Redefining Welfare

More than 50% of children in Canadian care are Indigenous, despite making up only 7% of the population.

This has created widespread mistrust from Indigenous Peoples. Child welfare organizations must reflect on their negative impacts and seek to address harmful practices with the goal of mending relationships. The first step is to reduce the number of Indigenous children in care.

To begin this healing journey, the Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton (CCASH) has committed to ensuring no further generational harm is perpetuated by CCASH. They’ve developed a team of Indigenous Child Protection Workers with strong connections to the community, who put Indigenous identity at the heart of every decision they make. Given that many clients are experiencing poverty and/or are disconnected from their Indigenous heritage, the team focuses on combatting social detriments to health, happiness and security, by providing supports necessary to help Indigenous families thrive.

Children are our future, and The Indigenous Reconciliation Fund (IRF) will provide funding over three years to demonstrate how firmly it believes in this mission. Funding will support CCASH in providing culturally relevant services, increasing the bandwidth of Indigenous Child Protection Workers, decolonizing CCASH practices, focusing on reconciliation efforts and much more. By ensuring clients have timely access to Indigenous Family Resource Workers, CCASH can reduce the amount of time children are in the system by transferring them to Indigenous community organizations instead.

In 2017, CCASH joined the Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies in issuing an apology to Indigenous communities and unanimously agreeing to prioritize reconciliation. As part of this mission, CCASH is now addressing its part in perpetuating harm on Indigenous children, youth and families, and implementing accountable policies that demonstrate its progress in meeting the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action.

Diocese of Hamilton