Town of Kincardine
Kincardine municipal staff is being directed to change a recreational program policy that would enable the municipality to enter into an agreement with Bruce County to help families access funding for activities.
Council moved forward with the staff recommendation to repeal the Recreation and Leisure Financial Assistance Program Policy, which would then allow staff to enter into a new agreement with the county for the Child Activity Assistance Program (CAAP).
The move allows potentially more families to access the $5,000 annual program.
“One of the things that I think would be important is for us to look at our own programming first, and make sure that it’s as accessible as possible,” Councillor Beth Blackwell said during discussion, adding that the municipality should consider streamlining the registration process.
“[Something] I can speak on as someone who works in social services is that many of the individuals that I have the pleasure of working with in my own work is that they get access to funding, but… They can’t use it, because these funding programs often require that you either purchase it up front and receive reimbursement, or you jump through a lot of hoops in advance to make sure that you get it all lined up so that when registration opens you’ve already been approved for the funding, which is quite challenging, and if it’s not approved, you miss out on registration.”
Bruce County families can access the CAAP program for dependent children under the age of 18, and receive up to $500 per child, per year.
Staff have had discussions with Bruce County staff regarding Kincardine partnering with their assistance program, and the municipality can stipulate that their $5,000 can be specifically designated for approved residents from the Municipality of Kincardine.
Bruce County staff have also indicated that they can keep track of the number of Municipality of Kincardine residents that benefit from this $5,000 program and provide an annual report on how many residents who are supported by the funding.
Blackwell’s motion, which was moved by council, requested that staff bring back a report later this year that focuses on the scope of the municipality’s own program.
