The provincial government is viewing new child welfare agreements with the Saskatoon Tribal Council as a new day in putting the focus back on children and their families.
“We enter this new agreement with the spirit of reconciliation and moving beyond past disagreements to focus on what is the most important: our children and families. By working together with the Saskatoon Tribal Council, talking openly, resolving our differences, and truly collaborating, we will achieve our vision of a better and brighter future for indigenous children,” Social Services Minister Paul Merriman said.
The agreements aim to review plans to ensure children have supports for culture, language and identity to their community and re-purposing Saskatchewan Housing Corporation units to provide emergency and other services for children, youth, and families.
A panel will be created to address the length of time a child is in care.
“The First Contact Panel will help resolve child and welfare issues through planning and consensus between family members and members of the Saskatoon Tribal Council and Social Services. The goal of the panel is to keep children from coming into care or to reduce the amount of time that a child is in care,” Merriman explained.
“We will work with the Saskatoon Tribal Council and our health partners to keep indigenous mothers and their newborns together through better parental prevention and support. We also plan to establish joint leader’s forums and a child welfare innovation committee to focus on improving child and family services for indigenous children and families.”
NDP critic Nicloe Rancourt says the agreements are a step in the right direction, but that the government needs to do more.
“This agreement is one step towards addressing the high number of indigenous children in care and the important work in keeping children with family,” said Rancourt. “We have to keep in mind that this government promised a comprehensive review on child and family services in this province, which has not happened, and the number of children in care continues to rise.”
(PHOTO: Saskatoon Tribal Council Chief Mark Arcand. MBC file.)