Downsview Community Legal Services

(416) 863-0511 1-866-863-0511 For more than 25 years, the Assaulted Women's Helpline has served as a free, anonymous and confidential 24-hour telephone and TTY crisis telephone line to all women in the province of Ontario who have experienced any form of abuse. We provide crisis counselling, safety planning, emotional support, information and referrals accessible 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

(416) 323-9149 The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic provides free and integrated legal, counselling, interpretation, information and referral services for women who have experienced violence including partner assault, incest/childhood sexual abuse and sexual assault.

(416) 535-8501 The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is Canada's largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, as well as one of the world's leading research centres in the area of addiction and mental health. CAMH combines clinical care, research, education, policy development and health promotion to help transform the lives of people affected by mental health and addiction issues.

(416) 408-4357 A United Way member agency, Toronto Distress Centres provides telephone support 24h a day 365 days a year for people experiencing emotional distress or in need of crisis intervention and suicide prevention. They also offer counseling to people dealing with the effects of suicide and homicide.

The Landlord and Tenant Board's role is to provide information about the Residential Tenancies Act and to resolve disputes between most residential landlords and tenants.

CLEO is a community legal clinic, founded in 1974, that specializes in public legal education. By describing the law as simply and clearly as possible, our materials help people understand and exercise their legal rights.

A project of CLEO (Community Legal Education Ontario), Your Legal Rights is a website of legal information for people in Ontario. This site has free, practical, and easy-to-find legal information produced by hundreds of organizations across Ontario.

The Lawyer Referral Service can help you find a lawyer who practises in the area of law that meets your needs. The service can also help you find a lawyer who meets specific requirements such as speaking a certain language or accepting Legal Aid certificates. Lawyers participating in the Service will offer you up to a half-hour free consultation. This consultation may be over the phone, or in person (the choice is up to the lawyer). During this time, you can ask: How the law applies to your situation How to use the law to solve your legal problem How long the legal work may take How much the lawyer will charge

Legal Aid Ontario provides legal assistance for low-income people. Services include: Legal representation for eligible clients who appear in court without a lawyer Legal aid applications and information over the phone Legal resources and referrals to other social assistance agencies A certificate program for complex and serious cases.

An information resource from Legal Aid Ontario If you have a criminal legal question, and you live in Ontario, this site is for you. LawFacts provides in-depth legal information and resources, with a focus on helping you navigate the criminal court system. Many public legal education (PLE) sites provides links to legal resources, but LawFacts is a little different because it provides detailed information on many aspects of criminal law in Ontario.

The Social Benefits Tribunal hears appeals from people who have either been refused social assistance or who receive social assistance but disagree with a decision that affects: - their eligibility for assistance - the amount of assistance they receive - the benefits they receive

The Ministry of Labour enforces and promotes awareness of employment standards, such as minimum wage, hours of work, public holidays and other standards. Explore this website to learn more about employee rights and employer obligations in Ontario.

Employment Insurance (EI) provides regular benefits to individuals who lose their jobs through no fault of their own (for example, due to shortage of work, seasonal or mass lay-offs) and are available for and able to work, but can't find a job. Always apply for EI benefits as soon as you stop working.

(416) 338-4766 Birkdale Residence gives women and their children, and refugee families a safe place to stay when they have no home of their own. Birkdale Residence has three locations in the City, the main one is in Scarborough. Each family has their own room with beds, a fridge and a microwave. They share kitchens and laundry rooms. Families get money to buy food and take care of cooking and cleaning. Each residence has 24-hour help for families if they need it and residence workers try to help them to get into counselling, children's programs, family programs for refugees, housing and help after they move in, workshops about parenting, life skills and getting a job.

(416) 264-4357 Programs include front line counselling, transitional housing and support, child and youth program, VIBE program and a follow up program which ensures that women and children who have left on-site care will continue to be offered help in moving forward with their lives.

Family Residence gives shelter to 52 families in need. Two-parent or single parent families with children, couples and pregnant women with a partner can come to Family Residence when they have no where to go. Each family has their own room with beds, a fridge and a microwave. They share kitchens and laundry rooms. Families get money to buy food and take care of cooking and cleaning. Each residence has 24-hour help for families if they need it and residence workers try to help them to get into counselling, children's programs, pregnancy support program, housing and help, workshops about housing readiness, life skills and getting a job

(416) 724-1316 Juliette's Place provides emergency/short-term shelter and support services for abused women, with or without children

(416) 269-1717 The Scarborough Hope Centre operates a hostel with space for 60 individuals. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are available to residents. It also offers shower facilities, workshops, literacy programs, job search support, weekly Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, information and referral.

(416) 261-2733 Second Base Youth Shelter operates a modern 56-bed emergency youth shelter for both males and females. Besides meeting basic housing and meal needs, Second Base provides youth with an assortment of services and supports, including transportation, counseling, clothing, health support, information and referral to other youth-related agencies. During the extreme cold weather, Second Base also opens an additional 10 beds in co-operation with the city wide Extreme Cold Weather Alert Program