1. PURPOSE
The purpose of this Policy is to outline the practices and procedures of Crestwood Preparatory College and School (the “School”) to meet its obligations under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (the “AODA”) and, specifically, the Customer Service Standards. Through this Policy, the School establishes and implements practices and procedures consistent with its goal of compliance with the AODA and its commitment to excellent customer service experience for all.
2. POLICY
Guiding Principles and Scope
The School is committed to the principles and goals of the AODA and the Customer Service Standards set out in the Integrated Accessibility Standards Regulation (“Customer Service Standards”). The School is committed to providing excellent customer service. It will make every reasonable effort to ensure that its policies, practices, and procedures are consistent with the principles of dignity, independence, integration, and equal opportunity for persons with disabilities by:
- Ensuring that the School’s goods, services, and facilities are provided in a manner that respects the dignity and independence of persons with disabilities;
- Ensuring the provision of the School School’s goods, services, and facilities to persons with disabilities and others are integrated to the extent possible, unless an alternate measure is necessary, whether temporarily or on a permanent basis, to enable a person with a disability to obtain, use or benefit from the goods, services and facilities;
- Using alternative methods when possible to ensure persons with disabilities are given an opportunity equal to that given to others to obtain, use or benefit from the School’s goods, services and facilities;
- Taking into account individual accommodation needs when brought to the School’s attention when providing goods and services; and
- Communicating with persons with disabilities in a manner that takes into account their disabilities.
The School encourages open two-way communication to ensure the best possible customer service. It expects and encourages persons with disabilities to communicate their need for accommodation or assistance and work with the School to develop accommodations up to the point of undue hardship..
3. PROCEDURES
Communication
The School is committed to communicating with persons with disabilities in ways that take into account the person’s disability. The School will work with persons with disabilities to provide alternative communication formats that will meet their needs, to provide information to customers in an alternative format that will meet their needs in a timely manner. Customers requesting alternative formats will receive a response within 5 to 10 business days and will be resolved in a timely manner. If telephone or other used forms of communication are not suitable for a customer’s needs, alternative forms of communication will be provided, to the extent required by law.
Assistive Devices
Persons with disabilities may use their own personal assistive devices, service animals (as defined by the Customer Service Standards and below in this Policy) or be accompanied by support persons (as defined by the Customer Service Standards and below in this Policy) while obtaining any service provided by the School. Service animals are permitted on the parts of our premises that are open to the public unless excluded by law.
Support Persons
The School may require a person with a disability to be accompanied by a support person, but only if, after consulting with the person with a disability and considering the available information, the School determines that the support person is necessary to protect the health and safety of the person with the disability or of others on the premises and there is no other reasonable way to protect the health or safety of the person with the disability or others on the premises.
Billing
The School is committed to providing accessible invoices. For this reason, invoices will be provided in alternative formats, upon request.
Guide Dogs and Service Animals
A student/employee/visitor with a disability who is accompanied by a guide dog or service animal will be allowed access to premises that are open to them unless otherwise excluded by law. “No pet” policies do not apply to guide dogs or service animals. Employees may respectfully ask if an animal is a service animal and will not ask the nature of the person’s disability or purpose of the animal.
- Exclusion Guidelines
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- If a customer’s guide dog or service animal is excluded by law (see applicable laws below), the School will offer reasonable alternative methods to enable the person with a disability to access goods and services, when possible.
- Applicable Laws
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- Dog Owners’ Liability Act, 2005: If there is a conflict between a provision of this legislation or of a regulation under this or any other act relating to banned breeds (such as pit bulls) and a provision of a by-law passed by a municipality relating to these breeds, the provision that is more restrictive in relation to controls or bans on these breeds prevails. Employees will respectfully explain that the service animal must be removed from the public area due to a municipal by-law and make alternate arrangements or provide the service outside the public area.
- Recognizing a Guide Dog or Service Animal
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- If it is not readily apparent that the animal is being used by the customer for reasons relating to their disability, the School may request verification.
- Care and Control of the Animal
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- The individual who is accompanied by a guide dog or service animal is responsible for maintaining care and control of the animal at all times.
- Allergies and Other Health and Safety Concerns
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- If a health and safety concern presents itself, for example, in the form of a severe allergy to the animal, the School will make all reasonable efforts to meet the needs of all individuals. Pursuant to the School’s obligations under the Human Rights Code and the Occupational Health and Safety Act, each individual’s accommodation needs will be considered on a case-by-case basis, up to the point of undue hardship.
- Due diligence needs to be paid to address health and safety requirements. In very exceptional circumstances where a service animal becomes out of control, causing a clear disruption or a threat to the health and safety of others, and the animal’s behaviour is not corrected by the owner, a person with a disability can be asked to remove their service animal from the premises.
- As a courtesy, particularly if the person and service animal have been in attendance on the premises for a long time, employees may ask whether the animal requires water, may designate an area in which the service animal can relieve itself, or ask whether the staff can be of assistance pertaining to the service animal.
Training
The School will ensure that the following persons receive training about the provision of goods, services, and facilities to persons with disabilities: all of the School’s employees and volunteers, every other person who deals with members of the public or other third parties on behalf of the School and every person who participates in developing the School’s policies, practices and procedures governing the provision of goods, services or facilities to members of the public or other third parties including contractors. Training will be provided to School employees as part of onboarding and will be mandatory. Continuing training and learning will also be provided on an ongoing basis in connection with changes to the policies and procedures governing the provision of goods and services to persons with disabilities.
The training will include instruction on:
- The purposes of the AODA and the requirements of the Customer Service Standards;
- How to interact and communicate with people with various types of disabilities;
- How to interact with persons with disabilities who use an assistive device or the assistance of a guide dog or other service animal or the assistance of a support person;
- How to use equipment or devices available on the school premises or otherwise provided by the School that may help with the provision of the School’s goods or services to a person with a disability;
- What to do if a person with a particular type of disability is having difficulty accessing the School’s goods, services, or facilities, inclusive of digital assets; and
- The School’s current policies, practices, and procedures relating to the Customer Service Standards and providing goods or services to persons with disabilities.
The School will keep records of the training provided, including dates on which training is provided and the number of individuals in attendance.
Notice of Temporary Disruptions
Service disruptions may occur for reasons that may or may not be within the control or knowledge of the School. In the event of any temporary disruptions to facilities that impact persons’ with disabilities’ usual access to goods, services, or facilities, reasonable efforts will be made to provide advance notice. In some circumstances, such as in the situation of unplanned temporary disruptions, advance notice may not be possible.
The School will provide public notice in the event of a planned or unexpected disruption to services for or facilities used by persons with disabilities. Such notices will include information about the reason for the disruption, how long the disruption is expected to last and a description of any alternative services or facilities, if available.
When disruptions occur, the School will provide notice by:
- Posting notices in conspicuous places, including at the point of disruption, at the main entrance, and the nearest accessible entrance to the service disruption, or on the School’s website; or
- By any other method that may be reasonable under the circumstances.
Such notice will be placed or available in a location that is appropriate based on the service disruption. For example, if the elevators are out of order, the School will ensure a notice is posted on or near the elevator doors.
In order to make information accessible, signs and printed notices of sufficient size that are easily readable will be prepared.
The signs and printed notices will be displayed prominently at the entrance to the School, on notice boards and at service desks.
Feedback Process
The School welcomes feedback, including feedback about the delivery of services to persons with disabilities. Users can submit feedback to the Principal. Alternatively, users can submit feedback to any member of the school administration, and it will be forwarded to the appropriate person.
Information about the feedback process will be readily available to all customers, and notice of the process will be made available on our external internet site: www.Crestwood.ca. Feedback information, along with alternate methods of providing feedback verbally (in person or by telephone) or written (handwritten, delivered, website, or e-mail), will be available upon request. Verbal feedback can be received by the Human Resources Department.
Submitting Feedback
Feedback may be submitted to the attention of:
Accessibility Feedback
Address: 217 Brookbanks Drive, Toronto, Ontario
Phone: 416 391 1441
Email: accessibility@crestwood.on.ca
Customers who provide formal feedback will receive acknowledgment of their feedback, along with any resulting actions based on concerns or complaints that were submitted.
The School will provide or arrange for accessible formats or communication supports to ensure the feedback process is accessible to persons with disabilities upon request.
Availability of Documents
The School will notify customers that the documents related to the Customer Service Standards are available upon request and in a format that takes into account the customer’s disability. Notification will be given by posting the information on www.crestwood.on.ca.
Accessibility Notices
The School is committed to meeting the accessibility needs of people with disabilities in a timely manner and meeting the requirements of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005.
Availability of Accessibility Documents
The School’s Accessibility Policy and Accessibility Standards for Customer Service Policy (including the School’s policies on the use of service animals and support persons, temporary disruptions, feedback, and customer service training) are publicly available for review upon request.
Availability and Format of Documents
The School will, upon request, provide or arrange for accessible formats and communication supports for persons with disabilities in a timely manner that takes into account the person’s accessibility needs due to a disability at a cost that is no more than the regular cost charged to other persons. The School will consult with a person making such a request to determine their accessibility needs and the appropriate supports or formats.
Review
This policy and its related procedures will be reviewed as regularly as necessary to ensure that it reflects current practices of the School as well as compliance with legislative requirements.
5. DEFINITIONS
Assistive Device: Any device used by people with disabilities to help increase, maintain, or improve how a person with a disability can function. Such devices may include but are not limited to, wheelchairs, walkers, white canes, oxygen tanks, electronic communication devices, elevators, ramps, and stair lifts.
Customer: Any person who uses the goods and services of the school, including students, parents, and other members of the school community.
Disability: As defined in the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005, section 2, means (a) any degree of physical disability, infirmity, malformation, or disfigurement that is caused by bodily injury, birth defect or illness; (b) a condition of mental impairment or developmental disability; (c) a learning disability or a dysfunction on one or more of the processes involved in understanding or using symbols or spoken language; (d) a mental disorder, or; (e) an injury or disability for which benefits were claimed or received under the insurance plan established under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.
Dignity: Refers to service which is provided in a way that allows the person with a disability to maintain self-respect and the respect of others.
Equal Opportunity: Refers to service that is provided in a way that allows the person with a disability access to goods and services at the same level given to others.
Independence: Allows the person with a disability to do things independently without unnecessary interference from others.
Integration: Refers to service that is provided in a way that allows the person with a disability to benefit from the same services, in the same place and in the same or similar manner as other customers, unless an alternate measure is necessary to enable the person with the disability to access the goods or services.
Service Animal: An animal is a service animal for a person with a disability if it is readily apparent that the animal is used by the person for reasons relating to help with their disability; or if the person provides a letter from a doctor or nurse confirming that the person needs the animal to help with their disability.
A service animal for a person with a disability if:
- The animal can be readily identified as one that is being used by the person for reasons relating to the person’s disability, as a result of visual indicators such as the vest or harness worn by the animal; or
- The person provides documentation from a member of one of the following regulated health professional Schools confirming that the person requires the animal for reasons relating to the disability:
- School of Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists of Ontario;
- School of Chiropractors of Ontario;
- School of Nurses of Ontario;
- School of Occupational Therapists of Ontario;
- School of Optometrists of Ontario;
- School of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario;
- School of Physiotherapists of Ontario;
- School of Psychologists of Ontario; or
- School of Registered Psychotherapists and Registered Mental Health Therapists of Ontario.
Support Person: A person who assists a person with a disability with communication, mobility, personal care, or medical needs as they access the services of the school. A support person is distinct from an employee who supports a student in the system.
