[School readiness and community mobilization: study retrospective in a Montreal area]

This article presents a modelling of the collective decision-making process by which a community-based population-level intervention transformed the organization of early childhood services in a Montréal community from 2001 to 2006.

Multisectoral players from a childhood/family issue table.

The chosen territory is one of the most multi-ethnic and poorest neighbourhoods of Montréal.

The intervention being examined is Understanding the Early Years (UEY), a Canada-wide initiative aiming to strengthen communities' capacity to use quality information to support the thought process relating to the organization of early childhood services. Twelve Canadian regions took part, including Montréal.

The time chart for the collective decision-making process presents the events that significantly influenced the procedure: establishment of an intersectoral working committee, production of a portrait of the neighbourhood, think tank, development and implementation of the Passage maison-école [home-to-school] and Femmes-Relais [relay women] projects, retreats, and inclusion of school readiness as a priority focus area in the neighbourhood's three-year action plan. Also presented are the contextual factors that influenced decision making: the neighbourhood's cooperation and coordination history, the researcher's involvement, financial support and shared leadership.

The benefits of UEY-Montréal in this territory extended beyond 2006. With respect to current priorities for action in early childhood, this territory is a good example of mobilization for school readiness.