Child Abuse Program

The Awasis Agency Child Abuse Program Report for 2023-2024 outlines the agency's efforts in addressing child abuse across several communities.

They handled 417 cases, mainly involving physical and sexual abuse. Key challenges include a lack of support for victims, an increase in abuse cases, and difficulties working with local RCMP. Despite these issues, the program has made progress by forming a multi-disciplinary Child Abuse Committee and expanding their team to better manage cases.

All referrals of Child Maltreatment, Domestic Violence, and Sexual Exploitation are reviewed by the program, where decisions are made on how we will proceed with the investigation, and by agency policy, ensure that all legislation, standards, and regulations regarding child abuse investigations are met.

Awasis Agency's Child Abuse Coordinator is the Chair of the Northern Joint Child Abuse Committee [NCAC], which sits in Thompson, Manitoba, and is shared with NCN Child and Family Services. Three new committee members were recruited this year.

NCAC is the only joint committee in the province, with Awasis Agency averaging 74 cases before the committee. These cases are not specific to a fiscal year as cases remain open for the duration of criminal proceedings, which in the north can take a significant amount of time.

StreetReach

This initiative is part of Tracia's Trust and serves a secondary prevention function aimed at child protection (i.e., preventing children from being sexually exploited). The StreetReach Program has been in operation in Thompson for four years now. There are currently twenty-six youth attached to the program. Twenty-two females and four males.