Four groups in B.C. will receive funding through the Adoption and Permanency Fund of BC to support children and youth awaiting adoption or other permanent connections.
A total of $80,000 will be split between the four projects.
“The grant provides a critical financial contribution to a research project that will allow our organization to gather knowledge and hear stories from youth about their lived experiences; hopes and dreams; family reunification opportunities and what they believe a housing model needs to include” said Fran Hunt-Jinnouchi, of the Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness, who will receive a $20,000 grant from the Fund. “The research will inform the development of youth-centered culturally supportive housing and the organization’s 5-Year Housing Strategy.”
As of December 2021, Ministry of Children and Family Development reported there were 5,021 children and youth in care in B.C. More than 600 of them are waiting for a permanent family.
“We are committed to keeping more children and youth than ever before connected to their families, their communities and their culture here in B.C.,” said Mitzi Dean, Minister of Children and Family Development. “Some children and youth will want to take the route of adoption and these programs are effective examples of how we support permanency.”
The Aboriginal Coalition to End Homelessness will receive $20,000 to fund an Indigenous youth housing research project that will work with Indigenous youth to gather data respecting their experiences with homelessness. The research will capture the youth’s stories, with a specific focus on their experiences in care and aging out of care. The outcomes of the research will be included in a five-year housing plan for Indigenous youth.
The Parent Support Services Society of BC will receive funding to produce accessible materials that describe the state of kinship care today. Kinship families, such as grandparents raising grandchildren, will use these materials to educate, advocate, and assist in the development of future policy.
Carrier Sekani Family Services has been granted funds for traditional Knowledge Holders, fluent in the Carrier- Sekani (Nadut’en) language, to provide weekly immersion style language classes to Indigenous children and youth in care and their caregivers.
Metis Commission for Children and Families of BC has been granted funds to host cultural gatherings in three Metis Chartered Communities, Nanaimo, Abbotsford and Prince George, to discuss permanency options with Metis children and youth in care.
Laura Brougham
