Further to my authority as a Director appointed under subsection 53(1) of the Child, Youth and Family Services Act (CYFSA), and pursuant to section 43 of CYFSA, I require Dilico to comply with the CYFSA and with Directives CW 002-19 and CW 007-20 by doing the following:

1. Report on compliance with Directive CW 002-19 and Directive CW 007-20, by completing all sections of the ministry reporting template provided to Dilico by a program supervisor.

  • A completed reporting template for the months of September 2020 and October 2020 must be provided to the ministry by December 17, 2020. The November 2020 report, which is due on December 10, 2020 must also be provided by December 17, 2020. Subsequent reporting must be provided by the 10th day of the following month or the following business day if the 10th day falls on a weekend or a holiday. This is consistent with existing requirements set out at s. 12.1 of Directive CW 002-19:

    12.1   The ministry will continue to exercise its regulatory and oversight role, pursuant to the CYFSA. In addition, each society will provide reports to the ministry every 30 days, or as otherwise required by the ministry, outlining its compliance with this directive. These reports should be provided in the form specified by the ministry. These reports should also identify challenges that have arisen in attempting to comply with the directive and, in instances where the directive was not complied with, an explanation for the lack of compliance.

The reasons for section 1 of this order and the particulars of non-compliance with s. 12.1 of Policy directive CW 002-19 and with s. 56 (b) of the CYFSA are as follows:

Completed reporting templates provide the ministry with detailed information about how societies are complying with directive requirements. This information is used by the ministry as it carries out its oversight and regulatory functions concerning children’s aid societies.

Dilico has not submitted completed reporting templates as required by the ministry for the months of September or October 2020. The completed September template was due on October 13, 2020. While the ministry acknowledges receipt of a template for the month of September 2020, this template contained incomplete reporting on the total number of new referrals and the number of these referrals that were redirected by Tikinagan Child and Family Services (Tikinagan) or the Children’s Aid Society of the District of Thunder Bay (Thunder Bay CAS).  A ministry program supervisor followed up with Dilico on October 16, 2020 and again on October 27, 2020 and requested that the completed template be submitted. The completed September template has not been received. The completed October template was due on November 10, 2020, but to date no template has been received by the ministry. In response to Dilico’s ongoing refusal to comply with reporting requirements, on November 16, 2020 a program supervisor communicated the following to John Dixon, Interim Director of Child Welfare for Dilico:

“Pursuant to the requirements imposed by the 2019 Directive issued under s. 42 and the requirement under s. 56 for a service provider to provide information to the Minister (or their delegate) when requested, the society must submit the September and October 2020 directive template with all questions answered fully and completely by November 19, 2020.”

The ministry did not receive completed reporting templates by November 19, 2020. During a meeting with the ministry on November 20, 2020 Dilico indicated that the society would not submit the October template.

2. Comply with provisions in Directive CW 002-19 and Directive CW 007-20 concerning children with blended identities and blended families in particular.

  1. Dilico must comply with the requirements set out in section 9 of Directive CW 002-19 concerning children with blended identities and blended families. If a child’s bands include one or more First Nations affiliated with Dilico and one or more First Nations affiliated with Tikinagan, Dilico will work collaboratively with Tikinagan to determine, on a case by case basis, which agency should provide services.
  2. Dilico is required to comply with section 3 of Directive CW 007-20, which sets out revised requirements in sections 11.3 and 11.4 of Directive CW 002-19. For greater clarity, as part of the transition process Dilico must hold case conferences with Tikinagan concerning children whose bands include one or more First Nations affiliated with Dilico and one or more First Nations affiliated with Tikinagan. The ministry requires Dilico to collaborate with Tikinagan in determining which society should provide services in these cases. In the event that Dilico and Tikinagan cannot agree on which society should provide services to a child whose bands include one or more First Nations affiliated with Dilico and one or more First Nations affiliated with Tikinagan, then section 9.2 of Directive CW 002-19 requires that Thunder Bay CAS provide services to the child.
  3. By December 17, 2020, Dilico will prepare and submit to the ministry a plan for achieving compliance with the directives as they pertain to children with blended identities and children with blended families. Dilico will begin implementing the prepared plan immediately upon submission to the ministry.

The reasons for section 2 of this order and the particulars of non-compliance with provisions in Directive CW 002-19 and Directive CW 007-20 concerning children with blended identities and blended families are as follows:

The ministry has attempted to address the issue of service provision to children with blended identities and blended families with Dilico on multiple occasions through inter-society liaison meetings and transition meetings. The ministry has also addressed this issue through correspondence. Examples of these attempts are set out below.

On May 7, 2020 ADM Remington wrote to Dilico’s Executive Director about concerns with Dilico’s lack of collaboration and transparency during the transition. That letter stated, in part, “Dilico has stated it will not participate in case conferences or enter into discussions with Tikinagan about children with blended identities or from blended families, which is contrary to the requirements set out in s. 9 of the directive.”

Dilico responded with a letter dated May 13, 2020 and stated the following about blended families: “In regards to the blended families, Dilico firmly disputes that children and families affiliated with the Robinson Superior Treaty First Nations would be transferred to Tikinagan.”

In a letter dated September 9, 2020, Assistant Deputy Minister David Remington wrote to the President of Dilico’s Board of Directors, Don Humphries and communicated the following:

“Tikinagan has indicated that information sent to Tikinagan by Dilico about children with blended identities only included children who identity with Tikinagan-affiliated and non-Dilico-affiliated First Nations. We understand that information has not been provided concerning children whose First Nations include one or more First Nations affiliated with Tikinagan and one or more First Nations affiliated with Dilico. To be clear, the ministry expects that Dilico will provide Tikinagan with file information and referral numbers for all children whose bands include one or more First Nations affiliated with Tikinagan, including children with blended identities. Sections 9.1-9.4 of Directive CW 002-19 address requirements concerning children with blended identities and children from blended families.”

In a letter dated September 17, 2020, Don Humphries responded to ADM Remington’s September 9, 2020 letter and stated the following:

“In response to concerns regarding Sections 9.1-9.4 of Directive CW 002-19; Dilico has not provided referral or stats in regards to families from Robinson Superior First Nations to date, as the direction remains the same from the leadership of the Robinson Superior Treaty Area. This direction remains that Dilico will continue to provide service to children and families belonging to a Dilico affiliated First Nations who are residing in the Robinson Superior Treaty Area.”

Ministry notes of an inter-society liaison meeting held October 5, 2020 indicate that the issue of service provision to blended families was discussed. These notes were circulated to the attendees, including Dilico’s representative. The notes state in part:

  • Dilico is declining meetings to review these files
  • [Dilico’s ISL] indicates that Dilico is taking the position they will continue to provide services to blended families
  • Tikinagan is asking to proceed with the case conferences on these families in order to provide the families with the option and to obtain information on blended families
  • Dilico indicated they were not willing to proceed with the case conferences

At an inter-society liaison meeting held November 9, 2020, ministry notes indicate that the issue of service provision to blended families was discussed again. These notes were circulated to the attendees, including Dilico’s representative. The notes state in part:

  • Dilico did not provide the number of Tikinagan/Robinson Superior blended families.
  • Tikinagan asked why blended families as defined in the directive are not being transferred. Dilico responded that the family is living in Robinson Superior territory and they have child welfare history with Dilico.
  • Tikinagan asked about family choice. Dilico indicated it was their position to not transfer blended families.

3. Comply with section 4.4 of Directive CW 002-19, which requires Dilico to maintain respectful relationships and collaborate effectively with Tikinagan in order to promote the best interests, protection and well-being of the children being served. In particular:

  1. Dilico will work collaboratively with Tikinagan when addressing referral issues and planning for service transition
  2. Dilico will provide all relevant file information to Tikinagan during the transition to help facilitate effective service planning
  3. Dilico’s representatives will attend case conferences and service planning discussions with Tikinagan’s representatives, taking a solution-focused approach and placing the well-being of children at the forefront of all discussions and decisions
  4. Dilico’s representatives will collaborate with Tikinagan and Thunder Bay CAS by maintaining respectful relationships during inter-society liaison meetings and transition meetings, and demonstrating professionalism in all exchanges during these meetings

By December 17, 2020, Dilico will prepare and submit to the ministry a plan for achieving compliance with section 4.4 of Directive CW 002-19. Dilico will begin implementing the prepared plan immediately upon submission to the ministry.

The reasons for section 3 of this order and the particulars of non-compliance with section 4.4 of Directive CW 002-19 are as follows:

Throughout the transition process, the ministry has documented unprofessional and uncollaborative actions taken by Dilico. The ministry has ended meetings due to Dilico’s inappropriate comments and refusal to participate in a collaborative and respectful manner. On March 10, 2020, the ministry ended an inter-society liaison meeting early because of unproductive and disrespectful conduct on the part of Dilico’s representative. Transition planning meetings were also ended early because of the conduct of Dilico representatives on February 24, 2020 and October 8 2020. Other meetings on September 2, 2020; September 17, 2020; September 24, 2020; and October 1, 2020 did not result in productive exchanges. Ultimately, the ministry chose to discontinue the joint transition meetings because of the ongoing unacceptable conduct of Dilico’s representatives.

Dilico continues to refuse to share all relevant file documentation with Tikinagan in advance of case conferences in order to ensure effective child-focused service planning. These refusals include, but are not limited to, files concerning children with blended identities and blended families.

Collaboration and productive, respectful service planning between Dilico and Tikinagan is integral to an effective transition process that puts children and families first. It is imperative that Dilico work together with Tikinagan to promote the best interests, protection and well-being of children in Thunder Bay.

Failure to comply with this order may result in further compliance steps, including the exercise of powers under s. 44 of the CYFSA, which may include actions such as  imposing conditions on Dilico’s designation, amending the designation, removing and replacing the board chair, appointing a supervisor, or revoking Dilico’s designation.

Dated at Greater Napanee, this 10th day of December 2020.

Original signed by:

David Remington                                             
Assistant Deputy Minister
Child Welfare and Protection Division