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Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction
Community – Government Collaboration on Policy
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Poverty in Hamilton
• 2001 Hamilton Poverty Matrix: 20% of Hamilton’s residents
are living in poverty. Rates are even higher for children under
14 (24%), seniors age 65 and older (24%), the Aboriginal
community (37%), and recent immigrants (50%).
• This is unacceptable. We stand together as a community
to find solutions. (Source: Hamilton Poverty Matrix, 2005)
• 2006 Statistics Canada Data – 18.1% of Hamilton’s residents
are living in poverty. Children 12 and under 23.4%. This is still
unacceptable.
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
The Roundtable
• Formed in May 2005
• Co-convened by the City of Hamilton and Hamilton
Community Foundation
• Cross-sectoral table with members from business,
government, voluntary sectors and people living in poverty
• Financial Support: City of Hamilton, Hamilton Community
Foundation, The. J.W. McConnell Family Foundation, The
Charles Johnson Charitable Fund, Corporate Partners
including Pictorvision, Dofasco, Turkstra Lumber, Mark’s Work
Wearhouse
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Roundtable Cultural Shifts
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Shift emphasis from alleviation to prevention
Think comprehensively and tackle root causes
Work collaboratively across sectors
Abandon blame and acknowledge we are all
part of the problem and part of the solution
• Emphasize innovation, risk taking and longterm change
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Quality Early
Learning and Parenting
Skills through education,
Activity and recreation
Targeted Skills
Development (PSE)
Employment
Asset Building
Wealth Creation
Tackling Root Causes: Affordable Housing, Food Security, Income Security, Accessible Transportation, Safe Neighbourhoods
Hamilton Roundtable for
Poverty Reduction
How We will do Our Work:
Move from Alleviation to Prevention Tackle Root Causes Work collaboratively across sectors
Abandon Blame – all can be part of the solution
Emphasize innovation, risk taking, long term change
Linking and
Facilitating Role
Strategic Poverty Focus
Community Engagement
Change and Action
Learning and Accountability
Changes in:
Structures
Processes
Policies
Indicators
Community-Level Macro Strategy
Critical Points of Investment Strategy
Community-Lead Initiatives
Knowledge
Transfer:
Outputs
Outcomes
Evaluation
Learning
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Four Roles which Drive the Work of the Roundtable
Strategic Poverty Focus
• Develop a shared poverty aspiration and outcomes
• Keep the focus on strategic community change
Broad Community Engagement
• Engage the community in creating solutions
• Ensure civic space for discussion across sectors
Supporting Change and Action
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Identify barriers that block progress and provide solutions
Help link organizations to strategies
Leverage resources and attract investment
Provide administrative support to continue moving forward
Learning and Communication
• Facilitate the exchange of knowledge
• Communicate to the community about poverty and change strategies
• Measure progress and report to the community
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Starting Point Strategy – March 2007
Aspiration:
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Three Strategies at the core of the work plan:
 The Big Picture:The HRPR Macro Strategy focusing on Policy
and Systems Level Changes
 Leveling the Playing Field for all Children: Five Critical Points of
Investment
 Collective Leadership: Local Strategies and Community
Solutions - led by community partners
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction
Leadership and Governance
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Roundtable Governance
• Roundtable – 42 members, cross sectoral leadership including
10 low income, citizen leaders
• Over 400 individuals and groups engaged in poverty reduction
efforts across he community
Committees and Working Groups
• Steering Committee
• Youth Voice Against Poverty
• Governance Working Group
• Policy Working Group
• Evaluation and Learning Working Group
• Government Engagement Working Group
• Neighbourhood Development Strategy Working Group
• Starting Point Partners
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Engaging the Community
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Community Engagement: Key Success Factors
• A broad range of people are participating and engaged
• People are thoughtfully trying to solve poverty in
Hamilton
• The engagement process creates vision, achieves
results, creates movement and change
• Different sectors are involved in the process
• There is a focus on collaboration and social inclusion
• The community determines its priorities
• There is a balance between engagement processes
and action
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Community Engagement –
Results to December 2007
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Hamilton Spectator – 3 year editorial commitment (2006-2008)
400 articles, editorials and letters to the editor
5 Hamilton Stories published by the Caledon Institute of Social Policy
11 community consultations
2 community wide events and 84% retention rate
5 collaborative tables
91 locally led community solutions
33,787 individuals connected at presentations, meetings & events
300 citizens engaged in neighbourhood planning process
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Policy and Systems Change
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Policy and Systems Change – Approach
• Identify core policy areas
• Host a Policy Working Group and Government
Engagement Working Group
• Develop linkages with Caledon,Vibrant Communities
and other partners
• Identify opportunities for policy influence at the
municipal, provincial and federal levels
• Identify short and long term strategies
• Develop an evaluation approach to policy work
Policy Leadership
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Policy Working Group
• Table of community leaders and
roundtable members with a
specific policy focus on poverty
reduction
• Meet monthly since June 2007
• Lead on Briefing Notes
• Hosted pre-election meetings
with candidates – federal,
municipal, provincial
• Individual meetings with 5 area
MPs and MPPs and all city council
members and senior city staff
• In development – overarching
policy paper for Roundtable
Government Engagement
Working Group
• Senior staff from all three levels
of government – co-chaired by
City of Hamilton and MCSS
• Meeting since November 2007
• Currently in learning and
engagement phase – sharing
information around table about
investments aligned with HRPR
Critical Points of Investments
• Creation of synergies across
levels of government and
opportunities to exchange around
priorities
• High level of engagement –
continually adding in members
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Early Policy Results - Policy and Briefing Notes
• Who Lives in Poverty – September 2005
• Hamilton Poverty Matrix – September 2005
• Shared Governance – Government Learning Circle Article – March
2006 (Caledon Institute of Social Policy)
• HRPR Strategic Overview – June 2007
• Federal Government – 2008 Budget Submission
• Ontario Poverty Strategy – September 2007
• Government of Ontario – 2008 Pre-Budget Brief – January 2008
• Federal Government – Meeting with Minister Monte Solberg – Briefing
Note – February 2008
• Briefing Note: Statistics Canada – Income Release – May 2008
• Ontario Poverty Strategy – Questions and Answers – May 2008
Policy Change
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
 Policy Convening and Responses : Hamilton Child Care Wait List Strategy,
Immigration Strategy, Ontario Child Benefit, Every Child Plays, Hamilton Partners for
Healthy Weights, School Boards – Poverty and Equal Opportunities teams, Affordable
Transit Pass Pilot, Ontario Social Assistance Rates Board, Downtown Safety and
Security Report, Hamilton Economic Summit, Hamilton Pan Am Games Bid,
MetroLinx Transportation Consultation, Living Wage Research
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Policy Change Results:
• Return of Municipal Portion of the NCB Claw Back - $2 million to 6,
413 families
• Affordable Transit Pass Program for Low Income Workers - $500,000
to 1200 employees
• City of Hamilton adopts HRPR Aspiration as part of City Vision
• City of Hamilton Living Wage Procurement Policy –currently under
development
• Alignment with Immigration Strategy Table, Human Services Planning
Table and Jobs Prosperity Collaborative
• Increased alignment of City funding around poverty priorities
Tracking Policy Changes
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Collection of Weekly Results Data
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– What is Changing and HRPR Involvement Examples
Ontario Poverty Strategy Consultation – Half of the participants in Hamilton
were individuals living with low or limited incomes
Ontario Budget Release – sharing of information regarding Hamilton impact
from sources across City – municipal, agency, chamber
Ontario Social Assistance Rates Board Legislation – economic impact study
collaborative convened by HRPR with legal clinics, city staff, SPRC and economist
from McMaster University
Hamilton Economic Summit – representation and leadership from a number
of Roundtable and community leaders – prosperity/poverty key part of discussions
during the day
HRPR regularly invited to consultative tables in the community around
transportation, recreation, and arts and culture
Policy Influence – share information and resources with city staff regarding living
wage, Ontario Poverty Strategy, housing and homelessness, early years, education
Ontario Poverty
Reduction Plan
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
• Cabinet Committee on Poverty Reduction
• To develop a focused strategy for reducing poverty, including
associated indicators and targets
• Vision – focus on children through expanding opportunities,
real solutions to put people first, we all have a role to play and
poverty reduction is the right thing to do for families and
economy
• Changes already - Ontario Child Benefit, child care, early
learning education, health, skills training, minimum wage
increases, affordable housing, social assistance, newcomers
• Currently – launched website, series of invitation
consultations focusing on 6 questions, public consultations
hosted by local area MPPs
The Ontario Context
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
• Landscape is Crowded: Number of inter-connected poverty
advocacy organizations at the provincial level with focus on
Ontario Poverty Reduction Plan – Campaign 2000, SPNO,
Colour of Poverty, ISAC, ISARC,Vibrant Communities, United
Way, OMSSA, PRO
• Local Organizing: ISAC, SPNO and Colour of Poverty
received funding for local community organizing
• Existing Community Efforts: VC organized in Hamilton, KW
and Niagara with emerging efforts in many other communities
• Voice of low-income individuals not always present
• Next 6 Months: Intense efforts as groups position selves and
try to influence Ontario Poverty Reduction Plan
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Moving Forward – HRPR Next Steps
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
HRPR Next Steps – 2008 – 2009
• Continued Progress on Poverty Change Strategies
• Focus on Policy and Systems changes at the municipal, provincial and
federal levels including the Ontario Cabinet Committee on Poverty
Reduction, the Affordable Transit Pass, the Ontario Child Benefit, etc.
• Integration of the Neighbourhood Strategy into the work plan
including the recruitment of a City-wide committee focusing on
neighbourhoods and the development of neighbourhood launch pads
• Continued focus on community engagement with the Roundtable
including the support of starting point partners working groups, and
community tables
• Completion of the HRPR Evaluation Framework and development of
community indicators to report poverty reduction progress
• Continued linkages with Ontario and National partners including
Vibrant Communities and Caledon Institute of Social Policy
Making Hamilton the Best Place to Raise a Child
Website Resources
Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction ~ www.hamiltonpoverty.ca
Vibrant Communities ~ www.tamarackcommunity.ca
The Caledon Institute of Social Policy ~ www.caledoninst.org
Government of Ontario – Poverty Reduction Plan ~
www.ontario.ca/growingstronger