Children's advocate optimistic legislative changes will help protect rights of children

On the day a report was released detailing the challenges facing children in care last year, Manitoba's Children's Advocate said she is optimistic legislative change on the horizon will give her office more power and resources to ensure the rights of children in the province are being respected.

"Having an advocate help them navigate through those areas, get the advocacy and the support that they're entitled to, it's their right to get the services that they deserve here," Daphne Penrose said Monday on National Child Day.

The Office of the Children's Advocate published its annual report Monday, chronicling a year's worth of success stories and challenges facing youth in the family welfare system.

The report breaks down some of the top concerns in the child welfare system in 2016-17, including youth suicide, child deaths and issues surrounding social worker caseloads, along with providing details on how many times people engaged Penrose's office for guidance.

About one-third of all reported child deaths (53 of 148 in 2016-17) met criteria for review by the children's advocate's special investigation unit (47 investigations were completed during that time). Most (45 per cent) of those of children died of natural causes before the age of two.

Thirteen deaths were deemed "undetermined" by the Manitoba's chief medical examiner, which Penrose says includes cases of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

The report states there were nine reported suicides by children, youth and young adults, including seven instances involving children in care (two) or who received care within a year of their death (five).

In a section titled "CFS-related Concerns," the leading category (nearly 40 per cent) of concerns stemmed from case planning issues between social workers and children or their families. A change in social worker, for instance, or poor reunification planning were identified as areas that need improvement.​

Opened and closed

The Children's Advocate opened 2,581 cases and closed 2,552 in 2016-17, with 206 carried over that will be completed next year. That's roughly on par for the previous year; 2,546 and 2,575 cases were opened and closed in 2015-16, and 177 were carried forward into 2016-17.

What's encouraging, Penrose says, is that half of the cases that were opened in 2016-17 came as a direct result of a child, youth or young adult reaching out and contacting the Children's Advocate themselves.

Penrose says that comes as a result of her office's efforts in recent years to make sure children in Manitoba are aware about their rights and what the office can do to help them.

"I think that's a great thing because it says they're able to use their voice to contact the office to say, 'Hey, I think I deserve better than this and I am trying on my own but I can't get there. Can you help us and can you help me?" Penrose said.

"It also signals that children are beginning to see that they have rights and they have a right to service, and when their needs aren't being met, they feel comfortable reaching out to the office to talk to us."

New mandate

The report also contains comparisons between the office's current mandate — which is right now limited to reviewing or investigating cases that involve children or families actively involved in the welfare system — and the more broad scope and responsibilities it will have come 2017-18 when the The Advocate for Children and Youth Act is set in motion.

The bill was supported by the Progressive Conservatives, New Democrats and Liberals when it was first tabled after a 2014 inquiry into the death of five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair, whose death triggered an $14 million inquiry and a slate of recommended changes to  the child welfare system. 

In addition to a name change — from Children's Advocate to Advocate for Children and Youth — Penrose's office will have an expanded mandate to investigate serious incidents and deaths.

Youth suicides remain a constant concern, Penrose said, citing Winnipeg's current meth and opioid crises as factors that are possibly exacerbating mental health issues in young people in care. 

Penrose said it is often the case that children in CFS care are also receiving addictions treatment or counselling services outside of the system, and she is optimistic that there will be greater collaboration between departments next year.

She also said the legislative changes will allow her office to better track whether government agencies listen to recommendations from her office.

Penrose said with the new responsibilities could come thousands more calls from children in need of help. She expects her office will be resourced and funded accordingly from the province.

"I think it goes without saying that a massive expansion of a mandate the size that this particular piece of legislation has will require resources ... it's assumed that they will be accompanying the new legislation," she said. 

"This potentially opens the door for thousands of more children to be able to access the office for advocacy, but not only that, it also increases our requirement to do other things like public research, Manitoba-based research and public education on the [United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child]."