Ontario School Board Autism Support Comparison
Direct answer
Ontario has 72 district school boards, and all publicly funded boards must provide special education programs or services. The practical comparison is board-specific because each board decides classroom placement, programming, and staffing, while current plans and program pages set out local autism supports and referral routes.
- District School Boards
- 72
The numbers behind the answer
- District School Boards
- 72
- Ontario Ministry of Education, Education facts
- ABA Capacity
- Funding for at least one ABA expert per board
- Ontario Ministry of Education, Support for students with autism
- Toronto Catholic Autism Support Team
- Kindergarten to Grade 12 and up to age 21
- Toronto Catholic District School Board, Autism Programs and Services
- Dufferin-Peel SOAR Program
- 5-year regional program
- Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, Cardinal Ambrozic Catholic Secondary School
The school route, step by step
Every school support in Ontario runs through the same sequence. Here is the order the steps come in.
Ten steps · four phases
See the whole school journey before choosing your next step.
This overview shows the order of the main routes. The detailed guide below explains what happens, what parents can request, and which records to keep at each stage.
Phase 01
Prepare for school
Complete the clinical and transition work before the first school day.
Phase 02
Put supports in writing
Move from informal conversations to a documented placement and support plan.
Phase 03
Escalate when support stalls
Use the next formal route only when the school-level process has not resolved the issue.
Phase 04
Plan the next transition
Use the IEP transition plan to connect school with the path after secondary education.
About This Article
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What is consistent across Ontario school boards
- All publicly funded school boards must provide special education programs or services for students with special education needs. Ontario's 2026-2027 funding guide also says each board decides classroom placement, classroom programming, and staffing, so families need board-specific information rather than a province-wide promise about a particular class or staff ratio.
- Each board must maintain and review or amend a special education plan and submit it to the Ministry of Education. The plan must describe the board's programs and services, staffing types, and how its IPRC applies Ontario's categories when making identification and placement decisions. A board with a website must explain how the public can access the plan, although Ontario only encourages posting the complete plan on the website.
Examples of current board-specific autism supports
- TDSB's 2026-2027 plan describes in-school and itinerant support, short-term intervention, regular-class placements, and partially integrated or full-time special education classes. It says an IPRC may recommend ASD Intensive Support Program programming, students with autism may receive additional transition support, and Autism Regional Services offers a range of consultative services.
- Toronto Catholic District School Board publishes a multidisciplinary Autism Support Team for diagnosed students from kindergarten through Grade 12 and up to age 21. Its page says a diagnosis is required and requests for assistance are made by the school through a written referral process.
- At Cardinal Ambrozic Catholic Secondary School in Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, SOAR is the current name shown for the former ASD Diploma Support Program. The school describes it as a five-year regional program for students diagnosed with autism that is accessed through referral and application.
How to compare access and placement rules
- Compare the current special education plan, the named autism program page, eligibility language, referral route, placement criteria, and the staff types listed by each board. Ontario funds every board to hire at least one ABA expert and conduct ABA training, and Ontario policy requires a transition plan for every student with an IEP, but local delivery decisions remain with the board.
- For TDSB Autism Regional Services, the School Support Team generally decides requests for Tier 3 needs after school-level Tier 1 and Tier 2 strategies have been exhausted. For Toronto Catholic's Autism Support Team, the school makes the request through a written referral process. These are different published access routes and should not be treated as interchangeable.
- An application to another board is not an automatic autism-support transfer. Ontario's parent guide permits applications in specified cases and directs families to the receiving school for admission requirements. If an IPRC decides on a special education class, the committee must give reasons for that decision in its written statement.
Frequently asked questions
Compare the current board plan, named autism program, eligibility and referral rules, placement criteria, and listed staff for the student's needs. Ontario says each school board decides classroom placement, programming, and staffing.
TDSB's 2026-2027 plan says requests for Autism Regional Services are decided by the School Support Team and generally address Tier 3 needs after available Tier 1 and Tier 2 school strategies have been exhausted.
Toronto Catholic says the student must have an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis and that the school makes a request for Autism Support Team assistance through a written referral process.
Ontario lists specified cases for applications to a school in another board's jurisdiction and directs families to contact the receiving school for information about its admission requirements.
No. Ontario requires each board to make the plan public. A board with a website must explain how the public can access the plan, but Ontario's guidance only encourages posting the complete plan online.
Sources
Education facts, including the current count of district school boards
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Guide to the 2026-2027 Special Education Fund
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Special education plan submission and public-availability requirements
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Special education plan standards for programs, placements, and staff
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Support for students with autism and board-level ABA capacity
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Special education requirements, including transition planning for students with an IEP
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Special Education Plan 2026-2027
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Toronto Catholic District School Board
Autism Programs and Services
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Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board
Cardinal Ambrozic Catholic Secondary School academic resource programs
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Parent guide to applications for admission in another school board
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IPRC identification and placement decision guidance
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Next steps
Keep going with related guidance, tools, and evidence.
Related questions
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Private School Options for Autistic Children in Ontario
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