Improving the child welfare system
Learn about our progress to improve the child welfare system.
Vision
Our vision is to build a province where all children, youth and families, including those receiving child welfare services, have the supports they need to be safe, succeed and thrive in their communities.
We are improving the child welfare system to focus on providing high-quality services that prioritize safety and protection and are responsive to the cultural and social needs of all children, youth and families.
Priorities
Our work to improve the child welfare system has three priorities:
- provide enhanced early intervention supports that help strengthen families and communities
- improve the service experience for people who need protection services from societies and out-of-home care providers
- address over-representation of certain populations in the child welfare system and the inequities they face
Areas of focus
Our work to improve the child welfare system has 6 areas of focus:
1. Child and family well-being
Enhancing early intervention approaches to:
- improve the assessment of child protection concerns
- ensure families receive effective, timely and responsive services
2. Quality of care
Ensuring quality and oversight by improving the quality of licensed out-of-home care provided to children and youth.
Enhancing the skills of staff and caregivers by improving training and qualification requirements for staff and caregivers to provide high-quality services to children, youth and families in out-of-home care.
Prioritizing family-based care by focusing on family-based placements, such as customary, kinship and foster care, so that children and youth are provided high-quality care in family-based settings.
3. Youth supports
Amplifying youth voices by ensuring children, youth and families have a strong voice in decisions about their care, and when transitioning from care.
Enhancing youth supports by:
- improving and expanding supports to meet the distinct needs of children and youth
- helping youth transition successfully to adulthood
4. Stability and permanency
Strengthening family-based supports by:
- keeping children and youth with family or with family-based supports
- improving access to resources for all types of family-based caregivers, including kinship, customary and adoptive
Making adoption services more consistent, easier and faster for children, youth and parents who want to adopt by improving:
- adoption service delivery standards
- adoption matching, where appropriate and when in the best interests of children and youth
5. Accountability and sustainability
Improving children’s aid societies’ accountability to the ministry and the communities they serve.
Strengthening the financial sustainability of the child welfare system.
Enhancing the quality of child welfare data and access to analytics to better understand the child welfare system and the experiences of children and youth in care.
6. Supporting First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples and communities
Guided by the framework of the Ontario Indigenous Children and Youth Strategy.
Enabling enhanced access to community-based prevention and early intervention supports, including prevention-focused customary care, that is culturally responsive and reflects the customs, heritage and traditions of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.
Supporting Indigenous-led child welfare models, including those governed under Indigenous laws that have authority under the federal government’s An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families.
Engagement
We continue to engage with a wide variety of stakeholders and partners, including:
- child welfare leaders
- out-of-home care service providers
- adoption stakeholders
- frontline workers
- youth with lived experience
- parents
- caregivers
- lawyers
- representatives of First Nations, Inuit, Métis and urban Indigenous peoples and communities
- Black, racialized, 2SLGBTQIA+ and Francophone community organizations and stakeholders
- community-based services sectors and partners
Ongoing engagement supports our progress and ensures that policies and initiatives are responsive to the diverse needs of children, youth and families.
Progress
Under the Supporting Children’s Futures Act, 2024, we amended the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017, and the Social Work and Social Service Work Act, 1998, to modernize and standardize important safety measures throughout the child and youth services sector.
Introduced the Supporting Children’s Futures Act, 2024, to modernize and standardize important safety measures for the child and youth services sector.
The changes embedded important parts of the Quality Standards Framework to further hold licensees and placing agencies, including children’s aid societies, accountable for the quality of care they provide.
Launched the new youth leaving care policy and Ready, Set, Go program with an Ontario budget investment of $170 million over the next three years.
Announced that the Ontario government is investing $68 million in a new program that connects youth in the child welfare system with additional services and supports to prepare for and succeed after leaving care.
Extended the moratorium on youth leaving care until March 31, 2023, to provide support as a more extensive plan was built to set up youth for success as they transition into adulthood.
Posted the care you deserve resource to help young people:
- find out what to expect while living, or being looked after, away from their parent's or primary caregiver's home
- access other helpful resources
The Adoption Council of Ontario launched the centralized adoption intake service with funding from the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services. The service helps parents who want to adopt to learn more about adoption and decide whether it is right for them. The service includes a website that offers clear information to help people make informed choices. Expert staff are also available by email and phone to answer questions and help people prepare adoption applications.
Announced a three-year investment of $822,399 in the Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies to help develop new inclusive and gender affirming services and supports that improve outcomes for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, Two Spirit and queer (LGBT2SQ) children, youth and families involved with the child welfare system.
Announced an investment of $2.2 million over five years in the Big Steps to Success mentorship program, which connects kids in care and kinship service aged 7-14 with adult mentors to help them build a meaningful and consistent relationship with a trusted adult to improve their educational outcomes.
Announced a yearly investment of $800,000 in One Vision One Voice, a community-led initiative with a focus on anti-Black racism.
Announced an additional $1.5 million for the Education Liaison program to help improve educational outcomes for children and youth in care.
Extended the moratorium on aging out of care until September 30, 2022, stopping anyone from aging out of child welfare supports or services that they were receiving during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Announced an additional annual investment of $1.5 million in programs and services to make the public adoption process easier.
Announced a time-limited investment of $650,000 in the One Vision One Voice program to strengthen supports for Black children and youth in care.
Announced an investment of $200,000 for Peel Children’s Aid Society to enhance its Child Welfare Immigration Centre of Excellence program.
Announced $5 million in new funding for prevention-focused customary care for Indigenous children and youth.