About Us |
Introduction
The Niagara Peninsula Children's Centre is a non-profit charitable organization. Our main purpose is to provide programs and services to enable children and youth with physical or communicative challenges to maximize their independence in their activities of daily living and to have the highest quality of life possible. The Centre serves the entire Region of Niagara.
A Board of Directors consisting of 11 volunteer members from the Niagara Region governs the affairs of the Centre. The Management Staff of the Centre consists of an Executive Director, three clinical managers and one administrative manager. There are approximately 90 employees, most of them being rehabilitation therapists with specialized pediatric training.
Brief Background of the Centre
In 1952, the May Court Club of St. Catharines provided half-day per week parent relief programs for children with cerebral palsy. Originally working out of a church basement, the program subsequently was operated out of the St. Catharines General and Hotel Dieu Hospitals.
In 1964, through the efforts of the May Court Club, several area Rotary Clubs, and the Port Colborne Lions Club, the Niagara Peninsula Crippled Children's Society was established. The Centre opened at its present location in 1969; in 1978 a major addition was completed, incorporating a therapeutic pool and a gym. To meet increased space demands, five portables were added in 1990, while another major redevelopment was being planned. This redevelopment, which was completed in 1996, provides the Centre with adequate, up-to-date space and equipment to serve some 3,000 children and their families each year.
During the past several years, there has been an increasing emphasis on delivering services in the community where children need strategies to be independent, and where they live and participate in activities. Often the Centre’s therapists work with pre-school teachers, families, and staff from other agencies to develop, implement and achieve goals for the child.
Currently, the 21 Children’s Treatment Centres (CTCs) in Ontario, of which the Niagara Peninsula Children's Centre is one, are mostly funded by and responsible to the Ministry of Children and Youth Services. The Centre also receives some funding from the Regional Municipality of Niagara, the provincial Ministry of Community and Social Services and our Foundation.
The Vision/Mission of the Niagara Peninsula Children's Centre is
“Children with special needs at their best”
Our mandate is to maximize the independence of all children with a physical or communicative disability, and to enable children with special needs to enjoy a high quality of life. To that end, we have the following “core” services:
• Physiotherapy, which focuses on the gross motor and functional mobility (the getting around) of the child
• Occupational therapy, which assists children in maximizing independence in daily activities (dressing, grooming, attending school or pre-school, eating, bathing)
• Speech and language services, which helps children with speech, language, voice, swallowing and feeding difficulties
• Augmentative and Alternative Communication, which provides custom designed systems for those children whose written and/or spoken communication ability would not otherwise fill their need on a daily basis
• Family Services (Social Work), which provides support to families from when they are first aware their child has a disability, and through the process of assessment, treatment, follow-up. Social Workers also support families in obtaining and coordinating the various services their child will require.
In order to access any of our services, a child normally requires a doctor’s referral, except in the case of a pre-school aged child being referred for speech or language only, who can be referred directly by his or her parents.
Additional programs include an on-site school, pre-school resource programs, a variety of clinics, a feeding assessment service, and a gait analysis clinic. Please note that this list is not exhaustive, and that our range of services is described in the “Programs” section of this website.