Child welfare
Learn how the Government of Canada is responding to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action 1 to 5.
Based on data provided April 2024.
1. We call upon the federal, provincial, territorial, and Aboriginal governments to commit to reducing the number of Aboriginal children in care by:
Monitoring and assessing neglect investigations.
- Providing adequate resources to enable Aboriginal communities and child-welfare organizations to keep Aboriginal families together where it is safe to do so, and to keep children in culturally appropriate environments, regardless of where they reside.
- Ensuring that social workers and others who conduct child-welfare investigations are properly educated and trained about the history and impacts of residential schools.
- Ensuring that social workers and others who conduct child-welfare investigations are properly educated and trained about the potential for Aboriginal communities and families to provide more appropriate solutions to family healing.
- Requiring that all child-welfare decision makers consider the impact of the residential school experience on children and their caregivers.
What's happening?
The Government of Canada is committed to reducing the number of Indigenous children and youth in care through major ongoing reforms in child and family services.
First, the reform agenda for the First Nations Child and Family Services (FNCFS) program has shifted the program from a protection focus to one of prevention and early intervention services to support the well-being of First Nations children.
These prevention investments support First Nations in developing and implementing services that address the distinct child and family services needs of their community members in culturally appropriate ways, to keep families together.
Distinct prevention and early intervention services seek to address the underlying causes of contact with the child welfare protection system.
An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families (the Act) was co-developed with Indigenous partners with the aim of reducing the number of Indigenous children in care and reforming child and family services. The Act:
- came into force on January 1, 2020
- affirms the inherent right of self-government for First Nations, Inuit and Métis, which includes jurisdiction in relation to child and family services
- sets out national principles for the provision of child and family services in relation to Indigenous children such as:
- the best interests of the child
- cultural continuity
- substantive equality
- contributes to the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
- provides an opportunity for Indigenous Peoples to choose their own solutions for their children and families
The Act sets out standards that include the:
- prioritization of preventive care over other services
- placement of Indigenous children in care with family members or within their communities.
These standards promote cultural continuity and stronger communities for current and future generations.
As well, in support of this call to action, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) has collaborated to develop the Canadian Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS), a national population-based information system that uses routinely collected data about those involved with child welfare. CCWIS (which now includes the Pan-Territorial Data Project) provides timely and relevant national data to inform a public health approach to child welfare and child and family wellbeing.
Throughout the development and implementation of CCWIS, PHAC has worked closely with First Nations, Inuit and Métis organizations that exercise sovereignty over child welfare data, whether those organizations hold the data or not.
CCWIS supports evidence-informed decisions to help reduce inequalities related to Indigenous identity and race. Using this data, the Government of Canada, alongside Indigenous, provincial, and territorial partners, will be able to report on the number of First Nations, Inuit and Métis children and youth in care.
Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) tracks the number of First Nations children who reside or ordinarily reside on a reserve or in the Yukon, are in care and are receiving services funded by the FNCFS program. When counting First Nations children in care, this count is based on a point in time on the last day of the fiscal year.
As of March 31, 2020, there were 9,338 First Nations children on reserve or ordinarily resident on a reserve or in Yukon who were in care and receiving services funded by the FNCFS program, an increase of 794 children since March 31, 2016, where 8,544 children were in care and receiving services funded by the FNCFS program. From 2016 to 2020, the percentage of First Nations children on reserve in care increased by 0.79%, from 5.08% to 5.87%.
As of March 31, 2020, the total 2019 to 2020 placement expenses for First Nations children on reserve or ordinarily resident on a reserve or in Yukon who were receiving services funded by the FNCFS program was $523.4 million.
The government of Canada recognizes the importance of Indigenous data sovereignty as a key principle of the proposed partnership approach and in supporting Indigenous self-determination.
Recent budget investments
The FNCFS program's reform responds to the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) orders and the Agreement-in-Principle on long-term reform that was signed on December 30, 2021. ISC is committed to providing support to child and family services agencies, with an emphasis on prevention. ISC has more than tripled the FNCFS First Nations Child and Family Services budget since 2016, from $677 million to more than $3.5 billion in 2023 to 2024.
On April 1, 2022, Canada implemented immediate measures to help reduce the number of First Nations children in care and provide additional supports to First Nations children, youth and families, investing over $3.5 billion in 2023 to 2024.
This funding, an increase of over 130% from the 2020 to 2021 fiscal year, supported prevention and representative services, as well as the expansion of post-majority support services in all provinces and Yukon.
In addition, 2021 CHRT 41, the CHRT's amended capital order, was implemented in the spring of 2022. This provided funding for the purchase and construction of capital assets that support the delivery of First Nations child and family services, as well as the delivery of Jordan's Principle.
Since the Act was brought into force on January 2020, ISC has committed approximately $1.6 billion to support:
- capacity building
- governance engagement mechanisms
- coordination agreement discussions
- the implementation of Indigenous child and family services laws and service models
This includes:
- over $180 million for capacity-building purposes to support more than 250 Indigenous communities actively preparing to exercise jurisdiction over child and family services
- $8.4 million to support more than 60 Indigenous-led, distinctions-based Governance Engagement Mechanisms sessions on the effective transition and implementation of the Act
- over $32 million in funding for Indigenous communities to facilitate their participation in coordination agreement discussions with Canada, provinces, and territories
- close to $1.4 billion to support the implementation of Indigenous laws through 7 agreements
- this funding is meant to be predictable, stable, sustainable, needs-based, and consistent with the principle of substantive equality
With the release of Budget 2024, Canada proposes to provide $1.8 billion over 11 years, starting in 2023 to 2024, to support communities in exercising jurisdiction under An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, including the first Inuit agreement to support community-led, prevention-based solutions to reduce the number of children in care.
The Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People, the Government of Canada's contribution to the 2021 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People National Action Plan, will continue to build on the increased support provided by the FNCFS program as the implementation process begins.
PHAC's total planned operating expenses for CCWIS are approximately $225,000 for the 2023 to 2024 fiscal year.
Recent progress
With respect to the long-term reform of the FNCFS program, Canada and the parties continue to negotiate towards a final settlement agreement to ensure a solid, reformed system to end the discrimination found by the CHRT. In addition, Canada significantly expanded funding for prevention services and other supports under the FNCFS program on April 1, 2022.
With respect to the Act, the following progress has been made as of March 2024:
- Over 200 Indigenous communities have started to develop and implement policies and Indigenous laws based on their particular histories, cultures and circumstances with regards to child and family services.
- Progress has also been made towards having these Indigenous laws receive force of law as federal law through a tripartite coordination agreement under the Act, with 21 coordination agreement discussions currently ongoing and an estimated 20 expected to begin annually over the next few years.
- Seven agreements have been signed, including six coordination agreements, with the following communities: Wabaseemoong Independent First Nations and Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, Peguis First Nation, Cowessess First Nation, Louis Bull Tribe, Founding First Nations (Loon River First Nation, Lubicon Lake Band, and Peerless Trout First Nation), and Splatsin. A bilateral agreement was also signed with Louis Bull Tribe.
- On February 9, 2024, the Supreme Court of Canada confirmed that An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families is constitutionally valid. In doing so, the Court upheld Parliament's ability to affirm that the inherent right of self-government includes jurisdiction over child and family services.
- Work is under way with Métis, Inuit and First Nations to co-develop distinction-based funding framework for the purpose of the Act.
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is preparing the initial Canadian Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS) report. This report will provide a count of the number of children in care and an analysis of key projects that support improved reporting of the CCWIS, including:
- a study in collaboration with Nunatsiavut Government to understand out of home placement and service rates among Inuit children, youth, and families
- a project in collaboration with the Nunavut and Northwest Territories to build child welfare administrative data management and analytical expertise
- an analysis in partnership with British Columbia and Northwest Territories to understand the impacts of COVID-19 measures on children and youth in care will be released in 2024
Next steps
Indigenous Services Canada will continue negotiations toward the long-term reform of the FNCFS Program.
The Act was designed to support Indigenous groups, communities and Peoples in transitioning toward exercising jurisdiction in relation to child and family services at their chosen pace. As a next step, Indigenous Services Canada will continue to work towards the co-development of distinctions-based approaches to implement the Act, rooted in community-based systems and the implementation of Indigenous laws. Additionally, Indigenous Services Canada will encourage provinces and territories to fulfill the promises of the Act in this area of shared jurisdiction, and collaborate with them to establish coordinated approaches that ensure the continued safety and well-being of Indigenous children and families.
The Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People, the Government of Canada's contribution to the 2021 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People National Action Plan, affirms measures will be taken to support Indigenous-led education and awareness activities for Indigenous children, youth and families to improve and expand support and services to Indigenous children, families and communities based on their particular histories, cultures and circumstances to keep them mentally, spiritually and physically well.
PHAC plans to release its initial CCWIS report in early 2024, focusing on the placements of children in out of home care.
PHAC will continue to build relationships with partners, especially First Nations, Inuit and Métis organizations to ensure the CCWIS meets their needs.
2. We call upon the federal government, in collaboration with the provinces and territories, to prepare and publish annual reports on the number of Aboriginal children (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) who are in care, compared with non-Aboriginal children, as well as the reasons for apprehension, the total spending on preventive and care services by child-welfare agencies, and the effectiveness of various interventions.
What's happening?
In 2018, Canada committed to advancing progress on the 6 points of action to address the over-representation of Indigenous children and youth in care. One of these points includes the creation of a data and reporting strategy with provincial, territorial and Indigenous partners.
This data and reporting strategy would increase inter-jurisdictional data collection, sharing and reporting to better understand the rates and reasons for apprehension.
Engagement with National Indigenous Organizations and provincial and territorial partners is underway to discuss strategies and approaches to encourage progress on data and information sharing, including identifying data needs and establishing outcomes and measurements. In 2020, An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families (the Act) came into force. The Act includes provisions to enable the collection, sharing and reporting of child and family services data across jurisdictions to improve Indigenous data collection efforts.
Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is working with partners to explore the inclusion of information related to Indigenous children in the Canadian Child Welfare Information System (CCWIS).
Recent budget investments
With the release of Budget 2024, Canada proposes to provide $1.8 billion over 11 years, starting in 2023 to 2024, to support communities in exercising jurisdiction under An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, including the first Inuit agreement to support community-led, prevention-based solutions to reduce the number of children in care.
PHAC's total planned operating expenses for the CCWIS are approximately $225,000 for the 2024 to 2025 fiscal year.
Recent progress
The co-development of increased interjurisdictional data collection, sharing and reporting strategies and approaches started in early 2021 through distinctions-based working groups of representatives from Indigenous, provincial and territorial partners.
In October 2022, Indigenous Services Canada launched a series of knowledge-exchange sessions focused on exploring key elements of data governance, management and information sharing as part of the department's objective to support Indigenous Governing Bodies in building data capacity as they exercise jurisdiction in relation to child and family services.
Since launching the series, ISC has hosted 7 sessions. This Indigenous-led series has been regularly attended by an average of 55 participants, representing 35 unique communities and 2 National Indigenous Organizations, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and the Métis National Council. Additionally, the series led to a small demonstration project supporting a small number of communities in identifying and documenting a business requirements framework to be used in the development of a child and family services information system.
An integral part of this work involves following a co-development process that respects Indigenous data sovereignty.
In February 2024, PHAC and partners published the first CCWIS report on rates of out-of-home care among children in Canada. At present, CCWIS includes data about children in out-of-home care from all provinces and territories. Indigenous-specific breakdowns were not included because PHAC does not currently have permission from Indigenous or provincial/territorial partners to access data that would enable such analyses at a national level.
Next steps
It is recognized in the Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People that Canada currently lacks the detailed statistical data that governments, public institutions, academics and advocates need to:
- make fully informed, evidence-based policy decisions
- effectively address racial and social inequities
The Government of Canada is committed to co-developing a national and distinctions-based data strategy and implementing a disaggregated data action plan to fill data and knowledge gaps, such as through Indigenous-led data strategies for First Nations, Inuit and Métis.
The Government of Canada is committed to a partnership approach to data development that respects co-development and addresses the need for national standards to ensure the information collected is relevant and meets the needs and priorities of Indigenous peoples. The government recognizes the importance of Indigenous data sovereignty as a key principle of the proposed partnership approach and in supporting Indigenous self-determination.
The department will seek ways to develop new indicators and systems to support the distinctions-based requirements for prevention and child and family services emerging from communities, agencies and organizations across the country.
Through the ongoing development and improvement of the CCWIS, PHAC continues to build partnerships with First Nations, Inuit and Métis governments and organizations.
3. We call upon all levels of government to fully implement Jordan's Principle.
What's happening?
Between July 1, 2016 and March 31, 2024, more than 4.86 million products, services, and supports were approved under Jordan's Principle.
Approved products, services, and supports by fiscal year:
- 2016 to 2017: 4,940
- 2017 to 2018: 76,891 (1,456% increase from previous fiscal year)
- 2018 to 19: 140,332 (83% increase from previous fiscal year)
- 2019 to 2020: 347,616 (148% increase from previous fiscal year)
- 2020 to 2021: 324,173 (7% decrease from previous fiscal year)
- 2021 to 2022: 488,128 (51% increase from previous fiscal year)
- 2022 to 2023: 1,274,140 (161% increase from previous fiscal year)
- 2023 to 2024: 2,170,047 (70% increase from previous fiscal year)
Additional information and the most up-to-date numbers can be found at Jordan's Principle.
Recent budget investments
Since 2016, nearly $6.4 billion has been invested to meet the needs of First Nations children through Jordan's Principle.
To ensure that First Nations children continue to have access to the products, services, and supports they need through Jordan's Principle, Budget 2019 invested $1.2 billion over 3 years, Budget 2022 provided $4 billion over 6 years staring in 2021 to 2022, and Budget 2023 provided an additional $171 million.
The Government of Canada is committed to addressing the immediate needs of Inuit children with funding of $167.5 million over 2 years, starting in 2023 to 2024, to ensure Inuit children can access the health, social, and educational services they need. The government continues to work with Inuit partners to advance the long-term vision of the Inuit Child First Initiative so that Inuit children will continue to receive timely, high-quality services.
Recent progress
The Choose Life Initiative is a needs-based application process specific to the 49 Nishnawbe Aski Nation communities and tribal councils in Ontario. Launched in 2017 and supported by Jordan's Principle, the initiative aims to provide immediate funding relief for First Nations developed community based supports for youth at risk of death by suicide. Indigenous Services Canada has provided $460.2 million between 2019 and 2024 in Choose Life funding to First Nations communities in Ontario.
In 2022 and 2023, Canada published social media posts to improve public awareness of the latest resources related to Jordan's Principle, how to make a Jordan's Principle request, specific supports available through Jordan's Principle (ex. educational supports prior to the start of the school year). In addition, the Government of Canada has been running an annual advertising campaign to increase awareness of Jordan's Principle since 2017 to 2018.
Next steps
The Government of Canada will continue to uphold and honour Jordan's Principle while also working with First Nations partners, provinces and territories to develop long-term approaches to help better address the unique health, social and education needs of First Nations children. This includes continued engagement with parties and First Nations on the implementation of Jordan's Principle.
4. We call upon the federal government to enact Aboriginal child-welfare legislation that establishes national standards for Aboriginal child apprehension and custody cases and includes principles that:
- Affirm the right of Aboriginal governments to establish and maintain their own child-welfare agencies.
- Require all child-welfare agencies and courts to take the residential school legacy into account in their decision making.
- Establish, as an important priority, a requirement that placements of Aboriginal children into temporary and permanent care be culturally appropriate.
What's happening?
As part of its commitment to reform child and family services, the Government of Canada hosted an emergency meeting in January 2018 on First Nations, Inuit and Métis child and family services with Indigenous partners, provinces and territories, child and family services experts, advocates and youth.
At the emergency meeting, the Government of Canada committed to Progress on 6 points of action to address the over-representation of Indigenous children and youth in care in Canada.
One of the points of action was a commitment to work with partners to support communities to exercise jurisdiction in the area of child and family services, including exploring co-developed federal legislation.
Throughout the summer and fall of 2018, Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) held engagements to co-develop options for child and family services federal legislation. As part of that engagement, officials held over 65 engagement sessions across the country and met with nearly 2,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis participants including leaders and experts. Additional engagements took place with Indigenous, provincial and territorial partners in January 2019 to gather feedback on the content of the draft legislation.
On June 21, 2019, An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families (the Act) received Royal Assent and on January 1, 2020, its provisions came into force.
The Act:
- affirms the rights of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples to exercise jurisdiction over child and family services
- establishes national principles such as the best interests of the child, cultural continuity and substantive equality
- contributes to the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
- provides an opportunity for Indigenous peoples to choose their own solutions for their children and families
The proposed pathway, leading to the exercise of jurisdiction included in the Act, recognizes that there is no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to Indigenous child and family services.
Indigenous communities, groups and peoples can exercise jurisdiction to develop their own child and family services models, systems and laws based on Indigenous values, worldviews, languages and cultures. The Act was designed to enable Indigenous groups, communities and peoples to transition towards exercising jurisdiction over child and family services at their chosen pace.
The standards set out in the Act include the prioritization of preventive care over other services and the placement of Indigenous children in care with family members or within their communities. These standards promote cultural continuity and stronger communities for current and future generations.
Over 200 Indigenous communities across Canada have started to develop and implement policies and laws to exercise jurisdiction over Indigenous child and family services. Seven Indigenous governing bodies have begun exercising jurisdiction and 21 coordination agreement discussion tables are underway for Indigenous governing bodies to exercise jurisdiction.
Engagement on the implementation of the Act remains ongoing. The government works directly with Indigenous partners at the community, regional and national levels to ensure a wide range of Indigenous voices provide direction on the implementation of the Act. As of January 2023, 8 partners have organized Governance Engagement Mechanisms series. Within the series held to date, a total of 55 sessions have been completed.
The Federal Pathway to address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People, announced in June 2021, affirms measures will be taken to support Indigenous-led education and awareness activities for Indigenous children, youth and families, and will improve and expand support and services to Indigenous children, families, and communities based on their particular histories, cultures, and circumstances to keep them mentally, spiritually, and physically well.
Recent budget investments
Since the Act was brought into force, ISC has committed approximately $1.6 billion to support capacity building, governance engagement mechanisms, coordination agreement discussions and the implementation of Indigenous child and family services laws and service models. Specifically:
- over $180 million for capacity-building purposes to support more than 250 Indigenous communities actively preparing to exercise jurisdiction over child and family services
- $8.4 million to support more than 60 Indigenous-led, distinctions-based Governance Engagement Mechanisms sessions on the effective transition and implementation of the Act
- over $32 million in funding for Indigenous communities to facilitate their participation in coordination agreement discussions with Canada, provinces, and territories
- close to $1.4 billion to support the implementation of Indigenous laws through 7 agreements
- this funding is meant to be predictable, stable, sustainable, needs-based and consistent with the principle of substantive equality
With the release of Budget 2024, Canada proposes to provide $1.8 billion over 11 years, starting in 2023 to 2024 to support communities in exercising jurisdiction under An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, including the first Inuit agreement to support community-led, prevention-based solutions to reduce the number of children in care.
Recent progress
Progress has also been made towards having these Indigenous laws receive force of law as federal law through a tripartite coordination agreement under the Act. There are currently 21 coordination agreement discussions ongoing and an estimated 20 are expected to begin annually in the next few years.
Since coming into force on January 1, 2020, 7 agreements have been signed, including 6 coordination agreements, with the following communities:
- Wabaseemoong Independent First Nations and Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug
- Peguis First Nation
- Cowessess First Nation
- Louis Bull Tribe
- Founding First Nations (Loon River First Nation, Lubicon Lake Band, and Peerless Trout First Nation)
- Splatsin
As many as 10 more agreements may be signed by the end of 2025.
On February 9, 2024, the Supreme Court of Canada confirmed that An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families is constitutionally valid. In doing so, the Court upheld Parliament's ability to affirm that the inherent right of self-government includes jurisdiction over child and family services.
Next steps
In 2025, ISC will conduct its first mandatory 5 year review of An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families. This review will provide an opportunity to engage, consult and gather meaningful feedback from Indigenous partners, communities and individuals on provisions contained in the legislation and the operation of the Act.
Canada will continue to consult with Indigenous partners, administer capacity funding and enter into coordination agreements to support Indigenous communities wishing to exercise jurisdiction over their child and family services.
5. We call upon the federal, provincial, territorial, and Aboriginal governments to develop culturally appropriate parenting programs for Aboriginal families.
What's happening?
In 2018, the First Nations Child and Family Services (FNCFS) program began offering funding directly to First Nations to:
- expand the availability of prevention and well-being initiatives that are responsive to community needs
- support First Nations in developing and implementing jurisdictional models
Eligible activities supported by this funding include the development and implementation of culturally appropriate parenting programming.
The Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care Framework, introduced in September 2018, provides additional funding for Indigenous-led, enhanced and culturally-appropriate Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care programs and services for Indigenous children and families.
For example, the Aboriginal Head Start in Urban and Northern Communities has provided funding to Indigenous community-based organizations to develop and deliver programs that promote the healthy development of Indigenous preschool children and their families. Data from 2017 to 2018 shows that 79% of Aboriginal Head Start in Urban and Northern Communities projects provided activities or meetings for parents.
See Call to Action 12 for more information about how the government is working in partnership with First Nations, Inuit and Métis governments and organizations to advance the early learning and child care goals of the Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care Framework.
An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families (the Act):
- came into force on January 1, 2020
- affirms the inherent right of self-government for First Nations, Inuit and Métis, including jurisdiction in relation to child and family services
- sets out national principles to the provision of child and family services in relation to Indigenous children, such as the best interests of the child, cultural continuity, and substantive equality
- contributes to the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
- provides an opportunity for Indigenous Peoples to choose their own solutions for their children and families
The standards set out in the Act include the prioritization of preventive care over other services and the placement of Indigenous children in care with family members or within their communities. These standards promote cultural continuity and stronger communities for current and future generations.
The principles and minimum standards established under the Act are designed to benefit all Indigenous children and families regardless of whether Indigenous communities or groups decide to exercise jurisdiction over child and family services under the Act.
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) delivers the Community Action Program for Children and the Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program, which provides a total of $80.6 million per year to community organizations who develop and deliver culturally-appropriate, early intervention public heath programming for pregnant individuals, children (0 to 5) and families that face health inequities and other barriers to health, including Indigenous populations who live off reserve in urban and northern areas.
PHAC also develops resources and serves a national coordination role for the Nobody's Perfect parenting program, which aims to provide education and support on child health and development, parenting and coping skills to parents of children (0 to 5) who face health inequity barriers, including Indigenous parents.
Recent budget investments
The Government of Canada is committed to supporting the well-being of Indigenous children and families. To support this important work surrounding the well-being of Indigenous children and families, Budget 2021 invested $1 billion over 5 years, with $118.7 million ongoing, to increase funding under the First Nations Child and Family Services Program. This funding supports the following:
- increased support to First Nations communities not served by a delegated First Nation agency for prevention activities to help First Nations children and families stay together within their communities through the Community Well-being and Jurisdiction Initiative
- the implementation of orders from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal
- permanently ensuring that First Nations youth who reach the age of majority receive the supports that they need, for up to 2 additional years, to successfully transition to independence
With the release of Budget 2024, Canada proposes to provide $1.8 billion over 11 years, starting in 2023 to 2024, to support communities in exercising jurisdiction under An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families. This includes the first Inuit agreement to support community-led, prevention-based solutions to reduce the number of children in care.
Recent progress
On April 1, 2022, Canada began implementing a series of immediate measures that enhanced the FNCFS Program in advance of a fully reformed program. One of these measures is a per capita allocation of funding to support prevention and representative services, as well as the expansion of post-majority support services in all provinces and Yukon.
This new prevention funding replaces previous orders from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) for the reimbursement of actual costs incurred for prevention, 2018 CHRT 4 and 2021 CHRT 12.
Funding is also available to support the purchase and construction of capital assets for the delivery of child and family services on reserve an in Yukon.
Prevention funding under the FNCFS program is used to:
- support culturally relevant, community-based programs and services
- honour intergenerational cultural caring approaches
- address the structural factors that place children, youth and families at risk of involvement with child and family services
Funding for prevention services can include direct and indirect services.
Direct services: activities and services that ensure First Nations children, youth, young adults families and communities are supported.
Indirect services: costs or activities related to operational activities that support the development and delivery of prevention services or programming.
Both direct and indirect services can be reflected in primary, secondary and tertiary prevention programming.
Primary prevention: community-centered prevention, meant to educate and provide services to the community that promote family wellness and prevent harm and child maltreatment.
Secondary prevention: family-centered prevention intended to address families who are at higher risk of experiencing child maltreatment.
Tertiary prevention: individual-centered prevention intended to provide immediate safety and well-being interventions based on the child's best interest.
Secondary and tertiary prevention aims to:
- promote reunification and repatriation
- prevent separating a child or young person from their family wherever possible
- ensure supports are in place that enable the family to thrive
Cultural appropriate parenting programs act as preventative measures and are covered under the FNCFS prevention programming activities. For more information on primary, secondary and tertiary activities and services, consult the FNCFC Transitional Terms and Conditions.
On April 1, 2024, PHAC implemented a new administrative approach for the Aboriginal Head Start in Urban and Northern Communities program. This new approach was the result of over 2 years of collaboration to develop new culturally appropriate tools, templates and processes for the administration of the program. It signifies a significant shift, embracing an Indigenous-led approach that is based on relationship and capacity building, to support recipients in carrying out their project activities. Through comprehensive engagement sessions with recipients, PHAC ensured alignment with program needs and partner perspectives to facilitate a more effective implementation of the Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care Transformation Initiative. Notably, 69 service delivery organizations opted to renew their funding agreements with PHAC under the new approach. By fostering a collaborative approach, this Initiative strives to create more equitable and self-determined Indigenous early learning and child care services, benefiting children and families across urban and northern communities.
Next steps
The FNCFS program will continue to fund prevention and well-being initiatives to respond to community needs, which could include developing and implementing culturally appropriate parenting programming.
The Act was designed to support Indigenous groups, communities and peoples transition toward exercising jurisdiction in relation to child and family services at their chosen pace. As a next step, Indigenous Services Canada will continue to work towards the co-development of a new system, rooted in a community-based approach and the implementation of Indigenous laws.
The Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People, released in June 2021, also affirms measures will be taken to support Indigenous-led education and awareness activities for Indigenous children, youth and families, and improve and expand support and services to Indigenous children, families and communities based on their unique histories, cultures and circumstances.
The Federal Pathway, released in June 2021, also commits to continue the progress towards an early learning and child care system that meets the needs of Indigenous families, wherever they live. This includes:
- establishing before and after-school programming for First Nations children on reserve
- providing additional funding to expand access to culturally appropriate Aboriginal Head Start day care programs and services
- repairing and renovating existing Indigenous early learning and child care centres
- building and maintaining new centres
The Public Health Agency of Canada will continue to support Aboriginal Head Start in Urban and Northern Communities recipients and sites in the Indigenous-led development of parental-related programming and enrichment activities. It will continue to support Indigenous partners' self-determined vision for Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care as part of the new Canada wide child care initiative.
Moving forward into the new fiscal year, 2024 to 2025, the focus will be on supporting the newly-launched administrative approach for the AHSUNC program, ensuring its smooth implementation. This includes providing ongoing assistance and resources to recipients as they navigate the new approach. By fostering collaboration and communication, PHAC aims to continue advancing Indigenous-led early learning and child care services, promoting self-determination and improved outcomes for Indigenous children and their families.