Most British Columbians would say they care about children.
Not just their own. We’ve agreed, as a society, that when children and youth need help and their families can’t provide it, it’s up to us.
Sadly, we’re not doing a good enough job. This election campaign is an important chance to press all candidates and parties for specific commitments on services for children and youth.
The good news is we know what needs to be done to help families and children through tough times. We know effective, timely supports can change lives and prevent the huge future costs that come when problems are ignored.
But we haven’t acted on that knowledge.
This has been tragic, particularly in cases where families are struggling to provide safe, appropriate care for their children and the government steps in.
Some people need help developing better parenting skills. Some face addiction problems. Children might need counselling, or treatment for behavioural issues. Many struggle with the impacts of living in poverty, or parenting with a chronic health condition. The range of needed services is broad.
B.C.’s Ministry of Children and Family Development receives more than 30,000 “protection reports” a year – warnings that a child might be at risk of abuse or neglect. In the most extreme cases, children are taken into government care. Some 8,000 children are in care today.
Often ministry involvement is focused on linking families with the help and support they need in order to be successful. And that support is provided by community social service agencies across the province.
Ministry research shows quick access to services can help families overcome problems and prevents their challenges from becoming entrenched. Those of us who work in the community social services sector are only too aware of the problems undermining that approach.
For many families, quick access is impossible. Funding for agencies has been frozen or cut, while demand for services has increased dramatically. Wait lists have grown. Problems become more serious while desperate families can’t get the help they need.
We are failing in other ways. Parents know, for example, that their children need continued support as they grow into adulthood – help with school costs, a safe home, support and encouragement.
Yet youth in government care are denied that support. On their 19th birthdays, they are basically left to fend for themselves.
The results are predictable. The ministry released a report this month that found almost half of youth who “aged out” of care were on income assistance within six months.
That’s a grim life, with an income of $610 to $906 a month. (The rate is higher for people with disabilities – the majority of youth leaving care qualify.)
Attending school, finding work and a place to live, and staying healthy are all difficult, perhaps impossible, for an unsupported 19 year old.
The ministry recognizes the problem and is looking for ways to extend support. But it lacks a clear mandate and the needed resources. We know that small supports can encourage youth to stay in school, help them find safe housing, provide life skills and prevent bad decisions.
So far, we haven’t acted.
Part of the problem is a fundamental misunderstanding. People tend to think government, especially the children’s ministry, delivers the needed services. And government does play a large role, particularly in areas like child protection.
However, community-based agencies and foster parents deliver many of these government-funded services, but tend not to be effective advocates. Their focus is on getting through the crisis. And there remains a stigma around the whole issue of struggling to provide adequate care for your children.
So it’s up to the rest of us. Ask your local candidates to commit to adequate long-term funding for these vital services. Push the parties for specific answers about what they will do to ensure services for family and youth are available when and where they are needed.
It’s easy to say we care about children. But what’s needed today is action, not more words.
Rebecca Ataya is the interim executive director of the Federation of Community Social Services of B.C.