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Culture of Resilience

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Accessibility

Classroom Celebrating Neurodiversity Community Consult

On September 7, 2023, Surrey Place was honoured to host our first Indigenous Community Consultation, where we were grateful to occupy office space at the Scarborough Hub building in Toronto. Our goal for the Indigenous Community Consult was to collaborate and receive community feedback for the Classroom Celebrating Neurodiversity curriculum and future objectives. Specializing in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) education and support, Surrey Place, in partnership with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and their Education Community Partnerships Program (ECPP), is creating a safe and unique day treatment classroom. We aspire to uphold Indigenous knowledge in the areas of youth health and educational development and address the separation and removal of young people from the land.

During the community consultation, we heard the importance of engaging traditional healers, sharing information, continuing to build relationships with the community, and creating cultural and spiritual safety in the classroom. Our future commitments include reaching out and connecting with an Indigenous healer to join the classroom, building a Working Group to engage with the community on policies and practices within the classroom, and continuing to connect through community engagement building activities.

Please review the full Community Consult Feedback Report, which includes fun details of our evening, uncensored community feedback and an outline of Surrey Place’s future commitments.

Orange Shirt Day fundraiser

As part of their journey with ReconciliACTION, students from our Classroom Celebrating Neurodiversity, a safe and inclusive learning environment for students with Indigenous and non-Indigenous ancestry who have self-identified with having Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) or suspect they have FASD, thoughtfully hand-designed a t-shirt for Orange Shirt Day 2023, that shares the story of Phyllis Webstad, residential school survivor and community leader, and promotes our responsibility in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Our students raised $6,720 in profit for the fundraiser stemming from a combination of t-shirt sales and pledges. Students sold t-shirts across Turtle Island including the U.S., and a few t-shirts even made their way to Europe and Mexico. The classroom team was supported by 2-Spirited People of the First Nations, to ensure the funds went to an Indigenous family in Toronto who could benefit from this fundraiser. 

Lunch & Learns and Spotlight Series

Throughout the fiscal year, the EDIA & Innovation department (formerly known as the Community, Partnership and Innovation department) hosted several enriching workshops and webinars to help Surrey Place staff and community become better informed. In July, they hosted a webinar entitled “From ‘Going Through It’ To ‘Growing Through It’”, discussing the unique challenges Black youth face and the importance of peer-led and designed mental health support. In September, they hosted a webinar called “Navigating Ableism Everyday,” which explored what ableism is and why we need to discuss it.

During Black History Month, the EDIA & Innovation team and the Communications team held a Lunch & Learn called “Beyond the Monolith: Navigating the Intersection of Blackness and Disability” with speaker Jheanelle Anderson, a Black disabled Social Worker and Researcher, whose work focuses on disability justice and research with communities at the intersection of Blackness, disability, and immigration. This presentation delved into the complexities of the disability landscape that often overlooks the unique experiences of Black people with disabilities, highlighting the interlocking systems of anti-Black racism and ableism.

Self-Identification Survey

In June 2023, the EDIA & Innovation department and People Services collaborated on our first Self-identification Equity Survey. The survey was created to assess Surrey Place’s current representation amongst staff and establish baseline data to identify gaps and ultimately improve diversity and inclusion throughout the organization. This includes rethinking our approach to recruitment, retention and talent development, and enhancing our decision-making process to be more equitable. Understanding Surrey Place’s demographic was the first step in our work towards becoming more data-driven and measurable with our EDIA efforts. We continue to work in partnership with staff on creating a more inclusive workplace.

Employee Experience

Employee Experience Survey

In December 2023, we conducted our annual Employee Experience survey with our third-party provider, Mercer. We had a higher participation rate than last year, with approximately 71% of staff providing feedback, while our overall employee engagement score was 73%, consistent with the previous year. The survey indicated staff felt positive improvements in areas such as company strategy and direction, work-life balance, and having the right tools and resources to do their jobs well. The survey also indicated some areas of opportunities relating to leadership and employees feeling energized in their roles. In the coming fiscal year, we plan to host focus groups to discuss these areas and develop workplace improvement projects.

Employee Experience Task Force

Our Employee Experience Task Force, comprising of non-management and management staff, was formed to address areas of improvement indicated in the 2022 Employee Experience Survey. Throughout this fiscal year, the task force focused on addressing staff’s wishes to learn more about various programs and services at Surrey Place. The group decided to host the very first “Surrey Place Internal Film Festival” in April 2024 to tap into the creativity of teams across the organization and provide staff an opportunity to become more familiar with our services and programs in a fun way.

By 2 months

Has your baby had their hearing screened? YES NO

By 6 months

Does the child?

Startle in response to loud noises? YES NO
Turn to where a sound is coming from? YES NO
Make different cries for different needs (hungry, tired)? YES NO
Watch your face as you talk? YES NO
Smile/laugh in response to your smiles and laughs? YES NO
Imitate coughs or other sounds such as ah, eh, buh YES NO

By 9 months

Does the child?

Respond to their name? YES NO
Respond to the telephone ringing or a knock at the door? YES NO
Understand being told no? YES NO
Get what they want through using gestures (reaching to be picked up)? YES NO
Play social games with you (Peek-a-Boo)? YES NO
Enjoy being around people? YES NO
Babble and repeat sounds such as babababa or duhduhduh? YES NO

By 12 months

Does the child?

Follow simple one-step directions (sit down)? YES NO
Look across the room to a toy when adult points at it? YES NO
Consistently use three to five words? YES NO
Use gestures to communicate (waves hi/bye, shakes head for no)? YES NO
Get your attention using sounds, gestures and pointing while looking at your eyes? YES NO
Bring you toys to show you? YES NO
Perform for social attention and praise? YES NO
Combine lots of sounds together as though talking (abada baduh abee)? YES NO
Show an interest in simple picture books? YES NO

By 18 months

Does the child?

Understand the meaning of in and out, off and on? YES NO
Point to more than 2 body parts when asked? YES NO
Use at least 20 words consistently? YES NO
Respond with words or gestures to simple questions (Where's teddy? What's that?)? YES NO
Demonstrate some pretend play with toys (gives teddy bear a drink, pretends a bowl is a hat)? YES NO
Make at least four different consonant sounds (p ,b, m, n, d, g, w, h)? YES NO
Enjoy being read to and sharing simple books with you? YES NO
Point to pictures using one finger? YES NO

By 2 years

Does the child?

Follow two-step directions (Go find your teddy bear and show it to Grandma.)? YES NO
Use 100 to 150 words? YES NO
Use at least two pronouns (you, me, mine)? YES NO
Consistently combine two to four words in short phrases (Daddy hat. Truck go down.)? YES NO
Enjoy being around other children? YES NO
Begin to offer toys to other children and imitate other children's actions and words? YES NO
Use words that are understood by others 50 to 60 per cent of the time? YES NO
Form words or sounds easily and without effort? YES NO
Hold books the right way up and turn the pages? YES NO
Read to stuffed animals or toys? YES NO
Scribble with crayons? YES NO

By 30 months

Does the child?

Understand the concepts of size (big/little) and quantity (a little/a lot, more)? YES NO
Use some adult grammar (two cookies, bird flying, I jumped)? YES NO
Use over 350 words? YES NO
Use action words such as run, spill, fall? YES NO
Participate in some turn-taking activities with peers, using both words and toys? YES NO
Demonstrate concern when another child is hurt or sad? YES NO
Combine several actions in play (puts blocks in the train and drives the train, drops the blocks off.)? YES NO
Put sounds at the beginning of most words? YES NO
Use words with two or more syllables or beats (ba-na-na, com-pu-ter, a-pple)? YES NO
Recognize familiar logos and signs involving print (Stop sign)? YES NO
Remember and understand familiar stories? YES NO

By 3 years

Does the child?

Understand who, what, where and why questions? YES NO
Create long sentences using five to eight words? YES NO
Talk about past events (trip to grandparents house, day at child care)? YES NO
Tell simple stories? YES NO
Show affection for favourite playmates? YES NO
Engage in multi-step pretend play (pretending to cook a meal, repair a car)? YES NO
Talk in a way that most people outside of the family understand what she/he is saying most of the time? YES NO
Have an understanding of the function of print (menus, lists, signs)? YES NO
Show interest in, and awareness of, rhyming words? YES NO
Read to stuffed animals or toys? YES NO
Scribble with crayons? YES NO

By 4 years

Does the child?

Follow directions involving three or more steps (First get some paper, then draw a picture and give it to Mommy)? YES NO
Use adult type grammar? YES NO
Tell stories with a beginning, middle and end? YES NO
Talk to try and solve problems with adults and with other children? YES NO
Show increasingly complex imaginary play? YES NO
Talk in a way that is understood by strangers almost all the time? YES NO
Generate simple rhymes (cat-bat)? YES NO
Match some letters with their sounds (letter b says buh, letter t says tuh)? YES NO