A small business owner reached out to us after he was unable to update the information attached to his business licence through ServiceOntario, despite several attempts. He also told us that he had received poor customer service while seeking assistance. We contacted the Ministry of Government and …
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A small business owner reached out to us after he was unable to update the information attached to his business licence through ServiceOntario, despite several attempts.
Proven parenthood
A father whose wife died in childbirth sought our help in obtaining a birth certificate and Social Insurance Number for the new baby, which he needed in order to claim survivor benefits. Registrar General officials told him one of the forms he had filled out was invalid, and he would have to …
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A father whose wife died in childbirth sought our help in obtaining a birth certificate and Social Insurance Number for the new baby, which he needed in order to claim survivor benefits.
Right to review
We helped a parent who was refused an identification, placement and review committee (IPRC) to assess her daughter’s giftedness in kindergarten. She was told that the school board did not do IPRCs before Grade 3. We pointed out to the board that, under the Education Act , it did not have the …
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We helped a parent who was refused an identification, placement and review committee (IPRC) to assess her daughter’s giftedness in kindergarten.
Post-mortem correction
A woman sought our help in getting the Registrar General to help her correct an error she made on her mother’s death certificate. When we inquired about the delay in processing her request, we discovered that staff there had misspelled her name on the file. Both errors were addressed, and she was …
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A woman sought our help in getting the Registrar General to help her correct an error she made on her mother’s death certificate.
Starting anew
A man complained to us after trying for years to resolve a name discrepancy with ServiceOntario. Our inquiries with the Ministry of Transportation, ServiceOntario and the Registrar General revealed that ServiceOntario had processed his request to change his name on his driver’s licence. However, he …
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A man complained to us after trying for years to resolve a name discrepancy with ServiceOntario.
Language barrier
An English-speaking mother whose child attends a French-language school was facing barriers when attempting to raise concerns with the school principal. Board officials told us they have many families with only one parent who speaks French, and the expectation is that staff will accommodate …
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An English-speaking mother whose child attends a French-language school was facing barriers when attempting to raise concerns with the school principal.
Northern resources
A woman in a remote northern community complained to our Office that her grandson, who has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), had been excluded from school for four months due to escalating violent behaviour. When the child was allowed back to school, he was only allowed to attend for two …
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A woman in a remote northern community complained to our Office that her grandson, who has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), had been excluded from school for four months due to escalating violent behaviour. When the child was allowed back to school, he was only allowed to attend for two hours per day, four times a week.
Extended parking
A woman sought our help after she was provided with a temporary accessible parking permit with a duration of only six months, when she had previously had one that lasted five years. We confirmed with ServiceOntario that in fact, the woman’s doctor had provided new information indicating that she …
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A woman sought our help after she was provided with a temporary accessible parking permit with a duration of only six months, when she had previously had one that lasted five years.
Lessons Not Learned
Ombudsman Report Transparency of Near North District School Board’s decision to close Widdifield Secondary School after the 2016-2017 Pupil Accommodation Review process “Lessons Not Learned” Paul Dubé Ombudsman of Ontario July 2019 Table of Contents Executive Summary …
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Transparency of Near North District School Board’s decision to close Widdifield Secondary School after the 2016-2017 Pupil Accommodation Review process.
Welcome change
A transgender man seeking a name change complained to us when his application was rejected because the sex on his birth certificate differed from the gender on his name change application. He was advised by ServiceOntario to contact the Registrar General, whose staff said he would have to submit a …
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A transgender man seeking a name change complained to us when his application was rejected because the sex on his birth certificate differed from the gender on his name change application.
What to expect
An international student who had completed post-secondary studies in Ontario and was now employed sought our help in communicating with ServiceOntario about getting an Ontario Health card. She complained that each time she brought in the documents they requested, their expectations changed. We …
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An international student who had completed post-secondary studies in Ontario and was now employed sought our help in communicating with ServiceOntario about getting an Ontario Health card.
Caught in the web
A woman complained to us that the Registrar General’s website froze when she was in the midst of applying for death certificates for two family members. She went back to the website and filed the application, and alerted the Registrar General of this – but she wound up being charged for two …
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A woman complained to us that the Registrar General’s website froze when she was in the midst of applying for death certificates for two family members.
Technical difficulty
A Grade 10 student was disappointed to receive a failing grade on the writing component of the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test. She had been permitted to submit the essay portion of the test via computer as an accommodation for her dyslexia, but due to a technical problem, the essay was …
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A Grade 10 student was disappointed to receive a failing grade on the writing component of the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test.
Identity crisis
An elderly woman needed our help with obtaining new identification after she lost her OHIP card, her primary photo ID. She explained that because she was born at home and her birth was never registered, she did not have a birth certificate; nor did she have any immunization records, as her parents …
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An elderly woman needed our help with obtaining new identification after she lost her OHIP card, her primary photo ID.
Family re-covered
We helped a father renew his daughter’s OHIP card after she had gone three years without a valid one and her application had been rejected. He explained that the family had been homeless for a time during this period, so they were unable to receive renewal notices by mail. When they finally moved …
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We helped a father renew his daughter’s OHIP card after she had gone three years without a valid one and her application had been rejected.
It’s where you live
A woman who moved to Ontario from Alberta for work sought our help after her application for OHIP coverage was rejected due to inadequate proof that she resided in Ontario. Over the course of a year, all of the documents she provided to ServiceOntario to show she lived in the province were …
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A woman who moved to Ontario from Alberta for work sought our help after her application for OHIP coverage was rejected due to inadequate proof that she resided in Ontario.
The long and short of it
A mother of two boys complained to our Office when she had trouble changing her children’s names on their birth certificates, documents they needed soon to make a trip to Disneyland in the U.S. She said miscommunication by ServiceOntario staff about how she should go about amending the boys’ long …
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A mother of two boys complained to our Office when she had trouble changing her children’s names on their birth certificates, documents they needed soon to make a trip to Disneyland in the U.S.
Born free
An almost-retired man who wanted to get a passport to travel sought our help after three frustrating years of trying to obtain a birth certificate from the Office of the Registrar General. He complained he could not provide proof of his birth. He believed he had been born at home, as there were no …
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An almost-retired man who wanted to get a passport to travel sought our help after three frustrating years of trying to obtain a birth certificate from the Office of the Registrar General.
Searching for answers
A father contacted us after he went to pick up his daughters at their after-school program and discovered they were off premises without any prior notice. The girls, aged 4 and 10, were among a group of 60 children who were taken on a walk through a residential area as part of a safety drill. Our …
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A father contacted us after he went to pick up his daughters at their after-school program and discovered they were off premises without any prior notice.
To fee or not to fee
Our staff helped two parents whose local school board wanted to charge them more than $6,000 in tuition for their son because his legal guardian lived outside of Ontario – even though the boy did not live with the guardian. We spoke with the school board and the Ministry of Education, and found …
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Our staff helped two parents whose local school board wanted to charge them more than $6,000 in tuition for their son because his legal guardian lived outside of Ontario – even though the boy did not live with the guardian.
