It Takes a Community A Report to the NWT Department of Health and Social Services on Child Welfare Services in the Northwest Territories May 2000 Prepared by The Child Welfare League of Canada 75 Albert Street, Suite 209 Ottawa, ON K1P 5E7 Tel: (613) 235-4412 Fax: (613) 235-7616 Email: [email protected] Website: www.cwlc.ca It Takes A Community: Report on NWT Child Welfare Services May 2000 “Due to my life experiences, I tend to look at the world much different than others. But just because I am different (thoughts, feelings, ways of doing things, beliefs, etc.), it does not make me a bad parent.” (parent receiving Child Welfare Services in Yellowknife) “Just tell me what’s going to happen to me. I need to know.” (11 year old from Inuvik Region in an out of home placement) The wellness of our people, including their social, economic and spiritual well-being, crosses the boundaries of the separate terms [of reference of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples]. Wellness is a community issue, a national issue, a women’s issue. It touches youth concerns, family considerations, even self- government and historical concerns. I firmly believe that no other [issue] so fundamentally relates to the survival of our people . (Tom Iron, FSIN, p. 107, Volume 3, Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples) Child Welfare League of Canada i It Takes A Community: Report on NWT Child Welfare Services May 2000 Acknowledgments and Thanks The members of the Review Team would like to express our thanks to the children and families who shared their personal stories so candidly with us. We understand and respect their courage and commitment in doing so. Thanks as well go the foster parents, social workers, staff and management of the child welfare services, their community service partners, and the Board members and CEOs for sharing their insights and vision with us. We appreciated as well, the support and input of the NWT Department of Health and Social Services. Their foresight in undertaking a pro-active review is evidence of their commitment to providing the children of the Northwest Territories a quality child welfare system. We appreciate the support of the Hon. Jane Groenewegen, Minister of Health and Social Services, and thank David Krutko, MLA Mackenzie Delta, and Leon Lafferty, MLA North Slave who made time in their busy schedules to provide their wisdom and advice. Review Team Members: Gaye Hansen Corbin Shangreaux Mike Balla Child Welfare League of Canada ii It Takes A Community: Report on NWT Child Welfare Services May 2000 Executive Summary The Government of the Northwest Territories has set forth the goal of improving the social well-being of the North, recognizing that under the Social Union Framework Agreement, it is required to provide social programs to northern residents that are of comparable quality to those programs delivered elsewhere in Canada. In October 1998, the Child and Family Services Act (CFSA), was proclaimed in the Northwest Territories. The CFSA is the legislative basis for the Government through its Department of Health and Social Services to provide child welfare services. In the spirit of providing quality serves for the Territories, and given that the child welfare mandate is one of the most compelling indicators of community well-being, the NWT Department of Health and Social Services decided to undertake a pro-active review of the child welfare services early in the experience with the new Act in order remedy any emerging shortcomings. As the Child Welfare League of Canada (CWLC) has worked with public agencies and communities across Canada to address circumstances similar to those that exist in the Northwest Territories, the Department approached the League to undertake the review. The CWLC was mandated to: · provide the Department of Health and Social Services with an overall assessment of the child welfare services in the NWT and the linkages with its service partners; · provide practical, implement-able recommendations which will strengthen the existing child welfare program. The CWLC appointed a three-person review team, two of whom are aboriginal and all of whom have child welfare expertise. The Review Team visited eight communities selected by the Department as representative of the Health and Social Services Boards (HSS Boards). There were four primary aspects to the Review: · a comprehensive series of interviews with over two hundred people from the eight communities representing all primary stakeholders, including members of the Territorial Legislature · a review of over 100 child welfare files from the eight communities visited and the Department of Health and Social Services; · an examination of the legislation, protocols, standards, and procedures that govern the child welfare program in the Territories; · a standard data collection tool was devised to collect caseload numbers in order to Child Welfare League of Canada iii It Takes A Community: Report on NWT Child Welfare Services May 2000 quantify the case volume of the NWT Child Welfare Program. No such tool currently exists. The Review took place over the months of December, 1999 through February, 2000 involving 12 person weeks in the interview and document review processes. The Reviewers considered the unique environment of the NWT and how that impacts the delivery of services, including such factors as remote communities, challenges to transportation, and clustering of services in the larger centres. These factors limit the range of available and accessible services though the need for services may be great, and decrease the capacity of a service system to intervene in a timely and effective manner. These limiting factors can create an elevated risk level for vulnerable children. The Reviewers also considered the unique social environment, recognizing that approximately half the population of the NWT is aboriginal, but that aboriginal children are disproportionately represented in the in-care child welfare services. The Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples made clear that the socio-economic challenges facing Aboriginal Communities are different from those facing mainstream society, and that mainstream solutions alone are inadequate, and, in some cases, inappropriate. A review of a child welfare service which is intended to care for and protect aboriginal children must recognize that much of the socio-economic and related problems in aboriginal communities stem directly from the historic undermining of aboriginal people through policies of assimilation. These intrusive policies have drawn native communities away from their roots and traditional strengths. In contrast, therefore, it is necessary to base the development of a regenerative healing structure, of which child welfare is a part, within the culture, lifestyle, world view, and teachings of Aboriginal People. The Review was undertaken within an understanding of a shift in the paradigm from which child welfare operates. In the last few years, best practice models of child welfare have moved from a “siloed” approach where child welfare practitioners have operated in a linear authoritative manner parallel to other children’s service providers, to a collaborative and integrated model of practice. The collaborative or integrated model, often referred to as a community partnership model, is marked by the sharing of the responsibility for the planning and delivery of child welfare services to the family amongst the various stakeholders, including the child and family. The Review found that the NWT child welfare program has some very real strengths, and some serious shortcomings. The social workers and foster parents are dedicated, Child Welfare League of Canada iv It Takes A Community: Report on NWT Child Welfare Services May 2000 informed, invested in their communities, and committed to bettering the lot of children. While it was evident that there is a range of skill levels, all, from the least experienced to the most highly skilled, are eager to enhance their abilities through training and professional development. The Department is sincerely committed to supporting the development of the best child welfare service possible within their resources. They have invested considerable energy in creating progressive legislation, and the necessary supporting regulations, policies, standards and protocols to support it. The evolution of the HSS Board structure provides the opportunity to bring the management of child welfare closer to the communities in which the children and families live. This provides the potential for molding the services to the particular needs and interests of the varying communities, while still maintaining consistent adherence to the requirements of the legislation. There are models of practice in the NWT which include community service partners who are willing to participate with the child welfare program in developing effective collaborative strategies such as the Tulita Wellness Centre, and the Star Quest school program in Fort Smith. Essentially, the NWT has a good existing platform from which to develop an effective service system for its children and families. At the same time, however, social workers expressed their feelings of being overwhelmed with huge caseloads. There was a general feeling that they were alone against uninformed and disinterested HSS Boards of Trustees, and a disenfranchised Department which has yet to reassert its role. While there was evidence of good practice, it was often limited by a lack of resources, and a lack of training.