Indigenous child welfare

Canada has a decentralized child welfare system that consists of 13 Canadian provincial and territorial child welfare systems. In addition, there exists Métis, First Nations and urban Indigenous child and family service agencies that are to varying degrees affected by federal policies and funding models.

Most commonly, Indigenous child welfare agencies have signed agreements with either the federal or both the federal and provincial governments that authorizes them to provide the full range of child protection services and receive federal funding to do so.

For more information about First Nations child welfare, see Denouncing the Continued Overrepresentation of First Nations Children in Canadian Child Welfare.

For information on the First Nations human rights complaint case against the federal government for under-funding child welfare services on-reserve: I am a witness.

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Implementing the Baby One Program: a qualitative evaluation of family-centred child health promotion in remote Australian Aboriginal communities

Campbell, S., McCalman, J., Redman-MacLaren, M., Canuto, K., Vine, K., Sewter, J., & McDonald, M. 

2018
Supreme Court of Canada’s Reference re An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families: What Indigenous Peoples and Governments Need to Know

Bissett, T.

2025
(In)Equity in the Context of COVID-19

Saint-Girons, Marie
Lefebvre, Rachael
Fallon, Barbara
Blackstock, Cindy

2020
10-Month-Old Lily: An Investigative Review

Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Alberta

2016
14-Year-Old Lee Serious Injury: An Investigative Review

Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Alberta

2018
15-Year-Old Jimmy: An Investigative Review

Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Alberta

2017
15-Year-Old Levi: An Investigative Review

Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Alberta

2017
15-Year-Old Netasinim: An Investigative Review

Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Alberta

2016
16-Year-Old Dillion Serious Injury: An Investigative Review

Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Alberta

2017
17-Year-Old Susan: An Investigative Review

Office of the Child and Youth Advocate Alberta

2018