When you first contact the YCAO you will be greeted by our Client Services Administrator (CSA). The CSA will ask you for the child or youth’s basic personal information and an overview of your concerns.The CSA will provide you with an overview of the services the YCAO can provide and our advocacy processes.​The YCAO does not share our referral source with anyone, however referrers can still choose to remain anonymous.

The CSA will take the information you provide back to our team to ensure the issue meets YCAO’s mandate. The CSA will;determine the advocacy issue and the government service(s) involved; and,assign an Advocacy Representative (AR) for the child or youth.After the information is reviewed by the YCAO team, the CSA will follow up with you to;confirm that an AR has been assigned and is moving forward with our individual advocacy process; or,if the issue is not within our mandate, the CSA will offer other resources or supports that the YCAO has identified.The CSA or AR can let you know what steps have been taken, but cannot share information received in the course of advocating for the child or youth.

At the YCAO, the child or youth is our client. Our ARs strive to meet with every client to get their view, and will meet the child or youth wherever they feel most comfortable.If it is not possible to meet the child or youth, the YCAO will defer to children’s rights under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.From there, the AR will connect with the government to make sure that children’s rights are being upheld.Our office strives to work with families, but occasionally we will need to advocate without parental involvement.

The YCAO works toward resolving the issue by ensuring the child or youth’s rights, views, and best interests are considered in decision-making.Possible outcomes may include:Improved communication between the child, family, and service providersClarification of decisions or next stepsChanges to services, supports, or plansRecommendations to address broader systemic concernsOnce the issue is resolved, the AR will follow up with the child or youth to ensure they understand the outcome and any next steps.