Hard Work Pays Off: FOCUS Accreditation On-Site Validation and Luncheon Highlight High Quality of Services Provided by CLPS

Community Living Parry Sound (CLPS) had the pleasure of hosting FOCUS Accreditation for a three day on-site validation from November 10-12, 2015. The on-site validation marks one of the most significant events at CLPS this year and was the culmination of over three years of work towards becoming accredited through FOCUS. FOCUS’ mandate is to assess developmental service organizations and to determine if they meet the standards of successful practices in community-based human services.

Douglas Brear shows off the official luncheon Agenda

The FOCUS Peer Validators evaluated policy, practices, and procedures at CLPS in order to get a sense of how the organization was meeting the over 200 standards identified in fifteen different domains. The Peer Validators also interviewed people receiving services, staff, Board members, community partners, local employers, and families of people receiving. They utilized these interviews and the extensive information included in our self-assessment (submitted in September 2015) to identify if CLPS met the standards in each domain. The process reflected an immense amount of work by CLPS staff and truly highlighted changes within the developmental services sector over the past several years. CLPS is dedicated to providing top-quality services that reflect current trends and practices within the developmental services sector.

Almost 100 people fill the Stockey Centre to hear the official on-site validation results

CLPS was exceptionally pleased with the on-site validation and reaching this point in our accreditation journey. To reflect this, almost one hundred gathered at the Stockey Centre on November 12^th to hear a summary of our results and celebrate with a luncheon.

The FOCUS team addressed the audience and provided recommendations on how CLPS can improve services that did not meet domain standards, next steps for the organization, and highlighted areas of strength within our agency, CLPS met all standards in the majority of the domains.

President, Deborah Jones thanks the hard work of staff, volunteers, and community

“The Accreditation celebration was a great opportunity to congratulate everyone on three years of hard work and a commitment to quality improvement at all levels of the organization. The summary report from the onsite Validators was a truly proud moment as we reflected on all the accomplishments of CLPS,” stated Jo-Anne Demick, Executive Director of Community Living Parry Sound.

Formal evaluation results are expected by mid-December and we will formally announce the findings once received. CLPS would like to express our sincere gratitude to everyone who participated in this process.