Workloads at Children and Family Services delaying assessment of vulnerable kids, say staff

Nearly half of Calgary front-line staff who assess whether children are unsafe with their caregivers have been dealing with caseloads exceeding benchmarks set under the Ministry of Children and Family Services, CBC News has learned.

Similar data shared with CBC News from February suggests the situation in Edmonton is more strained, with almost two-thirds of child intervention practitioners there assigned cases above those same provincial benchmarks. 

In discussing the conditions, several child intervention practitioners said they fear vulnerable children are being put at risk by case backlogs and staff shortages.

They said child assessments that used to begin a couple of weeks after receiving a public report — such as from a relative, teacher or doctor — are now taking a couple of months to get to.

"I've had different positions within the department and I've never seen it this bad," said one employee, who asked not to be identified out of concern for their job. 

"We are leaving kids in horrible situations," said another worker. "We've done so much damage." 

The ministry said it's working to address workforce challenges, and has introduced policies to support reduced workloads for employees, including a focus on recruiting. 

In an e-mailed statement, Matthew Cassie, a spokesperson for Children and Family Services (CFS), disputed the figures obtained by the CBC. Cassie said 60 per cent of child intervention practitioners across Alberta have caseloads at or under provincial benchmarks — leaving 40 per cent working above those levels.

"If a report of a child needing intervention services requires immediate attention, we will take all necessary steps to keep the child safe," said Cassie. 

"The health, safety and well-being of children and youth is the government's top priority." 

Child intervention practitioners are employed by CFS to assess and investigate reports of children in vulnerable and potentially dangerous situations. 

They create safety plans to either allow children to remain with appointed guardians or be taken into government care.  

An internal email sent by the assistant deputy minister of child intervention to all CFS employees on Sept. 27, 2023, obtained by CBC News, states that child intervention practitioners should not have more than 13 files assigned to them at any given time. 

But caseload data shows many child intervention practitioners have assignments in the high teens or low 20s.