National

Child welfare services fall under the mandate of provincial and territorial governments, including a rapidly expanding system of Aboriginal child welfare authorities. This section contains material related to federal initiatives concerned with child welfare services as well as statistics compiled at the national level.

All Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect reports can be found here.

Statistics

Child Maltreatment Investigations in Canada, 1998 and 2008*

  1998 2008
Child population 6,301,295 6,022,005
Number of child maltreatment investigations 134,566 235,842
Incidence of child maltreatment investigations per 1,000 children 21.36 39.16


Type of Child Maltreatment Investigation in Canada, 2008*

  Number Rate per 1,000 children Percent
Maltreatment Investigation 174,411 28.97 74%
Risk Investigation 61,431 10.19 26%


Primary Categories of Substantiated Child Maltreatment Investigations in Canada, 2008*

Category of Maltreatment Number Rate per 1,000 children Percent
Physical Abuse 17,212 2.86 20%
Sexual Abuse 2,607 0.43 3%
Neglect 28,939 4.81 34%
Emotional Maltreatment 7,423 1.23 9%
Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence 29,259 4.86 34%


Placement in Child Maltreatment Investigations in 1998 and in Child Maltrement and Risk Investigations in Canada in 2008*

  1998 Number 1998 Rate 2008 Number 2008 Rate
Informal Kinship Care 5,851 0.93 8,713 1.45
Formal Placement 11,003 1.74 10,886 1.81


* Public Health Agency of Canada. (2010). Canadian incidence study of reported child abuse and neglect 2008: Major findings (p. 122). Public Health Agency of Canada. Retrieved from http://cwrp.ca/publications/2117

Publications
Filter by Publication Date Range
Title Year
Briefing Document. Kiskisik Awasisak: Remember the Children. Understanding the Overrepresentation of First Nations Children in the Child Welfare System
Sinha, Vandna; Trocmé, Nico; Fallon, Barbara; MacLaurin, Bruce; Fast, Elizabeth; Prokop, Shelley Thomas; et al.
 2011
Overview Presentation. Kiskisik Awasisak: Remember the Children. Understanding the Overrepresentation of First Nations Children in the Child Welfare System
Sinha, Vandna; Trocmé, Nico; Fallon, Barbara; MacLaurin, Bruce; Fast, Elizabeth; Prokop, Shelley Thomas; et al.
 2011
Trauma Experiences, Maltreatment-Related Impairments, and Resilience Among Child Welfare Youth in Residential Care
Collin-Vézina, Delphine; Coleman, Kim; Milne, Lise; Sell, Jody; Daigneault, Isabelle
Aboriginal Children. Canada must do better: Today and tomorrow. Special report submitted to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
Canadian Council of Child and Youth Advocates
 2011
Head injury secondary to suspected child maltreatment: Results of a prospective Canadian national surveillance program
Bennett, Susan; Ward, Susan; Moreau, Katherine; Fortin, Gilles; King, Jim; MacKay, Morag; Plint, Amy
 2011
Caring for children from the same culture: Challenges for foster parents
Brown, Jason D.; St. Arnault, David; Sintzel, Jennifer; George, Natalie
 2011
Shifting definitions of emotional maltreatment: An analysis child welfare investigation laws and practices in Canada
Trocmé, Nico; Fallon,Barbara; MacLaurin, Bruce; Chamberland, Claire; Chabot, Martin; Esposito, Tonino
 2011
Emotional maltreatment in Canada: Prevalence, reporting and child welfare responses
Chamberland, Claire; Fallon, Barbara; Black, Tara; Trocmé, Nico
 2011
Is childhood physical abuse associated with peptic ulcer disease? Findings from a population-based study
Fuller-Thomson, Esme; Bottoms, Jennifer; Brennenstuhl, Sarah; Hurd, Marion
 2011
Evaluation of a newborn screen for predicting out-of-home placement
Brownell, Marni D.; Chartier, Mariette; Santos, Robert; Au, Wendy; Roos, Noralou P.; Girard, Darlene
 2011
Legislation

Child welfare services fall under the jurisdiction of provincial and territorial authorities as a result each province and territory has different legislation pertaining to child protection interventions. For more information click here.

The only child welfare regulations and legislation that apply to all provinces and territories are the Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development First Nations Child and Family Services National Program Manual and the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of the Child:

Links
 
Adoption Council of Canada
Assembly of First Nations
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada
Campaign 2000
Canadian Association of Social Workers
Canadian Child Care Federation
Canadian Coalition for the Rights of Children
Canadian Council of Child and Youth Advocates
Canadian Council on Social Development
Canadian Institute for Child Health
Canadian Mental Health Association
Canadian Paediatric Society
CANGRANDS National Kinship Support
Caring for First Nations Children Society
Centre for Children and Families in the Justice System
Centres of Excellence for Children's Well-Being
Child Welfare League of Canada
Cybertip.ca
First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada
Human Resources and Social Development Canada
Indigenous Child Welfare Research Network
Infant Mental Health Promotion Program
Kids Help Phone
National Clearinghouse on Family Violence
National Youth in Care Network
Offord Centre for Child Studies
Parachute Canada (Safe Kids Canada)
Public Health Agency of Canada Child Maltreatment Division
Reconciliation in Child Welfare
Statistics Canada, Children and Youth
Statistics Canada, Juristat (Justice Statistics)
Stop Family Violence, Public Health Agency of Canada
UNICEF Canada