November 22, 2019
Manitoba Releases Findings Related to Foster Care Review
– – –Recommendations from B & L Review to Inform System-wide Improvements: Stefanson
The province’s review of foster care systems at B & L Resources for Children, Youth and Families (B & L) is complete and its findings will help ensure all foster care providers and the child welfare system provide consistent, equitable and comprehensive support to children in care, Families Minister Heather Stefanson announced today.
“This review stemmed from very serious allegations and our government’s commitment to ensure children in care are safe,” said Stefanson. “Once those primary issues were addressed, the review allowed us to identify important improvements that need to be made. Our findings and recommendations cannot exist in a vacuum, or be limited to only one organization. These important improvements should apply to an entire system that must do better to meet the needs of children.”
The review identified several areas for improvement including:
• foster parent training to develop cultural competencies;
• standardized filing systems for information about children in care and foster care providers that support them;
• clarity on roles and responsibilities among foster care providers and child welfare agencies to improve communication among them;
• shifting home assessments for prospective foster care providers to focus on their caregiving capacity of the foster parents, complemented by standardized licensing review procedures;
• new audit and review requirements to ensure compliance with foster licensing standards; and
• the need for a comprehensive service purchase agreement that includes all publicly funded programs.
The minister noted work is already underway on many of these findings. A new communication protocol has been developed to guide the various workers who become involved when children are placed in care, which will be implemented system-wide beginning in December. A more structured home assessment model was implemented in partnership with B & L, and the province will be engaging with child welfare authorities and care providers to determine how to implement a similar, standardized process across Manitoba.
Manitoba will also be working with other third-party foster care programs to ensure their governance, documentation, accountability and communication processes are consistent with the findings of the B & L review.
The minister noted the province has introduced a flexible funding approach so child welfare agencies can focus on family preservation and reunification, with the intent of having placements in the traditional foster care system become less frequent.
In November 2018, the Manitoba government launched a review of B & L following abuse allegations from children placed in two of their foster homes. The first phase of the province’s review was focused on the safety of children placed with B & L at the time, and was completed in 10 days with the support of B & L and child welfare agencies and authorities. The government’s moratorium on placements with B & L was lifted in March 2019.
In Manitoba, foster homes are licensed by child welfare agencies and may be operated by another organization, as is the case with B & L. The province is responsible for setting policies and standards for foster homes including regulations related to foster parent applications and related safety checks.
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