Serious Occurrence Reporting

On this page:

Serious Occurrence Reporting (SOR) Guidelines and related resources
SOR How-to User Guides
Submitting a Manual SOR when SOR-RL is Unavailable
Other helpful SOR resources

Serious Occurrence Reporting (SOR) Guidelines and related resources

The SOR Guidelines describe what a Serious Occurrence is, who is required to report a Serious Occurrence to the ministry, when to report a Serious Occurrence, what details to include in an Serious Occurrence Report, who to notify, and how the ministry will make use of and follow up on the information provided in an SOR.

MCCSS SOR Guidelines
MCCSS SOR Guidelines – Video

The Summary of Serious Occurrence Reporting Timelines (Level) by Category tip sheet provides an overview of the SO reporting timelines for each SO category by outlining the occurrences that qualify as Level 1 or Level 2. It can assist service providers in determining the timeframes for SOR reporting based on the nature of the incident.

Summary of Serious Occurrence Reporting Timelines (Level) by Category

The Summary of Serious Occurrence Categories, Subcategories and Types tip sheet provides an overview of the SOR categories, subcategories, and types available as reporting options in the SOR-RL system. It may be helpful for service providers in identifying the appropriate reporting category.

Summary of Serious Occurrence Reporting Categories, Subcategories and Types

The Summary of Serious Occurrence Reporting Requirements by Category tip sheet summarizes SO reporting requirements from the SOR Guidelines, with descriptions of incidents warranting the submission of an SOR for each category and, where applicable, subcategory. This summary should not be considered exhaustive, and service providers are expected to reference the SOR Guidelines and any applicable MCCSS legislation or policy, and to use their professional judgment in determining whether an incident is sufficiently serious to warrant an SOR.

Summary of Serious Occurrence Reporting Requirements by Category

SOR-RL SOR How-to User Guides and Tipsheets

The SOR-RL SOR User Guide for SOR Initiators and Probation Officers outlines how to use SOR-RL to submit and make updates to an SOR. It contains step-by-step instructions and tips for working in SOR-RL. The accompanying video provides an overview of SOR submission functionality in SOR-RL.

SOR-RL SOR User Guide for SOR Initiators and Probation Officers
SOR-RL SO Reporting Training Video for SOR Initiators

The Mandatory Field Table provides a list of SOR fields in SOR-RL which are either required prior to the submission of the SOR to the ministry, or required prior to the ministry setting the SOR to “No Further Action Required” (closing the SOR).

SOR Mandatory Field Table

The SOR Reference Sheet for the “Program at time of occurrence” selection for individuals involved in SORs assists users in making the appropriate selection for an individual’s “Program at time of occurrence” in an SOR, based on the MCCSS-funded or licensed service they were in receipt of at the time of the occurrence. The sheet provides a list of MCCSS-funded or licensed components and services and their corresponding program selection.

SOR Reference Sheet for the "Program at time of occurrence" selection for individuals involved in SORs

The SOR Initiator Tip Sheet – Parent/Guardian Not Applicable for Client document provides details on how to complete a parent/guardian notification in an SOR for a client that does not require it (e.g., legally independent adult, interim society care).

SOR Initiator Tip Sheet - Parent/Guardian Not Applicable for Client

The Serious Occurrence Reporting User Guide for Case Managers provides instructions for Case Managers at Children’s Aid Societies on how to view SORs submitted by other service providers when the society is indicated as the individual’s placing agency.

SOR User Guide for Case Managers

Submitting a Manual SOR when SOR-RL is Unavailable

All SORs must be reported within the SOR-RL system, including outside of business hours. If SOR-RL is unavailable or inaccessible, follow the steps below.

• If SOR-RL is unavailable or inaccessible and an SO occurs during business hours, service providers must complete and submit a manual SOR and send it to their ministry designate. Youth Justice (YJ) service providers must also notify their ministry contact for all Level 1 SORs.
• If SOR-RL is unavailable or inaccessible and an SO occurs outside of business hours but is not highly contentious, service providers must complete and submit a manual SOR and send it to their ministry designate. Youth Justice service providers must also notify their ministry contact for all Level 1 SORs.
• If SOR-RL is unavailable or inaccessible and an SO occurs outside of business hours and is highly contentious, service providers must complete and submit a manual SOR and send it to their ministry designate. Non-Youth Justice service providers must ALSO contact the emergency after hours line, at 905-454-5000 ext. 5314 or 5315. Youth Justice service providers must ALSO notify their ministry contact.
• If the system is only temporarily unavailable or inaccessible and it is anticipated that access will be restored within the reporting timelines, service providers can wait to re-gain access to report the SOR in SOR-RL. Youth Justice service providers must notify their ministry contact for all Level 1 SORs.

If a manual SOR has been submitted and SOR-RL continues to be offline, unavailable or inoperative, and new information becomes available, update and send the Manual SOR to the ministry designate.

The Manual Serious Occurrence Reporting Business Process and Form is to be used by service providers to submit an SOR to the ministry when the SOR-RL tool is temporarily offline, unavailable or inoperative.

Manual SOR Business Process and Form

The Manual Serious Occurrence Reporting Business Process and Form for Healthy Babies Healthy Children Service Providers is to be used by HBHC service providers to submit an SOR to the ministry.

Manual SOR Business Process and Form for HBHC Service Providers

• East Region: ERSOR-RL@ontario.ca
• Toronto Region: AskTorontoRegionSORRL@ontario.ca
• West Region: WestRegionSO@ontario.ca
• Central Region: AskCentralRegionSORRL@ontario.ca
• North Region: AskNorthRegionSORRL@ontario.ca
• Indigenous Healing and wellness Strategy: IHWS.SOR@ontario.ca AND cc your program supervisor
• For SORs from a Youth Justice Directly Operated facility or Probation Office: YJIMU@ontario.ca
• For SORs from a Youth Justice-funded program: regional office above, AND cc YJIMU@ontario.ca

Other helpful SOR resources

Children’s Aid Societies and Out-of-home care (residential) licensees are required to notify the Ombudsman if they learn of the death or an incident of serious bodily harm to a young person who sought or received service within the last 12 months. This notification, where it applies, must also be captured in the Notification section of a Death or Serious Injury SOR.

Ombudsman’s Definition of Serious Bodily Harm (EN)

Looking for SOR-RL Tier 1 Support contact information? Click here.

Looking for information on how to register for or access SOR-RL? Click here.

Looking for Residential Licensing materials? Click here.