Parenting Enhancement Program (PEP)
Guiding parents and families towards a brighter future
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Supporting parents to build confidence and develop practical caregiving skills
The goal of this program is to help parents maintain full custody of their children or create future plans of care. Parents receive training to build safety and life skills that support family stability and child development.
Our team of therapists works alongside parents, helping them become the most self-sufficient parents they can be. We also provide service coordination, referrals, advocacy, and liaisons between families and community agencies.
Services are primarily home-based, allowing our team to better understand each family’s environment, routines and needs. Virtual support may also be available when appropriate, offering families added flexibility while ensuring in-person visits remain a core part of the program.
Who we support
The Parenting Enhancement program supports parents who have intellectual and developmental disabilities.
What we teach
Our team uses a collaborative teaching method that emphasizes personalized home-based training and child-care instruction. The focus of each visit depends on the child’s age, the family’s goals and any immediate safety needs.
Topics include:
- Basic infant and childcare skills
- Home safety
- First aid
- Nutrition
- Positive parent-child interactions
- Daily routines and age-appropriate caregiving strategies
To be eligible for this program, parents must:
- Be 18 years of age and older
- Demonstrate and confirm eligibility through Developmental Services Ontario (DSO)
- Have children between the ages of 0 to 8 years old who are considered at risk for neglect or abuse
- Have their children in their custody or a plan to return must be in place
- Live in the city of Toronto
The PEP therapist’s role is to support parents who have intellectual disabilities, developmental disabilities, or learning challenges and their children. We work with parents by getting to know them and understanding their strengths and unique needs. Together, we develop a plan to help them become the best parents they can be using a holistic approach consisting of parent skill training, service coordination, and collaboration with community partners.
Families are typically supported for an average of three years. The length of support may vary depending on each family’s needs, goals and progress.
A typical home visit may include parent training, service coordination and practical coaching based on the family’s needs. The focus may vary depending on the child’s age, the family’s goals and any immediate safety priorities. For example, visits may focus on infant care, feeding routines, home safety, daily caregiving skills or positive parent-child interactions.
Our therapists work in collaboration with community partners to best support the complex needs of our clients. Typically, we work with child welfare agencies, adult protective services, child care staff, government agencies, DSO-Toronto, Toronto Public Health, doctors, teachers and other professionals within Surrey Place.
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