We See Nothing Wrong

July 30, 2011 permalink

A letter from the Ministry of Children and Youth Services shows that they think the existing oversight of Ontario's children's aid societies is adequate. They are blind to the fact that CAS generates more complaints to the ombudsman than the police, complaints the government prevents him from acting on. If CAS is working well, why have hundreds of people showed up at the dozens of rallies that have taken place over the last two years?

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Ministry of Children and Youth
Services
Policy Development and Program
Design Division

Child Welfare Secretariat
101 Bloor Street West
3rd Floor
Toronto ON M5S 2Z7
Tel: 416 314-9462
Fax: 416 326-8098

Ministère des Services à
l'enfance et à
la jeunesse
3ié étage
Toronto ON M5S 2Z7
Tél: 416 314-9462
Téléc.: 416 326-8098

JUL 22 2011

Ms. Yvonne Craig

Thank you for your correspondence to the Honourable Laurel Broten, Minister of Children and Youth Services, regarding accountability for children's aid societies (CASs). As the Interim Director of the Child Welfare Secretariat, I have been asked to respond.

While I cannot comment on specific cases and the Ministry of Children and Youth Services (MCYS) cannot provide legal advice. I can offer you some information on child welfare in Ontario and accountability mechanism for CASs.

MCYS holds CASs to account through a number of mechanisms, including annual licensing and Crown ward reviews, quarterly reporting of financial and activity data and a standardized complaint process. There are specific rules and procedures that must be followed by CASs in determining if a child is in need of protection and in providing protection services. The societies use the Child Protection Standards in Ontario, which guide the child protection worker in making decisions about the child's needs and care - starting from the receipt of a report and eligibility determination, through the investigative phase of service, to planning for ongoing case management, and throughout the life of the case. You can find an online version of the standards online at http://www.children.qov.on.ca/htdocs/Enqlish/documents/topics/childrensaid/childprotectionstandards.pdf. If you have a complaint regarding the Children's Aid Society of the County of Bruce and/or Windsor-Essex Children's Aid Society, you may wish to voice your concerns directly to them. For Windsor-Essex CAS, you may contact Terry Johnson, Senior Director of Services, at 519-256-4521. For Bruce CAS. you may contact Anne Bester. Director of Services, at 519-881-1822.

Amendments to the Child and Family Services Act (CFSA) and its accompanying regulations, proclaimed in November 2006, created a consistent client complaint process across the province. All CASs are required to have a complaint process in place in accordance with the legislation and the regulations. The amendments established the Child and Family Services Review Board (CFSRB) as the independent tribunal with authority to review certain complaints related to CASs. Unlike other provinces in Canada, CASs are independent corporations run by volunteer boards of directors. Therefore, they fall outside the authority of the Ombudsman. Please be assured that we continue to work closely with the Ombudsman.

I hope you find this information helpful.

Josephine Fuller
Interim Director, Child Welfare Secretariat

Source: posted to Facebook by Yvonne Craig
photocopies: [1] [2]

Minister Broten overseeing CAS