ACCESSIBLE HOUSING NETWORK
A collaboration of non-profit Canadian organizations, advocating in support of people of all ages to live as they wish, in housing that is fully accessible.
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Our mission is to ensure that, whatever their age or ability, every person in Canada can live in housing
that is fully accessible. To this end, we call on every level of government to make universal design mandatory in every unit in all new multi-unit
residential buildings.
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We invite individuals and other groups to support our campaign by contacting their elected representatives
at all levels -- municipal, provincial, and federal.
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For a list of the Steering Committee members,
click here.
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We are proud to have 73 member organizations joining us in the campaign for accessible housing.
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Click here to sign our petition to the Ontario Legislative Assembly, calling for accessible housing.
Click here to sign our federal Change.org petition.
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Latest News
Front page coverage in the Toronto Star, Sept. 23, 2024: 'We have nowhere to go.'
Seniors say that their homes, and homes in their neighbourhoods, need to be fully accessible or adaptable to accessibility needs. They believe that seniors need options with Universal Design — an approach that aims to accommodate people of all ages and that can be adapted to changing needs and abilities. Universal Design would ensure that doors, for instance, are lightweight, with a lever handle, and wide so that they take minimal effort to open and are accessible for people with mobility devices.
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A positive step in Toronto: The city's Planning and Housing Committee has accepted the recommendations of the Accessible Housing Working Group (which includes several AHN members). See the report:
https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2024/ph/bgrd/backgroundfile-248678.pdf
and the specific recommendations:
https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2024/ph/bgrd/backgroundfile-248679.pdf
The recommendations now go to City Council the week of October 9.
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Monitoring the right to housing for people with disabilities. The Canadian Human Rights Commission monitors the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in Canada. It tracks how Canada is putting the CRPD into action. Early results show that people with disabilities in Canada face many barriers to housing. See the full report (June 2024):
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Accessible Housing Network supports recommendations of the Federal Housing Advocate, Marie-Josée Houle, which she outlined in a letter May 22, 2024, to four federal ministers. Madame Houle recognized accessible housing as a fundamental issue.
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Hundreds of Ontario patients have been moved into nursing homes they didn’t choose. More than 400 patients have been forced into Ontario nursing homes they did not want to go to, and the rate of those moves is increasing. June 12, 2024.
Hundreds of Ontario patients moved into nursing homes they didn’t choose | Globalnews.ca
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