Our Services

— what we do

Since 1974, Grace House has identified a consistent need for, and provided, time-limited, supportive, supervised accommodation to adults with special needs who require assistance to obtain successful independent living. Where other agencies provide service on a highly specialized basis, Grace House has been, and appears likely to continue to be, the only group home in Halton to provide residential service to a fully diversified clientele with a wide cross section of disabilities and social needs. Moreover, the uniqueness of its residential setting provides both the intensity and consistency in feedback and relationships, on both a professional and peer level, that is required for permanent beneficial change in individuals often having a significant history of chronic dysfunctional attempts at independent living.

Grace House's program

Our group home is our only business, our goal being to assist adults with identified needs to obtain the skills required for self-sufficiency. The objectives of the program are:

to provide accommodation to 10 individuals, referred from community agencies and professionals, who could benefit from a supportive environment for a time period usually up to one year,
to demonstrate basic life skills in a supervised setting,
to provide supportive counseling on an ongoing basis,
to promote the acquisition of coping and social skills within the group setting, and
to involve residents in appropriate daily programs (i.e. educational, vocational, health, leisure and therapeutic) for the benefit of themselves and the community.

In practical terms, this means:

a staff member is always available to offer guidance and support in daily living activities such as social interaction, insight development, decision making, job search or maintenance techniques, and general problem solving skills;
each resident is expected to participate regularly in the residential chores of cooking, cleaning, and yard work;
all residents are expected to be involved in some sort of daily activity such as schooling, employment, vocational training, volunteer work or a job search; and
whenever possible, a team approach is followed by fostering close cooperation with referral sources in the development and implementation of a plan that is unique and beneficial to each individual resident.

Grace House's clients

Grace House helps people who have the potential for independent living but who currently lack the skills necessary to successfully achieve self-sufficiency.

Clients are referred to Grace House from a number of community agencies and professionals, with Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital being the largest single source of referrals.

Grace House serves both men and women, with the historical demand being roughly in the proportion of 60% males to 40% females.

Potential clients of Grace House must be willing to set goals and participate in activities directed toward the attainment of those goals. In addition, they must have no history of violence, and must have withdrawn from substance abuse with the motivation to maintain a recovery program.

Grace House exists as an adult group home and the minimum age for residents is 18 years. The maximum age is 65 although, in practice, there are few older clients and the average age of residents tends to be in the mid 20s.

Grace House is prepared to respond to a wide range of disabilities and needs, be they of a psychological, psychiatric, social and/or physiological nature. This means that residents can be fully diversified, and range in scope from someone suffering from schizophrenia, personality disorder or manic depression, to abused women, to recovering alcoholics, to the learning disabled and developmentally delayed, to the homeless and those from dysfunctional families.

Grace House's home

At the end of 1999, Grace House moved its operation into a brand-new building designed and constructed specifically for its needs. This large, three-storey home is located in central Oakville, conveniently close to public transit and to shopping. The middle floor contains the main entrance, the Grace House administrative office, a staff room (used by overnight staff), and the residents' communal facilities (kitchen, dining room, living/games room, and television room). Six single rooms for male residents are on the top floor, and four single rooms for female residents are on the bottom level.