Taborview Programs just got through a ministry investigation and now they will have another, The Citizen has learned.
The Minister of Children and Families, Mary McNeil, said in an exclusive interview that she was sending "youth mental health expert" to Prince George to do "a specialized assessment" of the Taborview operations, the locations of which have not been disclosed.
She also confirmed that Taborview was, within the last few weeks, the subject of a Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) investigation into their past youth-in-care performance. The Prince George-based contractor has 22 children in their keep in the Prince George region, and four more in the Cranbrook region.
"I think there were a couple of complaints [that prompted the previous investigation] and I can't say much more because I don't know much more, but when you receive a complaint you look into it," McNeil told The Citizen.
Now that an 11-year-old boy in Taborview's care allegedly stabbed his youth care worker and was subsequently Tasered when police came to intervene, MCFD's interest is intensified.
The incoming assessment agent is different, said McNeil from the investigation into the ministry's province-wide operations announced Thursday by the B.C. Child and Youth Representative, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, but McNeil stressed that anything uncovered by her probe would be available to Turpel-Lafond and any of the other investigations underway into this matter.
"I share all of her concerns," said McNeil. "I am extremely troubled by the fact there are some actions being called into question. The ministry deals with our most troubled and vulnerable children but we are responsible for their welfare and safety."
Opposition critic Maurine Karagianis called The Citizen to express her concern that MCFD had lost its way in that responsibility. She cheered the investigation by Turpel-Lafond especially.
"I think it is about time for this kind of in-depth examination," Karagianis said. "It is unfortunate that it was triggered by a tragic event of the Tasering of a child. Nonetheless I think it is good the government is going to step in and look at whether there have been adequate resources for these group-homes.
"Certainly we know there is troubling indications that many group-homes are relying on the police to come in and manage vulnerable children when they are in distress or having violent episodes. It seems very inadequate to me."
McNeil said there were "very strict standards in place" and part of the MCFD examination would be to compare the conduct of Prince George group-homes with the guidelines already in place. It would also look for holes in the MCFD system so improvements could be suggested.
"Hopefully we will see the ministry begin to reexamine its own role," said Karagianis. "Police should never be called in when other resources could be deployed to look after vulnerable children."
"We have to learn all the circumstances before we reach any conclusions," said McNeil, who added that when dealing with special-needs children, hasty, uninformed moves can do them more harm than the intended good.
