1945 to the Present

Previous: 1894 to 1945

• The Post War Years
• Money And Law
• The Lack Of Income
• The Eighties
• The Nineties
• The Twenty-First Century

The Post War Years

Though the war had ended, Kingston's Society, like others in the country, could not disband its staff and volunteers as had the army. Though the federal government ended its support for the day care and day nursery programs after the war, Kingston's families and children had grown to rely on these services begun during the war. No one wanted to see these programs disappear, and indeed in 1946, the Ontario government took over full responsibility for day nursery programs.

This ongoing demand for the Society's services began many years of acute staff shortages and growing costs. In 1944 the Society spent $25,000 in providing services to the community. By 1954 it was spending $132,000. In 1956 the Society's director, D. Allan Judd, looked at a 60% increase in requests for assistance and wrote. "Our protection staff has been operating almost entirely on an emergency level."

Indeed, the staffing problems of the 1950s was the administrative hangover from the war years, as demand for the graduates of Canada's schools of social work outstripped supply. This was a crucial problem, especially given the shift in the Society's philosophy. Where it initially had been assumed that it was best to remove a child from the source of neglect and ill-treatment, it became apparent that this, too often, failed to bring the happy results expected. By 1939, Society policies addressed "preventive" action, which concentrated on "removing the conditions of neglect, rather than the children."

Only when the war ended could the Society begin to implement this policy. Its efforts were hampered by a lack of qualified staff and by funding structures which only recognized services, provided to children in the care of the Society. Governments were not bound by law to support the time and resources needed to make preventive work successful. Although these changes would come later, the Society began taking steps on its own to shift its focus. Even during the war, for example, the Society's staff had by 1943 grown to six; a Superintendent, three social workers, and two office workers. This was still inadequate for the demands made on the Society but sufficient staffing was of fundamental importance to the desired policy changes.

During these times the Society also worked to move to building facilities which would accommodate these changes. By 1931, the agency had moved from its first 75 Union Street address to others nearby, at 169 Union Street. By 1948 the Society was situated at 240 King Street where, in 1956, it invested in the construction of a large vault, thereby giving its files and records improved safekeeping.

But moves such as these were barely keeping up with the changes taking place in Canadian society. In 1957 the federal government, with provincial support, introduced hospital insurance. This was something widely applauded by Canadians, but it did have an odd and unfortunate side effect on the Society's work in Kingston. In one of its many informal networks of community cooperation, the Society would often send children and families to the hospitals for emergency shelter. Meanwhile, the Society's staff would make arrangements for more permanent accommodation. Under the terms of the hospital insurance plan, this arrangement was no longer possible. Some Society staff members of this period still recall the sight of families, surrounded by their belongings, waiting in the hallways of 240 King Street while workers frantically looked for a place for them.

The Society decided to take the steps necessary to resolve this situation with the construction of its own shelter. This was no easy task, for if anything characterized the Society's first fifty years, it was persistent financial difficulties. However, by 1958 the plans were ready the construction of a "Receiving Home", for children. A plot of land was found in the newly developed Calvin Park area but two difficulties arose immediately. One was neighbourhood opposition to the Home, reminiscent of the hostility which greeted the Society's first attempt at finding quarters in 1894. The second was, of course, money. Both were resolved by wider community support for the project. The Kiwanis Club stepped in and purchased the land for the Society, while construction costs were offset by the people of Kingston and Frontenac County who donated $20,000 in a fund raising drive. By 1962 the Receiving Home was fully operational, its development aptly supporting the point made by the Society's director, "No social agency can operate alone but must depend on the help and cooperation of others if we are going to provide a good level of service."

The success of this venture in many ways typified the Society's expansion in the 1950s and 1960s. Kingston's housing, for example, was in a desperate state during this period where many homes had dirt floors and inadequate heating. The Society's response was to spearhead the establishment of a local Housing Authority. Later the Society was instrumental in the construction of subsidized housing units at 1130 Montreal Street.

Money And Law

A number of significant legislative developments occurred between 1945 and 1965 which had significant impact on the nature of work performed by the Society. The first happened in 1954, when the province of Ontario passed the Child Welfare Act. This law brought together three separate pieces of provincial law pertaining to child welfare: the Adoption Act, the Children's Protection Act (of 1893), and the Children of Unmarried Parents Act. This new law reflected the government's increasing commitment to regulating services to children and families. It provided for a minimum of $0.75 per child for every day of care provided by a local Society. This ended the casual and informal manner in which local Societies used to arrange funding from their local governments.

The second major development occurred in 1965 with a further amendment to the Child Welfare Act. Through these changes, the government of Ontario, for the first time, officially declared that it would assume primary funding for the provision of child welfare services in the province, in a 80% / 20% partnership with local municipalities. This new law also recognized the need for preventive measures and ensured minimum standards of service by local Societies.

This was a far cry from the assumption of 1894 that services to neglected and abused children should rely almost exclusively on private benevolence. Despite increased provincial and municipal support for Societies during the 1920s and 30s, local Societies had always been uncertain about their annual budgets and relied heavily on the help of private donations and the Community Chest fund raising, (the precursor of the United Way), in order to continue to provide service to the community.

Though fund raising was, and still is, necessary for the provision of non-statutory services, the daily scramble for funds was fundamentally changed by this government's intervention. It should be pointed out, however, that projects like the anniversary celebration, though non-statutory, often receive funding from all levels of government.

The Lack Of Income

As late as 1970, the Society continued to point out the lack of rent geared-to-income housing, showing that only fifty such units had been built in two years, despite the hundreds of families on waiting lists.

This was one of the several ways in which the Society worked in the community to improve living conditions of children. These activities demonstrate a marked change from the original activities of "rescuing" children from neglect, to the broader concerns for families and the conditions in which children were forced to live.

The Eighties

With more secure funding granted under the new provisions of the Child Welfare Act, the Society was much better equipped to carry out a number of community initiatives aimed at reducing child abuse and neglect. In 1980, for example, the Society sponsored the Parent Aid Program, an idea that grew out of the still successful Frontenac County Committee Against Child Abuse. This program provided a forum where experienced parents could act as role models and resources for parents who were isolated or experiencing difficulties in their lives. By 1986, due to the ongoing progress of this program, the society assumed full responsibility for its funding and administration.

Other community initiatives, such as the Creative Enterprises for Teenagers, expanded preventive services for families experiencing difficulties with teens. In 1984, the Society assumed responsibility for administration of this program, and in 1985 the province began funding the program on an annual basis. One year later, the Society's work with teenagers was enhanced through the development of a transition house program, where adolescents could learn life skills which would allow them to eventually live independently in their community.

The Nineties

The 1990s were challenging years for the Province, as well as the Society. With reductions in funding from the Rae Government, to the reductions is social welfare spending by the Harris government, the Society found itself trying to do more with less, to protect children in a social environment that was becoming more challenging for low income families. Many other smaller "grass roots" agencies that had provided outstanding services to vulnerable groups, were closed during this time.

Sadly, a number of child deaths occurred while the children or families were receiving services from Children's Aid Society. This led to inquests and the ultimately, the Child Mortality Task Force. The result of these inquests was akin to a reconstruction of the investigative system. The province mandated the introduction of the Risk Assessment Model, the Eligibility Spectrum, and the Fastrack Information System, set response times to investigations of abuse and neglect and established the New Worker Training Program. At the same time came the introduction of the Provincial Funding Formula, which dictated funding levels, given the demands placed upon agencies to meet these new standards. In addition, a new set of Court Rules were introduced with the introduction of the Unified Family Court in Kingston.

The introduction of the Funding Formula resulted in unprecedented growth across all areas of the agency. A volunteer program was developed in 1994, the Treatment Foster Care Program was introduced, the Family Visiting Program was developed to enhance a family's access to their children in care and we were able to place a number of Social Workers in high need schools to provide direct service. With all of the growth, the agency needed a larger office building, hence in 1997 the agency moved to its current home on Montreal Street.

As the Nineties closed we continued to grow, perfected our use of the Risk Assessment model and adjusted our practice to the new court demands. In review, the decade was one of constant change, at first by continual reduction of funding across all segments of society. Following this the change was brought on by new requirements from the government and increased funding which, while a blessing, resulted in an almost overwhelming wave of change and adjustments to it.

The Twenty-First Century

After getting through the nineties and the changes of the incredible challenges to the field of child welfare, we face another period when it seems the one constant is change. The continued growth of the agency's budgets, as a result of the Ministry funding our increased volume, has meant a continual process of recruiting, hiring and training of social workers. The "new" building that we occupied in 1997 was designed to house approximately sixty staff, and now houses close to one hundred. After moving into a temporary branch office site, we have recently added a new, larger and more permanent site on John Counter Boulevard.

Despite constant adaptation, the agency has been able to grow professionally and in programs provided to families and children in care. The agency is moving toward the comprehensive child in care recording and planning system known as Looking After Children (LAC). Society staff are able to provide families and public groups with our own policy outlining Positive Discipline, and services to teens in care were enhanced with the introduction of the Learning Independence For Teens (LIFT) program.

Unfortunately the school-based program initiated in the mid nineties needed to be terminated during this time, in direct corelation to the local school board's budget restraints. Amendments to the Child and Family Services Act in 2000 have resulted in an increase in cases going to court, and more cases are going to trial, both of which place increased strain on families, as well as increased administrative burdens on the staff of the society.

In 2002 the agency began a Strategic Planning process involving staff, board members and the public, to assist in refocusing the agency in a number of key directions. This initiative requires the commitment of staff, board and community members as it develops, but is resulting in some exciting initiatives with respect to service for families and children in care, communication with our community partners, and developing a system where we can begin to "grow our own" leaders for the future.