County News
Tough year
CAS celebrates successes, vows to fix procedures
The management and board of the Prince Edward County Children’s Aid Society appear determined to ride out the storm swirling around this community agency in the past year.
In its annual meeting last week the CAS put on a decidedly brave face, choosing to stress its successes rather than dwell on failures.
It has been a very tough year for the Prince Edward County Children’s Aid Society.
It began by rejecting the overtures of two neighbouring Children’s Aid agencies, Hastings and Northumberland, as well as the prodding of Ministry of Children and Youth Services, for the Prince Edward County Children’s Aid Society to join forces with its money losing region agencies.
Then in November foster parents Joe and Janet Holm were convicted of sexually exploiting children in their care and subsequently sent to prison. In his ruling, Justice Geoff Griffin urged the community to demand an inquiry to find out how 25 children had been sent to live in this home for the past nine years—yet Prince Edward County CAS officials were unaware of the crimes perpetrated against children in their care.
Then it happened again.
Last month a 71-year-old man, who has not been named, was convicted of sex crimes against two children in his care. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Friday in Picton.
Charges were withdrawn against a third foster parent last month—charges brought about by a review of the local children’s aid agency’s operations, a review monitored by provincial ministry officials.
There was, however, little discussion of the “challenges” of the past year in the Salvation Army hall on Thursday night. Instead there was a decided attempt to focus on the positive— including a first-ever “Foster Parents of the Year Award” ceremony.
They couldn’t, however, ignore the questions surrounding the agency entirely.
Executive Director Bill Sweet said his agency has embarked on an eight-point plan to improve and enhance internal policies to ensure safety of the children in its care. (See sidebar).
Sweet told the Times that while none of these practices was exactly new, his agency was refining the way it does business and building on past practices.
“We have undergone an extraordinary amount of reflection these past months,” said Sweet. “We learn every day in this job.”
Sweet said he understands that his agency has much more work to do to rebuild community trust in the Prince Edward County Children’s Aid Society.
“The community has a right to expect us to do better,” said Sweet. “The community should ask questions.”
All existing board members stood for re-election. There were no nominations from the floor. Steven Ward remains chair.
The mood in the room was decidedly upbeat last week—perhaps not surprising as most of the chairs appeared to be filled by staff, board members and foster families. Several young people were recognized at the meeting for their achievements in building successful, productive lives by way of the support provided by the agency and the homes administered by the Children’s Aid Society.
One young man exuberantly credited his foster parents for turning his life around—transforming, in his words, an angry a youth into positive and energetic young man, ready to take on the world. Through the troubles and difficulties of the past year, the local Children’s Aid Society is seeking redemption through achievements like his.
How can you put all the blame on Mr.Sweet and the CAS? Child abuse is everywhere! People that you would never think to do that to kids, are. I know there must be a screening process that foster parents have to go through but what child abuser is going to come right out and tell them that they are a child abuser. Give your head a shake! These types of people prey on vulnerable kids. But we have to let our kids know that they can come to someone they trust if something is happening to them, and that something will be done. We don’t know what goes on behind closed doors unless someone speaks up.
read the story again Angie, see if you cant spot why this is the fault of the CAS [hint: it has to do with LEAVING A CHILD WITH A SEX OFFENDER.] even if it was a false claim the child should have been moved. chances are if her original report was false she would repeat the story, right? instead they left a vulnerable child with a monster because they found that to be an easier solution. also, if she was being abused it gives the CAS exactly the excuse they like to take any children she has in future. ask around, educate yourself. when all the skeletons come out it WILL make the residential schools look like school yard bullying. the CAS is destroying the future of ontario one child at a time.
Angie, Maybe you should you give your head a shake and read this article. One of the foster children in the 71 year olds home did come forward more than 5 years ago and no one listened to her. When no one listens to the children how do they learn to trust the adults that are reponsible for them or the society that put them there.
http://wellingtontimes.ca/demand-answers/
The only way anyone could put the blame on anyone else but the Children’s Aid is if they are associated with it, maybe you’re employed by them Angie, or someone close to you is… and a pay check is more important than the welfare of the children they are responsible for. It’s not like a child has a choice of where they are placed to start, nor do their parents. It is strictly the children’s aid’s responsibility to place a child in a safe, secure, positive environment and to ensure that that environment stays that way…. HOW DID THEY NOT HAVE A CLUE? Clearly they did it is a small town. The foster parents ARE NOT the child’s legal guardian, the CAS is. Where is there punishment. Seriously, individual people associated with these cases seriously lacked on there job, or just chose not to do there job period. What is our child welfare system coming to? I fully believe that half of that agency should have personal consequences (loss of job etc), How many times are we going to let clearly incompetent people fail drastically in one year.
BTW: This is someone formally a foster child of the children’s aid society of PEC. I have no respect for this agency. I am so glad I am not associated with them anymore (now 22).
A monkey with a blindfold on could be a better ED than Mr. William Sweet
BOB you are so right a monkey could do better than Bill Sweet
Sweet, you need to be charged with many sorts of child abuse, and so do your workers, your the one who approved these living conditions for these children, its disgusting to say the least that your “agency” is getting away with this. You should NEVER be able to work for or around children again, this is horrible, wonder what you would do if your child was sexually abused, would you make a new 8 point system in your house, i think not, ffs get a grip. All workers who were in charge of over seeing these children are not fit to be workers or in any role of a child either. your a DISGUSTING society.
Let’s hope this is the last time, again….. Only fools let fools oversee themselves because it’s children who are being let down because we are not allowing the Ombudsman to clean up Ontario’s dirty little secret.
I think that the CAS is just trying to pretend as though they are fixing things but they had already said this just last year so they are lying to cover themselves.
Please read this article that I had wrote that I had sent to numerous news agencies including the Wellington Times but it was printed in the Intelligencer on June 30th and later published in the Chattam-Kent Review the next day: http://www.ckreview.ca/2012/07/oversight-needed-for-childrens-aid-societies/