In the short time before the next provincial election, Iain Rankin, the new premier of Nova Scotia, can make a quick and impactful move. He can introduce legislation to create the Office of Child and Youth Advocate.
It would be part of his legacy and it would save lives. The office would take over some of the existing staff in the ombudsman’s office and have a non-partisan, thoughtful, high-profile head.
The child advocate would report directly and publicly to the legislature. The child advocate would make specific policy recommendations that elected officials would at least have to put on their agenda for discussion.
But having a stand-alone child advocate would be about more than high-level public policy. The office would also be able to help actual, individual, at-risk children get what they need from sometimes opaque and cold systems and bureaucracies, which don’t always talk to each other.
Across Canada, independent, prominent child and youth advocates exist precisely because children do not have a vote and do not have the right to enter into contracts. When young people are in vulnerable or abusive situations, or when they fall through the cracks, they’re often anonymous and doubly at risk. They are frequently caught up in systems, silos and red tape. Referrals bounce back and forth without a navigator.
MONEY SAVER
Even Prince Edward Island (population 160,000) manages to have a child and youth advocate. The first advocate in that province, Marvin Bernstein, was sworn in last year. He was previously UNICEF Canada’s chief policy advisor.
Manitoba, with a comparable population size to Nova Scotia and a longstanding office, describes the position as follows: “The Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth (MACY) is here to make sure the voices of young people are heard. We make sure their rights are respected and that they have a say in decisions that affect their lives. We advocate, investigate, and review public services in Manitoba to ensure they are meeting the needs of children, youth, and young adults.”
Ultimately, the position saves the province money. Early intervention for children-in-need often pre-empts astronomical court and corrections expenses and acute medical treatments for long-untreated conditions.
A modern province concerned about its people — and interested in doing better — needs a full-fledged, independent child and youth advocate.
The office can also conduct independent reviews, sometimes saving the need to convene cumbersome inquiries from scratch.
The Nova Scotia College of Social Workers is among many organizations calling for a child and youth advocate in this province. Its executive director has labelled it a “no-brainer.”
The college cites the stubbornly high child poverty rates as one of many reasons to have someone do some serious, non-partisan policy work, among other functions for a child and youth advocate. Wealth is still not really trickling down in our communities.
Youth suicide rates in the province are also deeply concerning. Making sure that mental health investments actually reach children and youth with appropriate services is another function.
Social workers have also expressed concern about unacceptably high staff turnover rates and not enough places to turn for workers on the front lines. An experienced hand is needed to provide serious guidance in public administration reform.
BETTER COMMUNICATION NEEDED
Back in 2006, the late Justice Merlin Nunn, originally from Whitney Pier, headed an inquiry that resulted in a report called “Spiralling Out of Control: Lessons Learned from a Boy in Trouble.” One of those lessons was about systems that don’t talk to each other enough: health, education, justice, child welfare, the police. Fifteen years later, similar problems persist.
There is a section of the Nova Scotia Ombudsman’s Office that handles matters related to children and seniors. Staff there do good work. But as the Cape Breton-Victoria Child Advocacy Society told a legislative committee seven years ago, it’s considered a “low-impact office.” It is low profile and has a limited mandate.
Meanwhile, the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child has called for strong offices for child advocacy.
Yes, having such a role would create more public scrutiny. But this is not a game. A modern province concerned about its people — and interested in doing better — needs a full-fledged, independent child and youth advocate.
It shouldn’t be such a struggle. Over to you, Premier Rankin.
Tom Urbaniak, professor of political science, teaches Cape Breton University’s course on children’s rights. One of his books is “A Constant Friend: A History of the Peel Children’s Aid Society.”
