Developmental Services Council – Toronto (DS Council)

Developmental Services Council – Toronto (DS Council) is a voice for adults with developmental disabilities, their family members and community supporters.

An advisory group, we are a partner with the agencies funded by the Ministry of Children, Community & Social Services to deliver programs and services for adults with developmental disabilities.

We make recommendations to these partners from a client/consumer point of view. Most DS Council members are volunteers from the community:

• Persons with developmental disabilities (self-advocates)
• Families and caregivers of persons with developmental disabilities
• Interested community members Council also includes representatives from the service provider agencies and Developmental Services Ontario (DSO).

We work on educating the general public, agencies, media, and government about disabilities so that they understand us better”.

https://youtu.be/7_HRLrSRSGI

Mission

• Strengthen the voice of individuals with a developmental disability and their families and caregivers, by contributing to sector-wide planning and priority setting. 
• Provide recommendations and advice on communication and outreach strategies. 
• Gather information to identify service system gaps, issues and concerns. Work with our partners to address these.

Would you like to get involved?

We are always looking for people to get involved with DS Council – Toronto! 

DS Council – Toronto meets 9-12 times a year. Meetings take place downtown in the evening. Members may attend in person or virtually via Zoom or telephone. For members who attend in person, free parking is available. The meeting venue is TTC accessible and dinner is provided! 

Council meetings often include presentations by groups that support people with developmental disabilities and their families and caregivers. 

Help improve the quality of developmental services in Toronto and represent the voice and needs of this community! 

For more information, please contact DS Council – Toronto: 

DSCouncil.Toronto@gmail.com

Contact

• DSCouncil.Toronto@gmail.com
• FaceBook page
• Twitter
• Instagram

Mission

“We are a group of people from all walks of life who form a community circle of support where everyone feels comfortable and safe enough to share.

It’s a place for people with disabilities to meet new people, new friends and allies and talk about long-term solutions to issues that are important to us.

We work on educating the general public, agencies, media, and government about disabilities so that they understand us better”.

Meetings

Join us on the 2nd Saturday of each month on Zoom from 1pm-3pm!

2024 Meeting dates:

• January 13
• February 10
• March 9
• April 13
• May11
• June 8
• July 13
• August 10
• September 14
• October 19
• November 9
• December 14

We want to be a safe and supportive group. If there are barriers to you attending, let us know how we can help.

Contact

• abfgrouptoronto@gmail.com
• Facebook page

Guidelines

These Group Guidelines were made by the group, for the group. The Group Guidelines are here for you and for everyone else who comes to the group. When people follow these guidelines, Advocates for a Better Future is a place where everyone feels safe and respected.  

Each person is responsible for how they treat others. 

Everyone is expected to follow these guidelines. 

• ABF is a SAFE and SUPPORTED space. Treat everyone how you want to be treated. Treat everyone with respect. 
• No sexual harassment. Sexual harassment means making inappropriate sexual comments and touching without permission. 
• Treat everyone as equals. No discrimination and bullying. Discrimination means treating someone bad because of gender, disability, race, sexuality, religion, etc. Bullying means having power over somebody physically, emotionally and mentally. 
• Respect everyone’s culture, ethnicity and their native languages.
• If you need support, you can ask another group member or helper for help. You can take a break if you need space. 
• Communicate with respect. Listen to and learn from others. Respectful communication is not screaming, shouting or yelling. Wait your turn to talk and don’t interrupt. Stay focused on the group. 
• Respect people’s privacy and confidentiality. What happens here, stays here.  
• If someone threatens to harm themselves or someone else, we can call the police if we need to. 
• Respect other people’s boundaries. Respect people’s body, physical, emotional space and belongings. 
• Turn cellphones on vibrate. All calls should be made in the hall. If you are expecting an important call, let the group know before the meeting starts. For Zoom meetings, please mute your microphone to eliminate background noise.
• If you are coming late, come in quietly. Grab some food and take a seat.