Foster children in Canada are known as permanent wards (crown wards in Ontario). A ward is someone, in this case a child, placed under protection of a legal guardian and are the legal responsibility of the government. Census data from 2011 counted children in foster care for the first time, counting 47,885 children in care. The majority of foster children – 29,590, or about 62% – were aged 14 and under. The wards remain under the care of the government until they "age out of care." This age is different depending on the province.
Provincial differences
Different provinces have different regulations for the wards in their care. Many of the provinces also have third party groups set up to support both youth and alumni in and from care. These networks are not connected to the provincial governments
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Province !! Rate per 1000* !! Percentage !! Age of protection**
! Youth network
|-
| British Columbia || 10.1 || 1.01% || 19 || Federation of BC Youth in Care Networks
|-
| Alberta || 10.6 || 1.06% || 18 || Alberta Youth in Care and Custody Network
|-
| Saskatchewan || 21.7 || 2.17% || 16 || Saskatchewan Youth in Care and Custody Network
|-
| Manitoba || 24.4 || 2.44% || 18 || Voices: Manitoba's Youth in Care Network
|-
| Ontario || 6.4 || 0.64% || 18||Ontario Youth Communication and Advocacy Network
|-
| Quebec || 7.8 || 0.78% || 18 || –
|-
| New Brunswick || 9.0 || 0.90% || 16 || Partners for Youth
|-
| Nova Scotia || 8.8 || 0.88% || 16 || Youth Voices of Nova Scotia Society
|-
| Prince Edward Island || 5.3 || 0.53% || 16 || Prince Edward Island Youth in Care Network;
|-
| Newfoundland || 7.5 || 0.75% || 16 || –
|-
| Yukon || 24.7 || 2.47% || 19 || –
|-
| Northwest Territories || 30.8 || 3.08% || 16 || –
|-
| Nunavut || 15.3 || 1.53% || 16 || –
|}
<nowiki>*</nowiki>rate per 1000 youth in care<br />
<nowiki>**</nowiki>Note: Children with disabilities are eligible for protective services until age 19.
Cases
Cases are filed though individual provinces Social Services departments. In 92% of cases, the child remains at home and is not in put in an Out-of-Home Placement. Police statistics for youth under 18 show that youth, accounting for 21% of the Canadian population account for 21% of all physical assaults and 61% of all sexual assaults in Canada. In 71% of all police-reported assaults, the victims were between the ages of 12–17.
86% of the time, cases are filed against the biological mother.
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Statistics Canada survey (2016) Lastly, In 2017, Bill 99 was introduced as an amendment to the Youth Protection Act of Quebec, bringing the preservation of culture as an important factor in the decision making process for foster children, and stated that whenever possible, Indigenous children will be placed with a member of his extended family or community.
There are many indigenous organizations, services and activist groups who work in collaboration with the federal government of Canada and within each province or territory to manage services for First Nations, Inuit and Métis families. These groups work to find ways to reduce the number of indigenous children taken into the foster care system for racially biased and/or preventable reasons. They also attempt to act as third part mediators who are literate in the social welfare system, providing avenues for social workers and Indigenous families to be in healthy communication and trusting relationships. This is vital considering the history of the Sixties Scoop.
Indigenous-based agencies deliver mandated child and family services and programs in a way which maintains and strengthens the individual, the family, and the community within the context of Indigenous values and customs. Without indigenous networks of care, certain alternative care models might be disregarded or withheld from communities who practice these traditions. Additionally, Customary care preserves a child's cultural identity, respects the child's heritage, facilitates cross-generational connections, and recognizes the role of the community in raising its children.
Child functioning concerns
While 54% of cases have no child functioning concerns, a wide range of categories for physical, emotional, cognitive and behavioural issues may be exhibited by youth:
Transitioning out of care
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In a number of studies, youth who have aged out of the child welfare system have spoken of their experiences and highlighted areas where they could have been better prepared for their transition from care. They speak of the frustration of being "cut off" from the system once they reach their 18th (or 19th) birthday to fend for themselves, with limited life skills, financial support and support networks. The transition from care is alluded to as a process that may take many years, not an event triggered by a youth’s 18th (or 19th) birthday. In most cases, the youth were not emotionally ready to live independently. Youth living with their families don’t typically achieve independence until their mid- to late-twenties, whereas youth in care are "expelled" from the system at age 18, whether they are ready or not.