Our Vision and Role

Our vision is All Children and Youth Thrive!

Our Kids Network is a Halton-wide partnership of agencies and organizations who work together to make sure all children and youth thrive. As a collective impact network, our mission is to build the capacity of community organizations that support children, youth and families. We build community capacity by mobilizing knowledge and maximizing resources to support the work of Halton professionals. OKN does not provide direct services to children, youth and families.

Together with our partners, we promote and advance positive child and youth wellbeing. We do that through conducting and sharing research and bringing organizations, agencies, and professionals together, and developing and sharing resources, building the community’s capacity to support children, youth, and families. Through collaborative action, we strive to achieve a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable community that empowers young people and creates opportunities for all.

Cheerful parents having fun while tickling their two kids on sofa in the living room.

Who do we serve?

Our main focus is on Halton professionals who work with children, youth, and families in various areas such as child welfare, education, libraries, government, health, mental health, special needs, recreation services, and the multicultural community.

A young adult lesbian couple in their 20's are walking and smiling while draped in a pride flag

What is our impact?

Our Kids Network is a collective of organizations working together to make sure that Halton kids have the support they need to do well. We share research, information, and resources to support professionals in their work with children, youth, and families. Our main goals are to:

    • Work together to make sure that young people have what they need to be successful at every stage of their lives.
    • Raise awareness about the needs of kids and families in Halton.
    • Help create communities where young people feel supported and encouraged.
Candid photograph of a diverse group of mature students working together on a class project in their college library.  The students are sitting around a table in their college library concentrating hard while looking down at their project work on the desk in front of them.

What we do

The strategic objectives of Our Kids Network are:

    • Conduct and share research that guides the network in planning and action.
    • Promote and help sustain relationships among organizations.
    • Develop resources to help partners achieve their outcomes.
    • Provide knowledge translation that educates and informs partners in their work leading to action and measurement of progress.
OKN organization graphic