Manitoba Strategy Responding to Children and Youth at Risk of, or Survivors of, Sexual Exploitation

Current Initiatives

The Manitoba Strategy was developed to compliment the existing good work already being done by community groups active in the issue and to fill in some of the gaps in service identified by community agencies and current research on child sexual exploitation.

Community Programs and Services

• Outreach Project - An Outreach Project aimed at reducing the number of residential care run-a-way youth who become at increased risk of sexual exploitation has been expanded. An initiative of Family Services and Consumer Affairs, two additional outreach positions, respectively at Marymound Inc. and Manitoba Association of Residential Treatment Resources, have been added to the existing one worker program that operated out of Knowles Centre.
• Safe Transition Home - A six-bed safe transition home in Winnipeg, Honouring the Spirit of our Little Sisters, is in operation by Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre Inc., for female and transgender youth, ages 13 to 17, who have been subjected to and at risk for continued sexual exploitation. Programming includes the provision of family group decision making, cultural opportunities, education, employment, training, mentoring, life skills and volunteerism. An initiative of Family Services and Consumer Affairs, the safe transition home officially opened November 10, 2003.
• Residential Child Care Facility - Family Services and Consumer Affairs has recently finalized an agreement with Marymound Inc. to enhance one of their residential child care facilities, Rose Hall, thus enabling them to deliver specialized services for young women ages 13 to 17 who have been sexually exploited. Rose Hall partners with the Marymound Child Sexual Abuse Treatment Program in this endeavour.
• Training for Foster Parents and Other Workers - Intensive specialized training for foster parents and other front-line workers who deal with children and youth who have been sexually exploited has begun, coordinated by the TRAILS Program of New Directions for Children, Youth, Adults and Families.
• Specialized Foster Care Resources - Specialized foster care resources for children aged 8 to 12 who have been sexually exploited has been developed in conjunction with the specialized training program outlined above. Foster parent recruitment by the TRAILS Program and by B&L Youth Services has begun.
• Student Support Research Project - A needs assessment project has been developed by Aboriginal and Northern Affairs and Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth to identify the needs of Aboriginal youth coming from the north to reside in Winnipeg for educational or other reasons. Kani Kanichik is conducting this research.
• TERF Program - Continued support for the TERF program at New Directions that offers transition assistance for female and transgender youth who are sexually exploited has been committed by Family Services and Consumer Affairs. The TERF program has been in place for many years and the demand for its service has increased more recently with the implementation of the Manitoba Strategy.

Resources and Education

• Child Sexual Exploitation Awareness Resources - Development of Child Sexual Exploitation Awareness resources for province-wide access has begun. Spearheaded by Manitoba Health, in partnership with Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth and assisted by the other partner departments, a community forum was hosted in Winnipeg in March 2003 and was well attended by over 150 government and community leaders. A Compact Disk resource is currently in production that will provide an overview of the issue for broad use throughout the province.

• School Learning Resources - Development of new school learning resources that focuses on the prevention of child sexual exploitation, for access by all schools in Manitoba, has been prepared by two community groups, Child Find Manitoba (personal safety strategies) and Ndaawin (cultural based prevention strategies). They are being reviewed by Manitoba Education, Citizenship and Youth for use in conjunction with the Health Curriculum. This project is a joint effort of Manitoba Education and Youth and Manitoba Health. Piloting will take place in the 2003/2004 school year at selected schools.

Legal Framework

• Prosecutions Policy - Manitoba Justice introduced a new Prosecutions Policy that states that children involved in prostitution are victims of a particularly serious form of sexual exploitation who are in need of assistance. The Policy directs prosecutors to divert sexually exploited youth from the formal court processes to supportive programs that will assist them in leaving the circumstances that make them vulnerable to sexual exploitation. It further denies offenders access to alternative measures known as "John school" and directs prosecutors to oppose bail and to seek a sentence of incarceration for most offenders. Coordinated efforts on the part of Crown, Police and Social Services to divert youth to appropriate social service programs are ongoing and will continue to be supported and strengthened through the strategy.

Administration

• Provincial Coordinator - A Provincial Coordinator was hired to coordinate the implementation of the Manitoba Strategy in January 2003.
• Research and Evaluation - A Manitoba Strategy Research and Evaluation Sub-Committee, lead by the Manitoba Women's Directorate and RESOLVE from the University of Manitoba, has been established. This committee will assist with the development and implementation of an evaluation plan for the Strategy and its components, as well as identify the research needs of the Strategy. Committee members include representatives from Thunderbird House, who will be responsible for conducting youth focus groups as needed.
• Partnerships and Committees - Partnership building and committee work with existing community services relevant to the issue of child and youth sexual exploitation, particularly in Winnipeg, has been started. This includes connections with organizations such as Child Find Manitoba, Salvation Army Prostitution Diversion Program, West End Biz, the Winnipeg Police Service, Operation Go Home, Street Connections, Thunderbird House, Ndaawin, Aboriginal Elders and several others.
• Community Coordination - A Community Coordination Sub-Committee, lead by the TERF Program, has just begun to develop and oversee a more formalized community coordination plan for community organizations who work with sexually exploited youth in the Winnipeg area.
• Implementation - The Multi-Jurisdictional Implementation Team, lead by Family Services and Consumer Affairs, has continued to meet regularly and move forward in implementing the Manitoba Strategy.
  

Overview of the Manitoba Strategy

Please visit our Manitoba strategy main page for an overview of the initiative.

Contact Information

For more information, please contact:

Child Protection Branch
Manitoba Family Services and Consumer Affairs
201 - 114 Garry Street
Winnipeg MB R3C 4V5
Phone: (204) 945-6964 or 945-5055
Email: cfsd@gov.mb.ca
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