During the COVID-19 pandemic, the commitment of Ontario’s Children’s Aid Societies and Indigenous Child and Family Well-Being Agencies to the most vulnerable children, youth and families in our communities is unwavering. Each organization in Ontario is continuing to offer support, which is tailored to the needs of
Read more →Jordan’s Story “Jordan River Anderson was a First Nations child from Norway Cree House Nation in Manitoba. Born in 1999 with complex medical needs that could not be treated on-reserve, he spent more than two years in a hospital in Winnipeg before doctors agreed that he could
Read more →The Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies and Children’s Aid Societies have serious concerns about the Ontario government’s plan to eliminate the Ontario Child Advocate’s office and fold its responsibilities into the office of the Ombudsman. Ontario will join Prince Edward Island and the North West Territories
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It’s been nearly one year since the children’s aid societies of Ontario acknowledged and apologized for the harmful role child welfare has played historically, and continues to play, in the lives of Ontario Indigenous children, families, and communities. Children’s Aid Societies have spent the past year working
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OACAS and Children’s Aid Societies welcome the Chief Coroner’s Expert Panel Report, “Safe With Intervention: Report of the Expert Panel on the Deaths of Children and Youth in Residential Placements.” We are deeply saddened by the deaths of these young people in residential care. Many parts of
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What does anti-oppressive practice (AOP) mean in child welfare? The theory of anti-oppression helps examine the use and misuse of power at the individual, organizational, and systems levels so that families can receive child welfare services in an equitable way. It also recognizes that families can
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When I first started working in child welfare it wasn’t uncommon to hear members of the sector say that “they don’t see colour,” or that they treat all families “the same,” despite the grave disparities pointing to the contrary. All these years later, that thought process
Read more →1. Problem: The Child, Youth and Family Services Act grants Children’s Aid Societies substantial power through legislation. Solution: Working from an anti-oppressive lens encourages child welfare professionals to be mindful of this power and to reflect on how this power can be shared with children, youth, and
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A significant investment of $2.1 billion over four years to improve access to mental health care and addiction services in yesterday’s budget is good news for many families involved with child welfare in Ontario. Nearly half of families receive services from children’s aid because of adult mental
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A Conversation with OACAS CEO, Mary Ballantyne, and Director of Indigenous Services, Karen Hill The federal minister of Indigenous Services, Jane Philpott, called for an emergency summit to be held last month to address the current situation in Indigenous child welfare, which she has likened the horrors
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