To request this document in an alternative format, please email ZZG-Accessibility@peelregion.ca or call 905-791-7800.
On behalf of Peel Regional Council, it gives me great pleasure to introduce The Regional Municipality of Peel’s Multi-Year Accessibility Plan (2018-2025). It has now been twelve years since the Province of Ontario first passed the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act. Since then, the Region of Peel has embarked on a strategy to identify and subsequently break down barriers that limit the potential and compromise the quality of life for our residents with disabilities.
We are very proud of the benchmarks we set in our first Multi-Year Accessibility Plan (2013-2017) and our record of achieving the milestones set out therein.
The Region of Peel developed this renewed Multi-Year plan which takes advantage of the lessons we have learned and the experiences we have benefited from, as well as further benchmarks to aspire to, along with legislative requirements. This renewed plan is assisted and guided by the goals and direction established in the overall Region of Peel Strategic Plan.
The Region of Peel Strategic Plan is governed by a vision that emphasizes this jurisdiction as being a Community for Life and describes that Community for Life as being “a place where everyone enjoys a sense of belonging and has access to the services and opportunities they need to thrive throughout each stage of their lives”.
While this vision is something that we apply to all aspects of our diverse community, I think this objective is particularly significant when it comes to the Region of Peel’s Multi-Year accessibility plan. The development and implementation of this next phase of our accessibility plan aligns to the Region of Peel Strategic Plan in a thoughtful and deliberative manner resulting in the effective achievement of all our objectives.
With assistance from our Accessibility Advisory Committee and staff, we intend to continue to remove barriers, improve accessibility, and provide opportunities to all members of our diverse community.
Sincerely,
Frank Dale
Chair & CEO, Region of Peel
AAC members are committed to applying the principles of inclusiveness and integration in reviewing Regional projects and supporting various initiatives. We continue to work as strong advocates to improve accessibility in Regional services, programs and facilities.
The AAC supports creating a welcoming and accessible community that allows all members to engage and participate, and also assist the Region in meeting its legislative requirements.
We envision and strive to build an accessible society that allows for meaningful opportunities for people of all abilities.
We take pride in providing leadership and expertise on accessibility issues. The Committee has made great strides in addressing accessibility in Peel and we look forward to working with the community and stakeholders in the future.
Dely Farrace
Chair, Region of Peel Accessibility Advisory Committee
The Region of Peel’s new 2018-2025 Multi-Year accessibility plan outlines how the Region of Peel will continue to remove barriers and improve accessibility for persons with disabilities. It builds on our accomplishments since the introduction of our first Multi-Year plan in 2013.
This second Multi-Year accessibility plan aligns with the objectives of the Region of Peel’s 20-year Strategic Plan and long-term vision while continuing to meet the Province’s requirement for full development, implementation and enforcement by January 1, 2025. This Plan shows how we intend to assist the Province to achieve accessibility for Ontarians with disabilities by 2025 and to help make the Region of Peel a Community for Life.
Regulated accessibility planning in Ontario began with the Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2001 (ODA). Under the ODA, municipalities were required to have annual accessibility plans that would report on the measures taken by the organization to identify, remove and prevent barriers for persons with disabilities.
The Provincial Government defines disabilities in terms that encompass a broad range and degree of conditions, some visible and some invisible. These include, physical, mental and learning disabilities, mental disorders, hearing, vision disabilities, epilepsy and other conditions.
The Accessibility for Ontarians with the Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA) which became law in 2005 builds on the progress made under the ODA. The AODA is made up of five Standards, and a number of General Requirements.
The Standards include:
The AODA Standards form part of the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (IASR). One of the General Requirements under the IASR is for organizations to create a Multi-Year accessibility plan and to review and update it every five years instead of annually. As with ODA, the Multi-Year plans must outline an organization’s strategy to meet the requirements under the IASR.
AODA requires that all municipalities with a population of 10,000 or more establish an Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC).
The Region of Peel’s Accessibility Advisory Committee (AAC) is comprised of 10 citizen members and four Members of Council, one of whom is the Regional Chair. More than 50 per cent of the members of Peel’s AAC have a disability. Members come from different backgrounds and from various areas within the Region of Peel and bring with them a desire to help those living with disabilities.
The AAC informs Council on ways to remove barriers and improve opportunities for persons with disabilities with respect to Regional programs, services and facilities. In addition to their legislated requirements, they participate in ad hoc working groups established to address specific accessibility action items and host internal and external educational events.
Some of the internal events the AAC supports include National Access Awareness Week and International Days of Persons with Disabilities. The AAC is also very engaged in the community attending fairs and education initiatives to help promote and raise awareness of accessibility at the Region of Peel.
It is the responsibility of the AAC to advise Council on the implementation of accessibility standards and the development of the Multi-Year Plan and accessibility reports.
AODA’s accessibility standards establish rules and timelines that businesses and organizations in Ontario must follow to effectively identify, remove and prevent barriers for persons with disabilities.
The Region of Peel’s first Multi-Year accessibility plan was approved by Council and introduced in 2013 and laid the groundwork for how the Region of Peel would meet the obligations set out in the IASR.
Extensive work has been carried out to ensure that the Region of Peel was in compliance with the General Requirements and each of the Five Standards. The following are milestones that have been achieved up to the end of 2017:
Feedback processes were reviewed to ensure the processes were accessible for persons with disabilities, and include various methods for providing feedback.
The Accessible Formats and Communication Supports Policy was introduced to establish roles and responsibilities of Region of Peel staff for the provision of accessible formats or communication supports. Training on creating accessible documents was also made available.
All public-facing service counters were equipped with signage to inform members of the public of the availability of documents in accessible formats and communication supports, upon request. The Region of Peel website was revised with similar messaging. A new online form was launched for such requests; and the Region of Peel Call Centre processes were updated to ensure proper handling of requests.
The Region of Peel’s Emergency Management Program was reviewed and its processes assessed to ensure compliance with the AODA.
The Region of Peel has committed to ensure website accessibility for persons with disabilities. The first part of the compliance required that any new websites or web content published after January 1, 2012 was to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Level A by January 1, 2014 and WGAC 2.0, Level AA by January 1, 2021. WGAC 2.0 is an internationally accepted web accessibility standard developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), an international team of experts. WCAG sets guidelines for organizations to make their websites more accessible. The Region not only met this requirement by the stipulated timeline, but exceeded it by mandating that all new content, including the Waste Collection and the new TransHelp sites, would conform to the higher standard, WCAG Level AA, a requirement that needs to be met by January 1, 2021.
A Family Literacy Program in American Sign Language was developed, in partnership with the Canadian Hearing Society and Mississauga Library, for families and young children with hearing disabilities.
To meet the requirements under this standard, extensive work was carried out within TransHelp, the Region of Peel’s accessible transportation service.
Modification of the Region of Peel’s Health Protection Division’s Food Handler Certification course to offer options and accommodations to ensure the certification process is accessible to those who need it, including:
Providing materials in large print and using different coloured paper; inquiring about accessibility needs during course registration; offering to host the course at alternative locations when it is difficult for a group to attend the course at a Regional site (e.g. a high school class with many students with anxiety did not feel comfortable traveling to the Regional facility); Having sign language interpreters present in the classroom when required; Allowing individuals with a learning disability more time to complete the exam or providing it in an alternative format; and delivering information in a creative format which addresses different learning styles and preferences (e.g. using props such as ‘rubber chicken’, cutting boards and thermometers) as well as offering group activities, videos and other means to demonstrate key points in addition to written materials.
Attitudinal – personal attitudes and behaviours and how we interact with persons with disabilities;
Physical – design of physical spaces that make it difficult for persons with disabilities to move around easily;
Information/Communication – difficulty accessing sources of information and communications;
Organizational/Systemic – decision-making, policies, procedures, or practices that unfairly discriminate and can prevent individuals from participating fully in a situation and are often put into place unintentionally; and
Technological – poor technologies, systems or devices that can prevent people with disabilities from accessing information.
By addressing such barriers, people with disabilities will be able to maintain their dignity and live more independently in a community that supports them. The Region of Peel 2018-2025 Multi-Year accessibility plan aims to create a more inclusive community that people with all abilities can participate in –a Community for Life.
The Region of Peel 2015-2035 Strategic Plan was developed through extensive community engagement, including persons with disabilities. The world is changing as Peel’s population is growing and becoming increasingly diverse. With these changes, the Region of Peel must also change the way things are done to ensure that our organization is meeting the needs of its residents now and in the future. This 20-year long-term approach allows the Region of Peel to take on bigger challenges in the interests of citizens. This broad, inclusive consultation resulted in a new vision, mission and Strategic Plan.
The vision of Community for Life means that the Region of Peel is a community where people choose to live for their entire lives. It is a place where everyone enjoys a sense of belonging and has access to the services and opportunities they need to thrive throughout each stage of their lives.
The mission of Working with You describes how the Region will collaborate with citizens to deliver on its vision to create a healthy, safe and connected community.
Accessibility is embedded into all facets of the Region’s Strategic Plan which includes three areas of focus: Living, Thriving and Leading. Strategic objectives from each of these three areas of focus spell out clear prioritized outcomes, measures, and actions.
The Region of Peel’s 2018-2025 Multi-Year accessibility plan uses the same framework. Following are some of the strategies and initiatives the Region of Peel will be undertaking in each area of focus of the Strategic Plan to: further break down barriers; provide persons with all abilities access to our programs, services and facilities; and ensure continued compliance with the requirements of the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (IASR) of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005.
As part of the requirements under AODA, the Region of Peel must make its websites and web content accessible.
The Region of Peel will continue its work to ensure that all its websites and web content meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Level AA standard by the January 1, 2021 timeline.
The Region of Peel’s Service Modernization Term of Council Priority, 2015-2019 includes the redevelopment plan for the Region of Peel’s main external website: peelregion.ca and main intranet: Pathways. The goal is to have both websites fully compliant to the AODA standard, and with content being mobile enabled, searchable, findable and usable.
A user-centered design process is the methodology used to redevelop our external and internal sites. This approach results in design solutions that will accomplish the program/service goal while also addressing the needs of the user. Persons with disabilities are consulted as part of the design work.
The Region of Peel’s new digital standard embeds AODA compliance into the standard. Digital accessibility experts are consulted and research is carried out to continually inform the Region of Peel’s digital standard and to ensure the Region of Peel is following the most up-to-date, recommended digital accessibility practices.
The Region of Peel will ensure that technology and software procurements include provisions that all new citizen-facing applications/systems will meet WCAG Level AA compliance.
New or altered internally developed solutions and/or any configuration/customization of those citizen-facing systems will be reviewed and tested by persons with a variety of disabilities.
A brand standards style guide has been launched which will define standards and general practices for all staff for digital and print media pertaining to the new Region of Peel brand. The style guide incorporates accessibility considerations including font, style, colour, contrast, and use of language.
Webinars will be made more accessible by adding live captioning/closed captions for persons with hearing impairment. For time-based media such as live webinars or conferences, pre-recorded audio/video formats will be made available.
The Region of Peel will also look for alternative methods to convey and communicate information to residents based on their abilities. Some highlights include:
The Region of Peel will continue to ensure that our programs and services are easy to navigate and that our customers are given options. It is important that persons of all abilities are able to access our programs and services without encountering barriers. Some of the improvements to ensure a positive customer experience will be:
The Region of Peel plans, manages and delivers quality, integrated human services and resources that invest in people to enable participation in the changing community and the economy. This is accomplished by ensuring that all of our services are client centred, value added, effective, and efficient. Some of those services include Ontario Works, children’s services, social housing and homelessness.
Accessibility is critical to ensuring that those most vulnerable in society have access to the programs and services that will assist them to thrive in our community.
As System Manager, Regional Council leads the implementation of Region of Peel’s 10-year Housing and Homelessness Plan to achieve the goal of “Everyone Has a Home and Homelessness Is Eliminated”. Accessibility is incorporated into Peel’s affordable housing projects and programs to ensure that Peel residents have the housing supports they need to assist them throughout the various stages of their lives.
Peel’s Adult Day Service (ADS) is a service for those who are socially isolated or feeling lonely or who need assistance and/or supervision with day-to-day activities. Accessibility is crucial as these programs serve a vulnerable sector of our community.
ADS is committed to planning and continually improving service delivery. Some of the tasks to be undertaken include:
Thriving is about building communities that are integrated, safe and complete. Some of the priorities in this area of focus that will improve accessibility include:
TransHelp, the Region of Peel’s accessible transportation service, delivers over half a million trips every year. This number will only increase as the population ages. The Region of Peel is committed to continuous improvement and removal of barriers.
Working with the TransHelp Advisory Committee, TransHelp will develop a travel training program to assist residents in successfully navigating conventional transportation services when found to be the most appropriate mode. TransHelp plans to develop the capacity to identify and provide the appropriate level of Travel Training (group or one-on-one). Travel training will be provided prior to accessing services on TransHelp for all modes of conventional transportation within Peel, including Brampton and Mississauga Transit, and cross-border services with GO bus and GO train. Additionally, TransHelp will be working with conventional transit partners to develop consistent communications regarding accessible features on the public transit systems in Peel, as well as consistent outreach programs for residents interested in learning about how to use transit in Peel.
TransHelp has begun the plan for the Presto implementation.
PRESTO is an electronic fare card system for payments; it uses a contactless smartcard designed and developed by the government of Ontario, GO Transit, and nine municipalities. The goal is to create a seamless regional transit fare card system for users. Presto removes barriers to cross-boundary travel.
As TransHelp transitions towards an integrated system with the conventional transit partners, it is necessary that a single fare be paid for each trip, regardless how it is delivered. Fare agreements need to be developed to ensure that only one fare is paid by passengers, even if their journey is provided by multiple transit systems.
According to the World Health Organization, persons with disabilities are more susceptible to suffer from abuse and mistreatment. In consideration of this, TransHelp will investigate the installation of cameras on TransHelp vehicles to help protect residents, improve safety, and security. This initiative follows suit with other large municipalities, including Brampton and Mississauga, who already have cameras installed on their transit vehicles.
TransHelp is upgrading the scheduling software - Trapeze - to allow for online booking.
Using an online booking system allows residents to access TransHelp 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Residents who book their own reservations are more likely to show up. When residents need to cancel their trips, their spot automatically opens online, giving another resident the chance to book it. By optimizing reservations, we will be able to deliver a higher number of on-demand requests, while increasing user satisfaction and reducing costs.
PAP began as a small pilot project in 2009 and was meant to meet the needs of those with cognitive disabilities travelling to day programs that fell outside of TransHelp’s mandate.
Staff will continue to meet with Central West & Mississauga Halton Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs) to explore service delivery options. The Region of Peel is pursuing partnerships to implement a program that will enable residents to secure community access and supports that will help them thrive.
The Region of Peel will continue to work closely in partnership with CNIB to identify intersections that require upgrades to meet AODA requirements. Upgrades include the installation of tactile plates, straightening out of crosswalks where possible, installation of Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS) pushbuttons, and making pushbutton poles easily accessible.
The Region of Peel will review and update procedures for preventative and emergency maintenance of the accessible elements as required under the Design of Public Spaces Standard. As well, the Region of Peel will review and update procedures for dealing with temporary disruptions when accessible elements are not in working order.
The Region of Peel is committed to removing barriers and to ensuring that all our Region-owned and leased properties and buildings are accessible. This is achieved through: the professional management of our facilities; ensuring that our programs have the appropriate facilities to support activities in a safe and secure manner; and ensuring industry best practices and opportunities for improvement. Ongoing consultation with the Region’s Accessibility Advisory Committee assists in identifying and breaking down barriers.
As mentioned in the Living section, the Adult Day Service (ADS) program will review challenges and risks for residents and staff regarding identified barriers and interventions. These initiatives will include improving way finding for existing and new buildings and ensuring direct access to exterior pick up and drop off for residents and families to promote accessibility and ease of access. Other improvements include exploring options for client-regulated temperatures in rooms depending on individual client comfort levels and needs.
A new fully accessible TransHelp facility will be built in Mississauga and will include barrier-free features, such as: automatic door operators, barrier-free washrooms, showers, and an elevator.
Healthy Sexuality clinic locations and other regionally- delivered services will be reviewed to ensure accessibility and removal of barriers, e.g. including braille on washroom signs, gender neutral signage accessible to our transgender and non-binary identifying residents. Health Protection will modify and expand the disclosure program which currently offers signage indicating inspection information results for food premises, personal service settings and infection prevention and control investigations. Specific criteria will be developed for where the signs are posted and how the information is displayed to ensure accessibility.
Peel’s Art Gallery Museum and Archives (PAMA) is committed to offering family-friendly services. Accessibility is taken into consideration when planning exhibits, programs and services so that persons of all abilities are able to participate. Some of the initiatives underway to further remove barriers include:
Leading is about becoming a government that is future- oriented and accountable. It means setting the pace to address changes in an evolving community. Some of the priorities in this area of focus that will improve accessibility include:
Corporate Strategy Office:
The Corporate Strategy Office enables the identification, prioritization, and execution of strategic priorities. Their work to advance our organization would not be possible without the continued support and engagement of teams across the organization. Through our mission of Working with You, the Region of Peel will advance its organizational capacity to continue to meet the growing needs of the Peel community.
In July 2017, The Region of Peel issued its first Community for Life Annual Report and Dashboard. The Report provided a full and transparent look at the Region’s progress towards its vision of Community for Life and highlighted key areas of improvement. Future Community for Life Annual Reports, will reflect the progress the Region makes with respect to its Strategic Plan.
Culture and Inclusion:
A new Office of Culture and Inclusion (‘the Office’) has been created at the Region of Peel. To help realize the vision of Community for Life and achieve the outcomes of the Region of Peel Strategic Plan, the Office provides dedicated leadership for the Region of Peel’s Culture and Inclusion Strategy. This Strategy encompasses culture, inclusion and diversity initiatives, and champions an inclusive organization and work environment.
At the Region of Peel, culture refers to the shared values that define our organization and that we strive to reflect in our behaviours. As a result, the Regional values have been refreshed as follows:
One of the objectives of the Culture and Inclusion Strategy is to reduce barriers that impact physical and psychological well-being. Strategic initiatives will focus on: mental health education, compliance with AODA and education and awareness.
Workforce Enablement Program (WEP):
The Workforce Enablement Program aims to provide employees with the right business tools and capabilities to help them contribute to the Region of Peel’s overall commitment to advancing employee collaboration while improving security, lowering costs and realizing efficiencies in workforce management and customer service, including improving accessibility to Regional technologies. These Regional tools and technologies will enable a more modern and accessible workforce.
For example, using cost-effective technologies, employees will be able to work securely and productively from any location.
Use of technology will help eliminate barriers and make it possible for employees to participate in meetings remotely and contribute equally.
Workspace Design Standards and the Future Accommodation Strategy and Plan (FASP):
The Future Accommodation Strategy and Plan (FASP) directly supports the Create a Modernized Workplace Term of Council Priority. More specifically, FASP is a component of the Flexible and Adaptive Space and Equipment strategy, with a primary focus on physical office workspace, including furniture.
The FASP objective is to modernize the planning and utilization of office space and equipment to support the workforce in delivering on outcomes more effectively, by increasing:
The Future Accommodation Strategy & Plan (FASP) Team will be engaging the Accessibility Advisory Committee to seek comment on the draft Workspace Design Standards. These Standards will influence all future FASP-related renovations.
Employment:
The Region of Peel is committed to recruiting persons of all abilities. This objective will be further expanded to include the recruitment of volunteers and students with varying abilities.
We will work with community partners and internal support services so that volunteers and students are able to engage, participate and have a meaningful experience. These actions will create and promote a more inclusive workplace environment.
Workplace Health & Safety:
We strive to foster development of a healthy, safe and inclusive workplace culture. The Workplace Health, Safety & Wellness Team has been working to advance the Region of Peel’s disability management and health and safety programs. Priorities include:
Disability Management
Their feedback will help identify any barriers and opportunities for improvement.
Health & Safety
The Region of Peel is a government that is future-oriented and accountable. Accessibility planning at the Region of Peel and the requirements under the AODA support the Region of Peel’s long-term Strategic Plan. Accessibility is embedded in many key strategies so as to create a community that is accessible and inclusive for all residents throughout the various stages of their lives.
The Region of Peel 2018-2025 Multi-Year Accessibility Plan sets out the path to an accessible Peel by reducing and eliminating barriers, making Peel a community of choice, and one where persons of all abilities can actively participate and have a sense of belonging. It is through Working with You to remove barriers, that we all contribute to building a Community for Life.