Kenora District Services Board

What Kenora District Services Board does

The Kenora District Services Board (KDSB) is a statutory government entity established in 1999 under Ontario's District Social Services Administration Boards Act, operating as the legislated Service System Manager for social services across the Kenora District. It serves 9 municipalities and 4 unincorporated territories spanning 407,000 square kilometers — 38% of Ontario's land mass — providing a no-wrong-door model of integrated social services. Core service lines include Emergency Medical Services (Northwest EMS), Community Housing, Early Years Services, Financial Support Services (Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program), and Integrated Social Services.

Northwest EMS, KDSB's largest operational division, operates 24/7 with approximately 120 Primary Care Paramedics, 10 administrative personnel, 37 vehicles (25 ambulances, 5 Community Paramedic Emergency Response Vehicles, 1 Multi Casualty Incident Support Vehicle, and 6 Emergency Response/Administrative Vehicles), and 10 ambulance bases strategically distributed across the district. Paramedics are trained with over 25 Advanced Care Medical Directives through the Northwest Region Prehospital Care Program (Base Hospital). The Community Paramedicine Program extends EMS into home-based care, including wellness clinics, home visits, remote patient monitoring, palliative care, and mental health/addictions support.

KDSB is funded by the Province of Ontario and the member municipalities, with no private capital investment. Revenue derives from provincial cost-shared programs (land ambulance at 50/50 municipal/provincial split), municipal contributions, and subsidized fee-based services (Rent-Geared-to-Income housing at 30% of household income, income-tested child care fee subsidies, affordable housing below 80% of Median Market Rent). Distribution is direct-to-resident through physical offices, toll-free phone (1-800-461-5766), online applications, and a Coordinated Access network of 7+ partner organizations (friendship centres, shelters, non-profit housing corporations).

Name

Kenora District Services Board

Legal name

Kenora District Services Board

Website

https://kdsb.on.ca

Company type

Public

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

The Kenora District Services Board is a statutory Ontario government entity delivering integrated social services — emergency medical services (Northwest EMS), community housing, early years/child care, and financial support — to residents across the 407,000 sq km Kenora District under a no-wrong-door service model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Dryden

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Provincial Government Funding: Funded by the Province of Ontario as a Service System Manager for social services including Emergency Medical Services/Land Ambulance and Integrated Social Services.
2. Municipal Funding: Municipalities within the District of Kenora contribute to funding social services administered by KDSB.
3. Fee-based Services: Some programs like community housing, child care, and Ontario Works provide subsidized services to eligible residents based on income testing and need.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

KDSB is a legislated Service System Manager that delivers mandated social services across the 407,000 sq km Kenora District in Northwestern Ontario. Its core offerings include Land Ambulance/Emergency Medical Services (Northwest EMS), Community Housing, Early Years/Child Care, Financial Support (Ontario Works and ODSP), and Integrated Social Services delivered through a no-wrong-door approach.

Product overview

The Kenora District Services Board (KDSB) is a Service System Manager that provides social services across the Kenora District in Northwestern Ontario. KDSB is not a technology product company; it is a government services organization that delivers essential social services including Emergency Medical Services (Northwest EMS), Community Housing Services, Early Years/Child Care Services, Financial Support Services (Ontario Works), and Integrated Social Services. The organization does not offer a unified software platform or product portfolio but rather provides direct service delivery across multiple programs. KDSB operates as a District Social Services Administration Board formed under Ontario legislation, serving nine municipalities and four unincorporated territories spanning 407,000 square kilometers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Northwest EMS: Northwest Emergency Medical Services division of KDSB providing Paramedic/Land Ambulance services across the entire Kenora District.

Products and services

• Northwest EMS (Emergency Medical Services) Paramedic and land ambulance services operating 24/7 across the Kenora District with 10 ambulance bases, a fleet of 37 vehicles including 25 ambulances, 5 community paramedic response vehicles, and administrative vehicles. Services include emergency response, community paramedicine, and public education programs for residents of the Kenora District.
• Community Housing Services Housing programs including Rent-Geared-to-Income assistance, Affordable Housing, Market Rental Housing, Supportive Housing, and Homelessness Prevention Programs. Includes housing applications, waitlists, housing benefits, and coordinated access for residents of the Kenora District.
• Early Years Services Service System Manager for all Early Learning and Care Programs including licensed child care, EarlyON Child and Family Centres, fee subsidies, special needs resourcing, and recreational program assistance across the Kenora District.
• Financial Support Services (Ontario Works / ODSP) Financial assistance programs including Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program applications, emergency assistance, temporary care assistance, and employment support services for residents in financial need across the Kenora District.
• Integrated Social Services Coordinated service delivery combining multiple areas of expertise to provide seamless and responsive support tailored to individual, family, and community needs using a no-wrong-door approach.
• Coordinated Access / By-Name List System for connecting homeless or vulnerably housed individuals with housing solutions and supports, using the Homeless Individuals and Families Information System (HIFIS) to track and match people with appropriate services.
• Community Paramedicine Program Home-based healthcare program bridging gaps between primary health care providers and patients, offering wellness clinics, home visits, remote patient monitoring, palliative care, and mental health/addictions support.

Quantifiable outcome

• 24/7 emergency medical coverage across the Kenora District
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Red Lake Indian Friendship Centre (RLIFC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 July 2026KDSB supports RLIFC in expanding preschool child care spaces through capital and ongoing operational funding. Moozoons Child Care Centre currently offers fifteen (15) Family Age Group spaces, and the expansion will add 24 new preschool spaces at RLIFC's Site 2 location as part of the Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care (CWELCC) system plan to add 1,101 new child care spaces in the district.
• Kenora Emergency SheltercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Coordinated Access system and By-Name List for homelessness prevention. Connects individuals experiencing homelessness with housing solutions.
• Ne-Chee Friendship CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Coordinated Access system. Operates EarlyON Child and Family Centre in Kenora. Provides housing solutions and supports for Indigenous individuals.
• Nishnawbe-Gamik Friendship CentrecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Coordinated Access system. Operates supportive housing referral process in Sioux Lookout. Provides EarlyON Child and Family Centre services.
• First Step Women's SheltercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Coordinated Access system for Sioux Lookout supportive housing referrals. Also referenced for domestic violence support resources.
• Ontario Native Women's AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Coordinated Access system in Kenora for homelessness prevention and housing solutions.
• Adult & Teen Challenge of Central CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Coordinated Access system in Dryden for homelessness prevention services.
• Sioux Lookout Non-Profit Housing CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit housing provider offering both market rent and Rent-Geared-to-Income housing in Sioux Lookout. Contact: Box 1805, Sioux Lookout, Ontario P8T 1C5, Phone: (807) 737-1043.
• Aamikkowiish Non-Profit Housing IncorporatedcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit housing provider in Kenora. Contact: Unit 101 – 1447 Pine Portage Road, Kenora, Ontario P9N 2K1, Phone: (807) 468-4461.
• Red Lake Municipal Non-Profit Housing CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit housing provider in Red Lake offering both market rent and Rent-Geared-to-Income housing.
• Northwestern Health UnitminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner providing NOW Program (Nutrition on Weekends) for children through KDSB's Assistance for Child Recreational Programs.
• FIREFLYminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner operating EarlyON Child and Family Centre at Harbourfront in Kenora and Making Connections for Children and Youth (MCCY) program.
• Northwest Region Prehospital Care Program (Base Hospital)coreTechnology or IntegrationBase Hospital partnership for paramedic training and medical direction. Works with KDSB EMS and Advanced Life Support Patient Care Standards.
• Ministry of Health Emergency Health Services BranchcoreOthersProvincial ministry providing oversight, funding, and regulatory framework for land ambulance services and Emergency Health Services.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights13 records

Broad incumbents

• Toronto Paramedic Services: Canada's largest municipal EMS provider. Operates a much larger urban paramedic fleet and integrated communication centre, sharing the core land-ambulance mandate but at vastly different scale and geography than KDSB.
• Alberta Health Services EMS: Provincial EMS operator delivering ambulance and community paramedicine across Alberta, including remote communities. Comparable in mandate to Northwest EMS, but operated as part of a much larger provincial health authority.
• BC Emergency Health Services: Provincial ambulance service in British Columbia delivering land ambulance and community paramedicine across vast rural and remote geographies — a relevant analog to KDSB's dispersed coverage model, though organized at the provincial level.
• Ottawa Paramedic Service: Municipal paramedic service delivering land ambulance and community paramedicine across a major urban Ontario region. Overlaps with KDSB on EMS scope but serves a denser population.

Direct peers

• District of Thunder Bay Social Services Administration Board (TBDSSAB): Other Ontario District Social Services Administration Board serving a large northwestern Ontario district. Operates under the same provincial statute, delivering EMS, housing, child care, and Ontario Works across a comparably vast geography — the closest structural analog to KDSB.
• Manitoulin-Sudbury District Services Board: Ontario DSSAB serving Manitoulin District and the District of Sudbury. Delivers the same integrated social-services portfolio (land ambulance, housing, child care, Ontario Works) under the same enabling legislation as KDSB.
• Cochrane District Social Services Administration Board (CDSSAB): Ontario DSSAB serving the Cochrane District in northeastern Ontario. Provides the same statutory social-services programs across a large, sparsely populated geography similar to KDSB.
• Nipissing District Social Services Administration Board (NDSSAB): Ontario DSSAB serving the Nipissing District. Delivers integrated social services (housing, EMS, child care, OW) under identical provincial framework, providing a directly comparable service delivery model.

Others

• Ontario Native Women's Association (ONWA): Provincial Indigenous-led organization providing culturally based supports. Functions as both a KDSB Coordinated Access partner and an adjacent social-services provider serving overlapping Indigenous populations in northwestern Ontario.
• Children's Aid Society of Kenora: Regional child welfare agency operating in the same Kenora District. While focused on child protection rather than KDSB's Early Years programming, it is an adjacent ecosystem partner frequently interacting with KDSB on shared client families.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/privacy
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kenora-district-services-board
• Instagraminstagram.com/519522125107875

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kenora District Services Board