Ontario Children’s Treatment Centres and SmartStart Hubs: A Regional Guide for Families

Published August 26, 2026

Find your regional Ontario Children’s Treatment Centre or SmartStart Hub, understand rehabilitation supports, and distinguish them from OAP early-years programs.

Ontario Children’s Treatment Centres and SmartStart Hubs: A Regional Guide for Families

Ontario has a regional network of Children’s Treatment Centres and SmartStart Hubs that helps families find child-development and rehabilitation services. The organization serving your family depends on where you live and which service your child needs.

The most important point: you do not need to wait for an autism diagnosis or obtain a doctor’s referral before contacting your local SmartStart Hub about concerns with your child’s development or day-to-day functioning.

What is a Children’s Treatment Centre?

Ontario’s regional Children’s Treatment Centres help children and youth with developmental, physical and communication needs participate at home, school and in the community. Depending on the child’s needs and local services, support may include:

• speech-language assessment and therapy
• occupational therapy
• physiotherapy
• child-development assessment
• family coaching and navigation
• equipment or other rehabilitation supports

Children and youth may be eligible for rehabilitation services up to age 19, or up to age 21 while they remain in school. Individual programs have their own criteria and age ranges.

What is a SmartStart Hub?

A SmartStart Hub is a local entry point when a family is unsure where to begin. You can contact the hub when you have concerns about development, communication, movement, self-care, participation or day-to-day functioning.

SmartStart staff can discuss your child’s strengths, your family’s priorities and the main concern, then help identify appropriate assessments, rehabilitation or community programs. You do not need:

• an autism diagnosis
• a doctor’s referral
• to know which therapy or program to request

SmartStart is not the only route. If you already know which service your child needs, you may be able to contact that program directly.

Find your regional Children’s Treatment Centre or SmartStart Hub

The following organizations are listed in Ontario’s current children’s rehabilitation directory. Confirm the exact catchment and service with the centre, because boundaries and locations can differ by program.

Central Ontario

• Halton, Peel and Dufferin: ErinoakKids Centre for Treatment and Development
• Waterloo Region and Wellington County: KidsAbility Centre for Child Development
• York Region and Simcoe County: Children’s Treatment Network Simcoe-York

Eastern Ontario

• Peterborough, Kawartha Lakes, Haliburton and Northumberland: Five Counties Children’s Centre
• Durham Region: Grandview Kids
• Hastings and Prince Edward: Quinte Children’s Treatment Centre
• Kingston and surrounding counties: KidsInclusive Centre for Child and Youth Development
• Ottawa, Renfrew and Cornwall areas: Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO)

Toronto

• Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital
• Surrey Place, including a SmartStart entry point

Western Ontario

• Hamilton: Ron Joyce Children’s Health Centre
• Niagara: Niagara Children’s Centre
• Brantford and Brant: Lansdowne Children’s Centre
• London and the broader Thames Valley: TVCC
• Windsor-Essex: John McGivney Children’s Centre
• Sarnia-Lambton: Pathways Health Centre for Children
• Chatham-Kent: Children’s Treatment Centre of Chatham-Kent

Northern Ontario

• North Bay, Parry Sound and Muskoka: One Kids Place
• Sudbury: Health Sciences North NEO Kids Children’s Treatment Centre
• Timmins and Cochrane-Temiskaming: Cochrane/Temiskaming Children’s Treatment Centre
• Sault Ste. Marie and Algoma: THRIVE Child Development Centre
• Thunder Bay: George Jeffrey Children’s Treatment Centre
• Northwestern communities including Kenora, Rainy River and Dryden: FIREFLY

Preschool Speech and Language is another no-referral route

If your main concern is speech or language, Ontario’s Preschool Speech and Language Program accepts family registration from birth until the child starts school. A doctor’s referral is not required.

The designated agency is not always the same as the regional Children’s Treatment Centre. Use Ontario’s official page to find the current speech and language program for your community.

How this differs from OAP caregiver-mediated early years

The Ontario Autism Program’s caregiver-mediated early-years programs are a separate pathway.

• They are generally for eligible children aged 12 to 48 months.
• The child must be registered in the Ontario Autism Program.
• AccessOAP must send an invitation before the family can register with a provider.
• The programs are free and available for up to six months per child.
• A child receiving OAP core clinical services or with an active behaviour plan is not eligible at the same time.

Some Children’s Treatment Centres—including ErinoakKids, KidsAbility, Grandview Kids, CHEO, KidsInclusive, Surrey Place and TVCC—participate in OAP early-years services or regional partnerships. However, the OAP provider list is not the same as the Children’s Treatment Centre directory. Other nonprofit, hospital and private providers also participate, and some offer virtual programs across Ontario as space allows.

Which door should your family use?

• You have a developmental concern but no diagnosis: contact your regional SmartStart Hub.
• You know your child needs OT, PT or speech-language rehabilitation: contact the regional Children’s Treatment Centre or the identified program directly.
• Your child has speech or language concerns and has not started school: contact the Preschool Speech and Language Program.
• Your child is 12–48 months, registered in OAP and invited by AccessOAP: compare approved caregiver-mediated early-years providers.
• Your child has an autism diagnosis but no OAP invitation yet: do not delay contacting SmartStart or other eligible developmental services while waiting.

What to ask when you call

• Does our postal code fall within your catchment for this service?
• Can our family self-refer, or does this particular program require a professional referral?
• What assessment or intake happens first?
• What are the age and eligibility rules?
• What is the current wait time?
• Are services individual, group-based, virtual or in person?
• Are interpretation or French-language services available?
• Is this a SmartStart, rehabilitation, preschool speech or OAP service?
• Will joining this service affect eligibility for another OAP stream?

Official sources

• Ontario Children’s Rehabilitation Services and regional directory
• Ontario SmartStart Hubs guidelines
• Ontario Preschool Speech and Language Program
• OAP caregiver-mediated early-years programs and providers

This guide provides general service-navigation information. Catchments, eligibility, wait times and provider availability can change. Confirm current details with the organization and AccessOAP before making decisions for your child.

Related support

• Find autism funding and support programs — Browse government and community programs by location.
• Compare autism services by city — Find assessment, therapy and support listings near you.
• Read source-checked autism guides — Use practical guides with official sources and review dates.

Browse all autism resources