Community Outreach
Overview
Youth and their family/caregivers may meet with a CTYS Community Outreach staff on a regular basis in the community, and/or at the CTYS office for flexible and accessible youth engagement, counselling, and case management support.
Am I Eligible? Youth ages 12-17 years and their family/caregivers who reside within the CTYS catchment* area are eligible for this service. Youth may present with school avoidance, depression, anxiety, complex needs etc. Youth and families often need support navigating multiple services, have complex needs, and have had difficulty finding a service that is a ‘good fit’ in the past.
*(catchment area refers to the specific area(s) of the city that our programs serve – please contact CTYS Community Intake for more information)
Community Outreach offers increased accessibility and flexibility for youth and families who have found difficulty connecting to services in the past. The program is intensive and diverse in approach offering therapy, youth engagement and case management. Meetings may occur in the community or at the CTYS office. Evening appointments are available.
Community Outreach workers may use experiential, eclectic, evidence based and evidence informed approaches to support youth and families. Services are offered through an attachment-based and trauma informed lens.
Community Outreach workers may include other key individuals in service including educational staff, physicians, or other significant people in the youth/family’s lives to support a broader context of support.
In an attachment-based approach, everyone participating is invited to consider how their relationships with one another and how they interact with one another might impact their feeling connected, safe, secure and getting their needs met within their family. Attachment based services strengthen relationships to support the growth of wellness.
A trauma informed approach at CTYS involves an acknowledgement that we are all living within and impacted by systems/contexts (e.g., transphobia, systemic racism, socio-economic disparities etc.) that may have impacted our mental health wellness and ability to thrive day to day. Youth and families may have also experienced specific events in their lives that have led to ongoing distress. A trauma informed approach highly values pacing, collaboration, choice, and empowerment during service delivery.
How do I get connected? Interested youth and families should contact CTYS Community Intake to discuss more at [email protected] and/or 416-924-2100 ext. 245.