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A LEAP forward or a LEAP back? Revelations about the Learning, Earning and Parenting (LEAP) program of Ontario Works

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 2010

Tracy Smith-Carrier
Tracy Smith-Carrier*
Affiliation:
Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada E-mail: tracy.carrier@utoronto.ca
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Abstract

In juxtaposition to the sizeable literature on workfare, there is a significant gap of research on the Learning, Earning, and Parenting (LEAP) policy of Ontario Works, a workfare program for teen parents in Canada. The purpose of this article is to discuss a qualitative study exploring the adequacy and efficacy of the program. Findings indicate that while some amendments are necessary for LEAP specifically, significant modifications are needed to the overall workfare policy. A paradigmatic shift in the characterisation of workfare recipients is also necessary to extricate mothers from the cycle of poverty associated with social assistance access.

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Articles
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Social Policy and Society , Volume 9 , Issue 2 , April 2010 , pp. 155 - 166
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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