The Storefront is not a legal entity but a complex consortium of people and agencies all coming together for the good of the East Scarborough Community. In order for the Storefront to function well, people working in all parts of the organization have a decision making role appropriate to their work at the Storefront. All decisions affecting our work in the community are made at a local level. Our governing body, however, is a national organization called Tides Canada Initiatives.

Storefront is a Project of Tides Canada Initiatives (TCI). TCI Board has full governing, legal, and fiduciary responsibility for all of its activities. The Storefront has a steering committee, overseen by the Board. The Storefront Steering Committee provides leadership for program operations.

The Storefront Decision Making Model

The following diagram outlines the relationship of the various Storefront decision making bodies to each other.

The following outlines how local decisions affecting the Storefront are made:

The Community Group
The Community Group meets quarterly at the Storefront “Community Speaks” and is made up of any community members interested in participating in the development of the Storefront and the local community. The Community Group has a strong voice in determining the future direction of the Storefront. They are active decision makers in the overall vision of the Storefront which is reviewed every few years. To ensure the community voice is heard, updates from all community speaks are presented to other decision making bodies within the Storefront, and seven community members sit on the Storefront Steering Committee (see below).

The Agency Group
The Agency Group is made up of representatives from each of the partners agencies. The Agency Group meets quarterly. The Agency Group is responsible for determining the direction that the agencies will take within the Storefront structure. Their opinions are sought about any major issue affecting their work at the Storefront. The Agency Group has a strong voice in determining the future direction of the Storefront. They are active decision makers in the overall vision of the Storefront which is reviewed every few years. Agency Group members are kept up to date about Storefront activities through regular emails and summaries provided at each agency meeting. Feedback from the Agency Group goes directly to the Steering Committee (below). Seven agency representatives sit on the Storefront Steering Committee.

The Steering Committee
The Steering Committee is the governing body of the Storefront. Made up of seven community members and seven agency representatives, the Steering Committee develops and approves the policies that guide the Storefront in its operations. The pages following this overview outline in detail the Steering Committee’s terms of reference and relationship to our trustee agency in decision making.

Storefront Committees
The Storefront has several committees with mandates to perform certain functions. The mandate for a committee is approved by the Steering Committee. Each Committee is responsible for decision making within its mandate. Decisions that are not in accordance with the Storefront vision, beliefs and values, policies or usual procedures must be approved by the Steering Committee. Committees are made up of agency and community representatives and supported by staff. One of the roles of the staff member is to be aware of how Committee decisions might effect the other operations of the Storefront. The staff member’s responsibility is to bring to the committee’s attention decisions that might need further consultation with other parts of the Storefront or approval by the Steering Committee.

Agencies
The agencies who bring their services to the Storefront bring their own expertise, their own procedures and their own organizational policies. When providing services, it is these things that guide their work. The main responsibility the agencies have in regard to the Storefront is to communicate how they work and what procedures they would like to follow. Staff will then be able to determine that they are in accordance with Storefront beliefs, values or vision. If there is any question of conflict between agency policies and practice and Storefront beliefs and values, the issue will be brought to the Steering Committee.

Staff
Storefront Staff make day to day decisions at the Storefront based on all of the guidelines, policies and procedures developed at other levels. The Storefront
Co-ordinator is responsible for ensuring that all decisions made at all levels work well together. If decisions are made that do not work well with other decisions, then the Co-ordinator will bring the issue to the attention of the appropriate people.

Volunteers
Volunteers are involved at the Storefront at every level. When they work on committees they take on the decision making role of committee members. When they work with agencies or staff, they are encouraged to offer feedback and participate in decision making whenever possible. All volunteers are encouraged to actively participate in the Storefront Community Speaks, thereby influencing the overall direction of the Storefront.

* The Tides Canada Initiatives Board has full governing, legal, and fiduciary responsibility for all of Storefront’s activities. Each Project establishes a steering committee, overseen by the Board. The committee provides advice and support for program operations. The activities of each Project furthers Sage Centre’s mission and adheres to its policies as well as the requirements of the Charities Directorate of the CRA.