REPORT. General Committee. For Information. DATE: September 2gth, 2009 REPORT TITLE: PEEL DATA CENTRE: PRESENTING DATA BY SERVICE DELIVERY AREAS FROM:

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1 c/ Wohkilcq foh you General Committee REPORT For Information DATE: September 2gth, 2009 REPORT TITLE: PEEL DATA CENTRE: PRESENTING DATA BY SERVICE DELIVERY AREAS FROM: Norma Trim, Chief Financial Officer and Commissioner of Corporate Services OBJECTIVE The purpose of this report is to introduce the Region of Peel's Service Delivery Areas (SDAs) and present the online profiles that will be launched on the Peel Data Centre (PDC) website. This report discusses the major steps taken to define SDAs, the three components of the online profiles, and future use of these geographies. DISCUSSION I. Background Over the past two years, members of the Success By 6 Peel Evaluation and Accountability Committee, which includes Region of Peel staff, have embarked on an ambitious undertaking to define Service Delivery Areas (SDAs) in Peel. SDAs are sub-municipal geographies which aim to support service planning and delivery. As such, they will allow service providers to access data and maps that are relevant to the local geographies they serve. The SDAs were first defined using a series of 2006 Census characteristics to ensure relative homogeneity across the SDA and later improved with a broad service provider consultation across sectors in Peel. Municipality-based population thresholds were also established for each SDA.

launched on the Peel Data Centre (PDC) website. This report discusses the major steps taken to define SDAs, the three components of the online profiles, and future use of these geographies.

2 MA-Al -2- This project addresses four of the five goals set forth in the Strategic Plan for the Region of Peel: 1. Deliver citizen-focused services 3. Provide human services that meet current and changing needs 4. Manage the impacts of growth on the community and Regional services 5. Strive for excellence as a municipal government Furthermore, this project also falls in line with all four of the PDC's Primary Goals: 1. Easy and timely access to the demographic, socio-economic and forecasting information requested by Peel Departments, the public and agencies; 2. A commonsense approach to data gathering; 3. A single, reliable source of data; and 4. A forum for sharing information and analysis of demographic and socio-economic trends in the Region. 2. Findings Seventy-one (71) service delivery areas were created. The primary focus was to identify local geographies with the aim of supporting service planning. These will likely have to be revised with the release of Census as some geographiesj populations will exceed the set population thresholds by that time. This undertaking will start in 2012 when census data is released. This focus should be maintained in future definitions of geographies. 3. The Product: Online Profiles The launch of the SDA section of the PDC comes with three separate, but related, products which are available online through the PDC website ( These are: a) Census Data Tables These data tables showcase year 2001, year 2006, and percent change census data on five main data categories: i) Demographics ii) Language Ethnicity and Migration iii) Education, Employment and Income iv) Housing v) Transportation Online tables focus on both key Census indicators and indicators relevant to the Early Years Section. b) Downloadable Fact Sheets: Seventy-five (75) downloadable fact sheets (in pdf format) have been created for all seventy-one (71) SDAs, the three local area municipalities and Peel Region. The purpose of municipal/regional fact sheets is to provide a point of reference for comparability purposes to service providers looking at a particular SDA profile. The Fact Sheets comprise three main sections: i) General Section: covers select indicators such as family structure, countries of origin for recent immigrants, highest level of education, income, and

Strive for excellence as a municipal government Furthermore, this project also falls in line with all four of the PDC's Primary Goals: 1.

3 MPI-Plri -3- knowledge of official languages. A detailed map is also included to facilitate the readers' orientation to the SDA boundaries. ii) Early Years Section: covers a number of indicators for children 0-6 years of age such as the number of children aged 0-6 years in each age category, the number of families with and without children, the labour force and employment rates of parents with children, the number and category of visible minority status, and the prevalence of children living in low income. iii) Glossary: the glossary provides concise and easy-to-read definitions for each of the census terms covered in the Fact Sheets. c) Interactive Maps 4. Future Direction CONCLUSION A cutting-edge feature to the PDC website is the use of the Google maps software to locate, by postal code or SDA number, the boundaries and data of a specified SDA. Additionally, Peel-based services such as libraries, child care sites, police stations, and community centres, are available for users to add to the printable maps. Users can thus customize the maps to highlight the availability of services in a specified SDA or obtain driving directions to their service of interest. For those using public transit, a link to Mississauga's and Brampton's online trip planners is provided. a) Early Development lnstrument (EDI): The 2007 ED1 results will be presented by SDA in an upcoming Success By 6 Peel report. The Early Development Instrument (EDI) is one source of information used by Peel service providers to assess their community's ability to support children. It reflects developmental outcomes and milestones that children should be able to achieve and is a tool that helps communities understand their effectiveness in preparing children for Grade 1. The analysis at a SDA level will give service providers the most in-depth information with regards to children's developmental readiness for school. b) Future Presentations to the Peel community: The new SDA online profiles available on the PDC will be presented at the Success By 6 Peel 2009 Annual General Meeting on November 10. Communications efforts by both the Region of Peel and Success By 6 Peel will be made to advise media groups and local stakeholders about this new online tool. Training opportunities will be sought to build local capacity for service providers across the Region on how to use this tool to its full potential. Evidence-based decision-making is instrumental in the planning, provision, and delivery of services. Therefore, Service Delivery Areas (SDAs) will strongly support service providers in better understanding the communities they serve. Additionally, the interactive map section of the online profiles will support service providers' understanding and in turn residents, to find near-by services they may need to access. The addition of the Early Years Section is the first in a potential series of Special Topic categories. The Special Topic categories will allow this online tool to continue to grow in order to better suit the needs of a wide variety of population groups (i.e., seniors, people with disabilities, low-income groups). The Region of Peel recognizes the need for strong communities and the

children, the labour force and employment rates of parents with children, the number and category of visible minority status, and the prevalence of children living in low income.

4 MA-A!-4- wide-array of service providers that assist them. By assisting service providers, the Region of Peel is contributing to improve communities. Staff will continue to update Regional Council on future direction and service provider response to these online profiles. Norma Trim Chief Financial Officer and Commissioner of Corporate Services Approved for Submission: D. Szwarc, Chief Administrative Officer For further information regarding this report, please contact Arvin Prasad, Director, Planning Policy & Research at extension 4251 or via at ca Authored By: Federico Cartin-Arteaga, Planner and Seema Taneja, Researcher A c. Legislative Services

Norma Trim Chief Financial Officer and Commissioner of Corporate Services Approved for Submission: D.

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6 APPENDIX II APPENDIX I1

7 APPENDIX Ill APPENDIX Ill

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