Programs & Services > Social Reform > Young families in Toronto
Prospects for young families in Toronto
A collaborative research project of the Family Service Association of Toronto and the Community Social Planning Council of Toronto.
The goal of the project, completed in July 2004, was to assess the impact of social and economic circumstances on young families and to build support for public policies that can assist them.
The research work involved young families headed by individuals under the age of 35, including married or common-law couples with children, single parents, same-sex couples and newcomer families from Toronto. The project team also worked with staff from community agencies, policy makers, academics and others.
The project built on findings of the 1994-1995 research on young families conducted by Family Service Association of Toronto, the (then) Social Planning Council of Metropolitan Toronto and the Child Poverty Action Group.
Community voices on work, education, training:
"You don't go to work, you don't get paid. You don't have a choice. You just don't eat that week."
"With this OSAP business, it's a bunch of people graduating with a diploma and a bankruptcy. We cannot raise our children as single mothers with this debt. We cannot."
"Transportation costs too much in this city when you're poor. My daughter stayed home from school yesterday because we had no money for TTC."
Community voices on child care:
"The most important asset this society has is our children and yet working for or with children is an undervalued occupation. They constantly say that children are our future but they don't want to invest any money in them."
"I found a job and honestly I left my kids alone because I had to survive. I had to make money. Every time I worked, I was crying and stressed about what was happening with my kids."
"It seems like the government doesn't want people to have children. The government just isn't child friendly. They are against it."
Community voices on housing:
"A lot of place won't accept you just because you are on welfare. When we went apartment hunting, as soon as you say social assistance, they look at you like you are from outer space. They hang up on you. It took us a long time to find an apartment."
"It's supposed to be a renter's market. Trust me, it's not a renter's market. The people who are telling you that are the rich people."
This project was conducted over a year and had three phases:
Phase one: Assessment of the economic circumstances of young families in Toronto, the range of available social support, and the impacts on family life. To this end, the team organized eight focus groups with young families throughout Toronto.
Phase two: Development and release of a discussion paper analyzing a range of social and economic forces that have an impact on young families and proposing policy options on how to support young families.
The discussion paper was the basis for three roundtables held in Toronto, Scarborough and North York with front-line and community workers, administrators from social agencies, policy makers, foundations and academics working in a range of areas related to young families. The roundtables helped the participants reach a deeper understanding of what is happening to young families in Toronto and define policy directions that can address their needs and aspirations.
Phase three: Development
and release of research reports:
Falling
Fortunes: A Report on the Status of Young Families in Toronto(PDF file, Acrobat
Reader required) 
The report examines the main economic and social trends affecting young families
today and compares them to those faced by young families over the past two
decades. It also sets out recommendations for action based on the policy roundtables
and focus groups.
Community
Voices: Young Parents in Toronto Speak Out About Work, Community
Services and Family Life (PDF file)
A report including the findings of the focus groups with young families in
Toronto.
For more information contact Laurel Rothman, Program Manager, at 416-595-9230 ext. 228
Prospects for Young Families in Toronto is funded by the United Way of Greater Toronto's Community Research Grants and the Atkinson Foundation.
