1. State of Play and Future Planning
Settlement Clusters
State of Play and Future Planning
John Biles
Acting Director, PNT Integration
September 2018

2. Table of Contents What are the clusters?
Why have we initiated this work?
What has been accomplished thus far?
What is planned for the future?
Challenges?
Opportunities?
Questions

3. What are the clusters? LGBTQ: - Positive Space Training
Groupings of providers across the 5 PNT jurisdictions who deliver similar services, provide specialized services to a potentially vulnerable clientele, or who have similar community/institutional characteristics
Similar Services
Vulnerable Clientele
Community / Institutional Characteristics
Language Assessment
Youth
SWIS
Critical Hours
Summer Programs
Small Centers
Language
Formal
Blended
Informal
Newcomer Women
Post-Secondary Institutions
Case Management
LGBTQ
LIPS
Community Connections
Volunteer Engagement
Mainstream Engagement
Connecting newcomers to Canadians
Disability
Francophone Services
Employment/Mentorship
- Employment Counselling
Employer Engagement
Refugees
Settlement in the North
Needs Assessment
Seniors
RAP
Information / Orientation
Support Services
Childminding
Transportation
Interpretation/Translation
Crisis Counselling
LGBTQ:
- Positive Space Training
- Safety Audit and Policy Review
- National Training Plan

4. Who is responsible for the clusters?
A member of the PNT Management Team has been tasked with leading the development of each cluster.
A steering committee comprised of representatives from SPOs across the region works with the PNT lead on developing and implementing a work plan for the cluster.
The annual host of the learning events (where applicable) develops an advisory body with local and regional representation to develop survey of needs from all relevant organizations/settlement staff which in turn guides the content of the learning events.
Internal working groups of IRCC program officers responsible for contribution agreements delivering similar services/serving similar clienteles, or with similar community/institutional characteristics are currently being formed.

5. Why have we initiated this work?
Inconsistencies in CAs for similar programming across 5 PNT jurisdictions.
Inconsistency in professional development opportunity across providers.
Inconsistency in service availability between large urban centers and smaller centers.
Very little previous work on outcomes undertaken.
Desire to enhance services for vulnerable populations.
Few opportunities existed in the past for PNT settlement agencies delivering similar services to connect across jurisdictional lines.
Both Ontario and BCY have utilized this approach to great effect in the past to build communities of practice, identify and generalize best practices, and to conduct evaluations to guide future service planning and delivery.
Opportunities for investment where priorities are identified.
“Winter is coming.”

6. What has been accomplished thus far?
Learning Events
Francophones (Winnipeg July 2018; Whitehorse August 2018; Calgary, Regina and Winnipeg Fall 2018)
Refugees/RAP (Lessons Learned 2016; Ottawa February 2017; Resettlement Day of Integration Summits 2017; PSR meeting Winnipeg December 2018)
Case Management (Winnipeg February 2017; Teleconference August 23, 2017; Lethbridge March 2018; Saskatoon October 2018)
Youth (Calgary March 2017; Regina June 2017)
Newcomer Women (Calgary March 2017); planned for Saskatoon 2019)
Small Centers (Brandon June 2017; Red Deer March 2018; Moose Jaw 2019)
LGBTQ (Calgary September 2017; Calgary March 2018)
Language (Edmonton 2018; Winnipeg May 2019)
Language Assessment (Winnipeg October 2017; Saskatoon October 2018)
Employment-related Services (Calgary March 2018)
Post-secondary institutions (teleconference September 2017; Swift Current 2019)
North (Yellowknife October 2016; Iqaluit December 2017; Whitehorse August 2018; NWT 2019)
LIPs (Calgary September 2016; Regina June 2017; Calgary March 2018; Bow Valley 2019)
Disability (Teleconference August 23, 2017; Best practices teleconference Fall 2018)
Health/Mental Health (Teleconferences August 23, 2017 and January 2018)
Seniors (Teleconference August 25, 2017)
Crisis Counselling (Teleconferences August 16, 2017 and Fall 2018)
Community connections, NARs and Information/Orientation clusters are in early stages. The results of other clusters’ work, particularly Case Management, will have a profound impact on these clusters.
Over the past couple of years, 17 of the clusters have had learning events and meetings that convened stakeholders from either the region or nationally.

7. What has been accomplished thus far?
Evaluations
Language Assessment (Immigrant Services Calgary, Calgary). Draft received.
Orientation (Altered Minds, Winnipeg). Draft received.
Summer Youth Programming (Saskatchewan Intercultural Association, Saskatoon). Final report available.
Settlement Practitioner Training and Accreditation Program (AAISA, Calgary). Final report available.
Communities of Practice
LIP Coordinator Base Camp
Small center coordinators established within each settlement umbrella organization
Annual northern summit

8. What has been accomplished thus far?
Standard needs assessment development for RAP agencies in each province.
Pilots undertaken in Calgary and Edmonton to enhance uptake of needs assessments.
Typology of case management approaches nearing completion.
Typology of community connections programming developed and being fine-tuned through service mapping exercises.
Three clusters have held national events (LGBTQ+, LIPs, and Small Centers).
IRCC has hired a number of students to help develop consistent approach to mapping across all clusters as well as metrics on current client usage.

9. What has been accomplished thus far (cont.)?
All funded organizations asked to complete professional development template.
Results rolled up.
Analysis undertaken to identify common requests.
Data reveals that:
There is inequity in how professional development funds are presently distributed.
Many service providers have difficulty articulating professional development needs and/or costing professional development opportunities.
There are many common themes that could be tackled at an aggregate regional, jurisdictional, or community level rather than agency by agency.
There is a need for some tailored professional development at the agency level.
Small centers / Northern providers require additional resources to be able to obtain professional development.

10. 4 Region-wide On-line Courses have been piloted in PNT since
November 2017
Client Needs Assessment and Action Plans Course
Supports Settlement Practitioners in conducting needs assessments and assisting clients in developing individualized goals and action plans appropriate to the client’s culture and life experience. 
13 participants from MANSO, 13 participants from SAISIA, no participants from AAISA
Course Completion rate of 81%
“[this] course made me aare and it was an aha moment. I started incorporating what I learned and it made the transition easier for me.”
Basic Counselling Skills in a Cross-Cultural Context Course
Will support Settlement Practitioners to define their counselling role with the clients they serve, and help them to recognize and develop the attitudes, skills, and knowledge to be effective in that role.
1 participant from MANSO, 1 participant from SAISIA, 24 participants from AAISA
Course Completion rate of 92%
“This was a terrific course and it assisted me in understanding counselling practices better and be more efficient in my work”.
Four region-wide online courses have been piloted in the PNT since November 2017

11. 4 Region-wide On-line Courses have been piloted in PNT since
November (cont.)
Managing Practitioner Stress and Burnout Course
Developed in response to sector reports of burnout and compassion fatigue experienced by front line practitioners. The course provides participants with practical knowledge to be able to recognize and identify symptoms of stress and to use this foundational knowledge to explore, develop and practice strategies to be able to effectively manage workplace stress.
The course has had no participants from SAISIA or MANSO to date.
Settlement and Transition Processes Course
Participants will explore various concepts related to acculturation, settlement, acculturative stress (culture shock), post-traumatic stress, and the role of settlement agencies in Alberta related to settlement and transition processes. They will also become familiar with challenges that occur during settlement and learn strategies to address these challenges.
9 participants from MANSO; 14 participants from SAISIA and 3 participants from AAISA.
Course completion rate 100%
“All settlement practitioners should take this AAISA course to be able to empower the immigrants to adjust better in Canada.”
Four region-wide online courses have been piloted in the PNT since November 2017

12. What is planned for the future?
Language (Winnipeg 2019)
Language Assessment (Saskatoon October 2018)
Employment (Edmonton 2019)
LGBTQ (Winnipeg 2019)
Women (Saskatoon 2019)
LIPs (Banff-Canmore May 2019)
Small Centers (Moose Jaw 2019)
North (NWT 2019)
Disability (Quarterly Calls)
Health/Mental Health (Quarterly Calls)
Seniors (Quarterly Calls)
Community Connections (Planning Underway)
Francophone Services (Calgary, Saskatoon and Winnipeg Fall 2018)
Crisis Counselling (Quarterly Calls)
Case Management (Saskatoon October 2018)
Regional Professional Development Strategy Pilot (3 settlement umbrellas developing joint strategy to ensure equity in access across region)
Childminding (Planning needs to get underway)
Post-Secondary Institutions (Swift Current June 2019)
Youth (Quarterly Calls)

13. What is planned for the future?
IRCC is working with partners to get cluster learning events scheduled until the end of the fiscal cycle and to ensure that agencies are appropriately resourced to participate.
In addition working with umbrella organizations to expand on-line delivery of courses required by wide cross section of settlement practitioners (as identified in annual professional development survey).
Maximum basic professional development allowance for all agreements for professional development apart from that offered through the clusters or the regional professional development strategy pilot.
$2,700 for conference participation** + $150/head for language and $300/head for settlement for large urban center service providers*
$3,000 for conference participation + $150/head for language and $300/head for settlement for small center/northern service providers***
Slippage plans will NOT be approved for professional development in excess of these amounts.
Evaluate this approach to professional development at the component and aggregate level to ascertain outcomes before CFP 2019.
Notes
* the conference amount is per provider, NOT per agreement
** Identified eligible conferences include P2P, Metropolis, and CCR. Others on a case by case basis.
*** for providers with multiple sites, they will need to identify FTEs that are determined to be “small centers or northern”

14. What is planned for the future?
Establishment of Provincial Professional Development Advisory Committees by the Umbrellas.
Representatives from urban and small centres, LIPs/RIFs as well as all program streams
Terms of reference have been developed with a minimum of four meetings per year
Establishment of a Regional Professional Development Advisory Committee led by AAISA
Two representatives from each province (one from the Umbrella and one from the provincial PD advisory committee)
Terms of reference and a draft regional PNT strategy have been developed
Minimum of four meetings per year 13

15. Challenges? Resources - Convergence Towards Equity Timing / Planning
Participation
Outcomes
Access to Reports

16. Opportunities? Annual professional development survey
Continuous improvement (Evaluations)
Planning over the fiscal cycle
Leverage technology
Co-ordination of cluster activities, umbrella, LIP and RIF activities, and agency- specific plans
Connect with national communities of practice where possible

17. Questions?
In person
Via to