every young adult. Current support options stop for individuals at 19 years of age. CLBC recognizes the importance of continuity of services. The current funding for adolescents resides within the school system and is not accessible to CLBC. As we move forward, CLBC will work with their staff and families to ensure early identification of affected individuals to support long-term budget planning. Early identification of needs will assist CLBC acquire more funding. |
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| Q. |
Should the educators and social programs be taking on more responsibility for making preparations for these programs from grade 10 onwards? |
| A. |
CLBC, educators and families need to work together to identify children in grade 10 and start preparation in advance. This advanced planning will result in better data collection, which will allow for a greater possibility of improved future funding. |
| Q. |
Why is the transition for special education high school students so much different than that of their typical peers? |
| A. |
CLBC recognizes the importance of continuity of services. The current funding for adolescents resides within the school system and is not accessible to CLBC. As we move forward, CLBC will work with their staff and families to ensure early identification of affected individuals to support long-term budget planning. Early identification of needs will assist CLBC acquire more funding. |
| Q. |
What can be done to ease the stress and frustration parents and students feel? |
| A. |
Community engagement is needed to find solutions to these issues. Funding is only one component. Youth access via the community is also important. We need to engage with community and ask for input and involvement. |
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| Q. |
Are any meetings being set up where these issues can be opened up for discussion on a regular basis? |
| A. |
Yes, through community councils. |
| Q. |
Given the importance of the role and its value to CLBC, why isn't there a small per diem why aren’t travel and food expenses being provided to provincial advisory committee members? |
| A. |
We need to balance the money spent on the provincial advisory committee and how much we take away from direct services. Information will be systematically collected through new databases, regional community councils and provincial tours. This will be shared with the advisory committee for their use. It is not a constituency based group. They will work at a provincial level, with community councils functioning at the regional level. |
| Q. |
How does CLBC intend to make sure contracts for individualized funding receive cost of living raises or other raises for staff? |
| A. |
It is important to recognize that this is a multi-year project requiring assessment first. There is no quick fix. There are many problems and issues with the current spending/expenditure process. Regional inequities do exist, which CLBC recognizes, and has initiated a process to address this issue. We are looking to reduce inequities based upon individual support plans and the utilization of generic community services. |
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| Q. |
What is happening with individualized funding (IF)? |
| A. |
Individualized funding is moving forward. It will be available for new expenditures and people who choose move from existing group homes under the Residential Options Project. We are currently working on the policy framework and expect it to be ready for a fall implementation. IF will be based on an individual support plan, as described in our Individual and Family Support policy. From that plan, we will agree on a support agreement that describes the support to be funded and amounts allocated. We will fund some support on an ongoing basis. Others, which are intended to achieve a specific goal, will have time-limited funding. Given the shortage of funds, funding requests may be approved in principle, but only partially allocated to the highest priority need for a person this year. |
| Q. |
How long will the present board of directors remain in place? |
| A. |
The CLBC board currently has one, two and three-year term positions. All positions were effective July 1, 2005. However, all new board positions will be for a three-year term. This process ensures we maintain continuity and experience at all times. |
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| Q. |
The original vision saw significant change to the way CLBC offices looked and operated. Is that still the vision, and if so, when can we expect to see that change? |
| A. |
Yes, we now have in place community living centres in 17 locations throughout BC. By having community living centres, it encourages staff to get out of the office and meet with individuals and families. |
| Q. |
What is being done to ensure that the CLBC facilitators and analysts adopt the attitudes and values that CLBC has identified as the main objectives and goals of family-driven supports? |
| A. |
All CLBC staff have been trained in their new roles. CLBC managers have been given clear expectations related to staff and professional conduct. Through the development of organizational, regional and individual work plans, outcomes can be monitored and any issues and concerns can be addressed in an ongoing manner.
As well, CLBC is committed to providing ongoing training for both facilitators and analysts. All CLBC managers will be working with staff to develop individualized learning plans that outline both strengths and opportunities for improvement. |
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| Q. |
What is a service plan? |
| A. |
Service plans ensure that government and government organizations clearly outline their goals. It allows British Columbians to hold government and government organizations accountable for their decisions and actions. Service plans detail the mission and objectives, and also include performance measures that will be used to assess our progress in achieving those objectives. Service plans and annual reports are key tools used to assess the management of public resources, and ensure programs are contributing to key government priorities in an efficient, effective, and measurable manner. |
| Q. |
How is the service plan process linked to the CLBC budget? |
| A. |
The CLBC budget identifies the resources available to CLBC over a three-year period, which ends in 2008/09. Based upon these resources, the service plan is developed to detail the specific objectives and related performance measures. CLBC then allocates resources internally to services and projects in order to achieve those objectives and performance targets. |
| Q. |
What residential services will CLBC be providing for children? |
| A. |
CLBC’s goal within the next two years is to develop a residential system separate from the Child, Family and Community Service Act (CFCSA) that offers a well-integrated continuum of services to families within legislative requirements. In the meantime, when voluntary residential care is needed, children will be taken into care by CLBC under voluntary agreements as defined under the CFCSA. |
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| Q. |
How will CLBC identify children with developmental disabilities under the age of six? |
| A. |
We are currently exploring eligibility requirements and policy development models to assist us in this process. In the interim, we will continue with the current assessment practice used by MCFD. |
| Q. |
How will CLBC ensure communities have input into budget priority setting, service innovation, and in assessing the performance of CLBC? |
| A. |
Part of CLBC’s new service delivery model is the establishment of 17 community councils throughout BC. The main roles of these local councils will be to stimulate new approaches to service delivery, share decision making about the allocation of resources and provide feedback on how CLBC provides services and support to individuals and families. |
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| Q. |
Will CLBC be forcing people to move from standard group homes? |
| A. |
No one will be forced to move. CLBC will explore the person’s needs and what options best suit those needs.
If an individual agrees to explore options, it does not mean they are committed to moving. They will only be asked to make a final choice when their individual plan is complete and they are happy with that plan. Individualized funding will be available for those who choose this option. This process allows us to explore funding models that may free up resources to assist people who are currently awaiting CLBC services. |
| Q. |
What criteria have you developed to evaluate your new contract management practices? |
| A. |
Adult contract management systems have changed this year to allow for the personalising of contracts and the tracking of changes for adults served. This will produce improved information on the success of efforts to offer flexible options outside of the group home model. |
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