Goals of the Program
- Educate the community and its families on issues relating to living a healthy and holistic lifestyle based on the Anishnabek values and principles.
- Establish ongoing youth and family activities to promote healthy lifestyles.
- Liase with outside agencies to establish networking relationships and support systems with respect to healthy child and family development.
- Establish a working relationship with our local Children’s Aid Society and to provide support and assistance to families when dealing with child protection issues.
Services offered to the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation families through the Child & Youth Welfare Prevention Program
- Information and Awareness Nights and Workshops
These information sessions cover a wide variety of topics, such as:
- Drug and alcohol awareness
- Sexual health issues
- Safety issues
- Health issues
- Social issues
These topics are covered in a variety of ways. One of the most popular is through information nights for the youth and the Youth Centre. Advertisements for these information nights and workshops can be found in the monthly community newsletter and require participants to call the Health & Resource Centre to register for the event.
- Recreational Family & Youth Activities
These activities are designed to give families and youth an opportunity to get out and enjoy a healthy and happy lifestyle. The Child/Youth Welfare Prevention Program (CWPW) offers sponsored trips for families in the summer months to destinations such as Canada’s Wonderland, Great Wolf Lodge and the CNE. Destinations are determined through a community survey in the spring. Youth outings such as movie nights or sporting events are brought forth in a similar manner.
There are a variety of activities that the CWP Program hosts ranging from holiday festivities, to family portrait taking. Advertisements for these activities can be found in the monthly community newsletter and require participants to call the Health & Resource Centre to register for the event.
- Community Youth Centre
The Community Youth Centre is located in the basement of the Health & Resource Centre. It is open to all youth of the community. The youth are able to utilize the Centre for many things such as, a place to complete homework, watch DVD’s, play pool and ping-pong, create crafts, peer socialization and relaxation. The relaxed atmosphere allows youth to socialize with their peers in a safe and healthy supervised environment.
Youth ages 4-18 years are able to access the Centre. Access to the Youth Centre is broken down into the following age categories: 4 years to 8 years, 9 years to 13 years, and 13 years and over. Age groups may be subject to change. The monthly community newsletter outlines each month which nights are available for the youth to access. There is no pre-registration required to access the Centre, however parents are expected to complete the emergency contact form for each youth accessing the Centre and return it to the CWPW.
- Local Agency Networking
The CWPW will act as an “in between” person that families and community members may use to access information about other outside agencies. Information available includes; where to go to access counseling services should they need it, what kinds of services are available and what to expect while dealing with these agencies.
- Assistance and Advocacy with Respect to Child Protection Matters
Since the implementation of the Working Protocol between Scugog Island First Nation and Durham Region Children’s Aid Society (est. October 2003), Scugog Island First Nation has been able to assist its community members and families by ensuring that all child protection matters are dealt with mutual respect and cultural sensitivity. We will do our best to provide support to help our families resolve those problems they may be experiencing and help them to better understand their rights and the steps involved while dealing with child protection agencies.
Contact for Child & Family Service:
Kyle Harren - First Nations Child Welfare Representative
Phone: 905-985-1826 ext. 322