Alberta Children and Family Services (CFS) is seeking information from interested organizations regarding the delivery of disability-focused placement services for children and youth in the care of the Director under the Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act (CYFEA) throughout Alberta. Children and youth in care may have diverse and intersecting developmental, behavioural, emotional, mental health, medical and trauma-related needs. This may include neurodevelopmental disabilities such as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), intellectual and developmental disabilities, physical disabilities, medical complexity, mental health needs, behavioural challenges, and multiple or co-occurring conditions. CFS is seeking information to better understand the current service landscape and the sector's capacity to provide safe, stable, responsive and sustainable placement environments for children and youth in care with disabilities. Placement services are intended to respond to each child or youth's developmental, cultural, relational, health and well-being needs while supporting placement stability, safety, connection, permanency and positive outcomes. Through this Request for Information (RFI), CFS is seeking information regarding existing and potential service capacity, service delivery models, specialized staffing and clinical supports, and innovative or alternative approaches to disability-focused placement services across Alberta. CFS is particularly interested in information related to: Community Group Care placements; Medical Complexity placements; Campus-Based placements; Intensive Complex Needs placements; Respite and short-term placement services; and Other innovative, emerging or alternative placement models capable of supporting children and youth in care with disabilities and complex or co-occurring needs. The RFI seeks information regarding organizations' experience and geographic service capacity; populations served; placement and respite models; staffing structures, qualifications and training; clinical, therapeutic, behavioural, developmental and medical supports; culturally responsive and Indigenous-informed practices; approaches to placement stability and permanency; outcomes and quality assurance; estimated service costs and contracting approaches; organizational readiness and future capacity; and barriers or system considerations that may affect the establishment, expansion or sustainability of services. CFS welcomes responses from existing service providers as well as organizations interested in establishing, expanding or developing disability-focused placement services for children and youth in care in Alberta. Respondents may provide information about current programs, proposed models, innovative practices or emerging approaches that could strengthen the availability, accessibility, responsiveness and sustainability of disability-focused placement services across the province. Information gathered through this RFI will help CFS better understand sector capacity and inform future service design, capacity planning and potential procurement approaches. This RFI is for information-gathering and planning purposes only. It is not a procurement process and does not constitute a commitment by CFS to proceed with a future procurement, enter into an agreement or reimburse respondents for costs associated with preparing a response. Participation is voluntary and will not be used as a pre-qualification or evaluation criterion for any future procurement opportunity. Interested organizations are encouraged to review the complete RFI and Vendor Response Questionnaire for detailed information regarding the areas on which CFS is seeking sector input.
