If your child or youth has a disability and wants to go to one of the Recreation and Culture or Children and Youth programs, Junior Inclusion Services (JIS) can provide free, limited, one-on-one support to them.

Programs

JIS support can be scheduled in the following programs:

July-August

September-June

Steps to take

  1. Contact us (email) or call (807) 626-6565 for questions, or to be put on a request list.
  2. Fill out our Participant Intake Form.
  3. Depending on program interests and timeline, we will walk you through next steps.

Things to know

Scheduling
  • JIS is free
  • Children/youth are scheduled in a first come first serve order
  • Support is scheduled for a single session (fall/winter/spring/summer) at a time
  • Contact us before you register for a program
  • Children can access up to 40 hours of support in the summer and up to 20 hours of support in fall/winter/spring sessions
  • Support is scheduled based on child/youth need and staff availability

Home visits
  • Due to COVID-19 home visits will be conducted at the location of the program or over Facetime.
  • Home visits are scheduled before your child/youth comes to our program
  • Perfect time to ask questions and for staff to meet your child/youth
  • Most often within two weeks of program start date
  • Must be within City limits
  • Can be at a home, coffee shop etc.

Frequently Asked Questions 
  • What can I expect from JIS support? 

    • Support is based on the needs of a child, and can range from physical, to social, to emotional support. JIS staff will also offer personal care support if necessary. Note that support from a JIS Facilitator is one-to-one, and we do not offer two-to-one support.

  • Is financial aid available for the programs?
    • JIS does not provide financial support for the programs we support in. Check out PRO Kids for information on financial support for children in recreation.

  • Does JIS provide transportation to and from programming?  

    • JIS does not provide any means of transportation to programming. Staff will meet participants on-site for support. 

JIS Quarterly Newsletter

Personal Support Workers
  • Our programs welcome Personal Support Workers to attend the program with a child who needs extra support!
  • We recommend you call the program ahead of time, so that we can help with any adaptions, information sharing and help create a welcoming environment for the child and their PSW.
  • Please review our PSW Information Package for some helpful information! 

More resources for children with disabilities

Over 18

If your youth is 19 or older, Inclusion Services provides support in Recreation Programs.

Interested in being a part of our team?

If you are interested in applying to work in our Programs during the school year or as a part of our summer staff team, visit the City of Thunder Bay Jobs page for job descriptions and application forms.

If you require a PDF in an accessible format, please email our Municipal Accessibility Specialist.

 

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