Ontario
Children’s Aid Societies in Ontario have the exclusive mandate under the Child and Family Services Act (CFSA) to protect children who have been or are at risk of being abused and/or neglected by their caregivers, to provide for their care and supervision where necessary and to place children for adoption (CFSA, 1990). A total of 46 Children’s Aid Societies are specifically designated by the Minister of Children and Youth Services to investigate child abuse and neglect and take the necessary steps to care for children and youth in need of protection. Seven are designated Aboriginal societies and 3 serve religious communities. Children’s Aid Societies are independent legal entities (corporations run by Boards of Directors) or Indian Bands (that operate under the Indian Act) and are accountable to the communities they serve. In addition to the CFSA, the Ontario Child Welfare Eligibility Spectrum and Child Protection Standards guide child protection workers at each phase of service delivery. For more information, visit the information sheet on Ontario's child welfare system.
Ontario - Statistics
Child Maltreatment Investigations in Ontario, 2008* and 2013**
| 2008 | 2013 | |
|---|---|---|
| Child population (0-15) | 2,382,035 | 2,349,600 |
| Number of child maltreatment investigations | 128,748 | 125,281 |
| Incidence of child maltreatment investigations per 1000 children | 54.05 | 53.32 |
Type of Child Maltreatment Investigation in Ontario, 2013**
| Number | Rate per 1,000 children | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maltreatment Investigation | 97,951 | 41.69 | 78% |
| Risk Investigation | 27,330 | 11.63 | 22% |
Categories of Substantiated Child Maltreatment Investigations in Ontario, 2013**
| Category of Maltreatment | Number | Rate per 1,000 children | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Abuse | 5,770 | 2.46 | 13% |
| Sexual Abuse | 848 | 0.36 | 2% |
| Neglect | 10,386 | 4.42 | 24% |
| Emotional Maltreatment | 5,620 | 2.39 | 13% |
| Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence | 20,443 | 8.70 | 48% |
Placement in Child Maltreatment Investigations in Ontario, 2008* and 2013**
| 2008 # | 2008 Rate | 2013 # | 2013 Rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No Placement | 121,436 | 50.98 | 121,020 | 51.51 |
| Informal Kinship Care | 3,616 | 1.52 | 1,874 | 0.80 |
| Formal Placement | 3,696 | 1.55 | 2,387 | 1.02 |
* Fallon, B., Trocmé, N., MacLaurin, B., Sinha, V., Black, T., Felstiner, C., Schumaker, K., Van Wert, M., Herbert, A., Petrowski, N., Daciuk, J., Lee, B., DuRoss, C. & Johnston, A. (2010). Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect-2008 (OIS‑2008). Toronto, ON: Child Welfare Research Portal. Retrieved from http://cwrp.ca/publications/2293
** Fallon, B., Van Wert, M., Trocmé, N., MacLaurin, B., Sinha, V., Lefebvre, R., Allan, K., Black, T., Lee, B., Rha, W., Smith, C., & Goel, S. (2015). Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect-2013 (OIS‑2013). Toronto, ON: Child Welfare Research Portal. Retrieved from http://cwrp.ca/publications/OIS-2013
§ Child welfare services fall under the jurisdiction of provincial and territorial authorities, making it difficult to compile statistics at the national level. The most notable variations between provinces include mandate variation by jurisdiction with respect to the age to which children are eligible for services, differences in the length of time a child can receive out-of-home care and the definition of out-of-home care.
Ontario - Legislation
| Ontario Legislation |
|---|
| Child and Family Services Act |
| Children's Law Reform Act |
| Family Law Act |
Ontario - Links
Last Name |
First Name | Organization | Province/Territory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alaggia | Ramona | University of Toronto | Ontario |
| Baker | Linda | Western University | Ontario |
| Bala | Nicholas | Queen's University | Ontario |
| Bell | Tessa | Ontario | |
| Birnbaum | Rachel | University of Western Ontario | Ontario |
| Black | Tara | University of Toronto | Ontario |
| Blackstock | Cindy | First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada | Ontario |
| Bogo | Marion | University of Toronto | Ontario |
| Brown | Ivan | International Association for the Scientific Study of Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities | Ontario |
| Brown | Jason | University of Western Ontario | Ontario |
| Brown | Ralph A. | McMaster University | Ontario |
| Browne | Gina | McMaster University | Ontario |
| Burge | Philip | Humber Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning | Ontario |
| Cameron | Gary | Wilfrid Laurier University | Ontario |
| Clarke | Jennifer | Ryerson University | Ontario |
| Coady | Nick | Wilfrid Laurier University | Ontario |
| Crooks | Claire | Western University | Ontario |
| Cummings | Anne | University of Western Ontario | Ontario |
| D'Angiulli | Amedeo | Carleton University | Ontario |
| De Wit | David J. | Centre for Addiction and Mental Health; University of Western Ontario | Ontario |
