Old habits die hard

Local Children’s Aid Societies discussing merger

Stop me if you’ve heard this before. A provincial ministry believes it can save money by prodding local agencies to amalgamate.

Despite abundant object examples of the failure of amalgamation to deliver efficiencies, from QHC to municipalities, the province is finding it a difficult habit to break.

“Local services must
continue and be sited
locally.”
Bill Sweet, director, CAS Prince Edward

The latest target for the provincial government’s amalgamation zeal is local Children’s Aid Societies. The ministry responsible for these agencies, the Ministry of Children and Youth Services, has urged the Children’s Aid Societies of Prince Edward, Hastings County and Northumberland County to consider amalgamating into one organization to save money.

Since January a special committee comprising board members and directors from all three local CAS organizations has been meeting to study the feasibility of a merger. They are required to report to a Ministry commission by the end of this month.

Some County board members worry that a merger will mean a loss of local influence on an agency that has served its community well.

Bill Sweet is the local director of the CAS Prince Edward. He says his board and organization is obliged to participate in this feasibility study. He says the organization is doing so with an open mind but also with a “healthy dose of skepticism.”

Sweet says the local board will decide if it will accept or reject any recommendations that arise from the study.

“Our board has taken the view that this is a study,” said Sweet. “At the end of the day a plan will be developed and presented to each agency’s boards of directors. A decision will be made in which direction to go. That decision will be made by this board.”

The CAS of Prince Edward has managed its funding well according to Sweet.

“Our annual budget is about $5 million,” explained Sweet. “We balance our books year over year. In the past 20 years we’ve only had one incident where we had a minor deficit of $80,000. Compared with other agencies in the province— we’ve done very well.”

Meanwhile the CAS of Hastings balanced its budget last year for the first time in many years. It is unclear how the CAS of Northumberland has fared in managing its finances, as it doesn’t publish financial reports.

Marrying a smaller but healthy organization with larger but weaker and financially strapped neighbours is a union that has been tried before. It didn’t save money for Quinte Health Care and it didn’t create efficiencies hoped for in the amalgamation of Prince Edward.

Yet the province pushes ahead believing bigger is better. The CAS of Prince Edward serves about 80 children in this community. The local trend has been toward fewer children in care as programs intended to keep children in extended families has begun delivering results.

“We must ensure the traditions,
as well as business
and service practices, we’ve
built up over the years are
maintained in any new
organization.”
Bill Sweet, director, CAS Prince Edward

The agency is a corporation governed by a board of 11 individuals who either reside in the County or do business here.

In January the Commission to Promote Sustainable Child Welfare, under the authority of the Ministry of Children and Youth Services, instructed the three local CAS agencies in Prince Edward, Hastings and Northumberland to study a merger.

The findings of this study will be reported to the commission by the end of March.

Sweet expects that the Commission will make a recommendation by May.

“Whatever change should occur, our goal is that it would be invisible to the families and children we serve,” said Sweet.

He ruled out a closure of the Picton offices or a reduction in the services in this community.

“Closing this office is not under consideration,” said Sweet. “Local services must continue and be sited locally.”

He says he and his board are working in good faith with their neighbouring agencies.

“We are participating in this study without having made any foregone conclusions,” said Sweet. “We want to ensure that if changes occur the community’s interests are front and centre. We must also ensure that the traditions, as well as business and service practices, we’ve built up over the years are maintained in any new organization.”