Family and Children’s Services supports changes to amendment

After almost a year in the making, provincial changes to the Child and Family Services Act will see FACS here adapting to some significant changes for the betterment of child care, supervisor Stuart McIvor said Tuesday.
“The new legislation marks a philosophical shift in how child protection is to be approached,” agreed Rita Chénier, executive director of FACS here.
“The paramount purpose of the legislation has been amended to clarify that promoting the best interest, protection, and well-being of children takes priority,” she noted.
“We feel it works towards a better system. It underscores the importance of child care in the province,” echoed McIvor.
McIvor said one of the most significant changes to the act was the “lowering of the threshold” as to when a worker could make a referral.
While sexual and physical abuse are still reasons for referral, children also can be referred if there is a pattern of neglect which is causing, or likely to cause, physical harm to them.
This has changed from the previous requirements, where there needed to be a substantial risk.
In addition, reasons for referring for emotional abuse have been expanded. It used to be that a child needed to have an emotional or mental health problem for which the parents either were refusing to or unable to obtain treatment.
Now, if parents have caused the problems through their actions, inactions, or a pattern of neglect, this can be a reason for referral.
“This really does allow for intervention sooner,” said McIvor.
Also, the duty to report now is expanded so that all members of a community are required to do so if they have reasonable grounds to suspect any form of abuse.
Doctors, teachers, and other professionals may be fined if they fail to report directly to the Children’s Aid Society (CAS), of which Family and Children’s Services is part.
When a report is made, the CAS will acknowledge the report and let the person know some action has been taken although it cannot give details of the case’s outcome.
Meanwhile, the amount of time a child can stay in temporary care also has new limits. Children five and under can only be in care for a total of 12 months while those six and over can only be in care for 24 months.
Once the limit has been reached, the child either must become a Crown ward, and likely eligible for adoption, or return home.
(Previous time in care won’t be counted only if there is a gap of five or more years where the child wasn’t in care).
“For young children, especially, there’s only a 12-month period where they’re under our care,” said McIvor. “This will make it critical permanent decisions be made very quickly.”
Also, CAS workers now will be able to obtain warrants for records during an investigation to help them determine if a child is in need of protection. Previously, records could only be obtained once a court application was in place.
If the investigation confirms the concerns, keeping the child with the family is still the first choice, but it is no longer necessary to prove that services in the child’s home have been tried and failed before a child is brought under CAS care.
Finally, a person’s conduct towards children in the past now can be used at any stage of a court proceeding.
For more information about any of these changes, contact Family and Children’s Services at 274-7787 or 1-800-465-7764.