New pilot program will provide respite for Manitoba families of kids with disabilities

The province of Manitoba has announced $8 million in funding toward a two-year pilot program that aims to help families of children with disabilities care for their kids at home, and keep them out of the care of Child and Family Services.

The pilot program announced Friday is intended to support families who cannot provide full-time care for their children due to their complex needs by providing approximately 20 families with out-of-home respite services, Families Minister Rochelle Squires said.

"We … know that home-like settings with consistent caregivers remains the preferred option to support children when they cannot be cared for by their family or extended family," Squires said at a Friday morning news conference.

"The pilot will provide the right level of support to families experiencing caregiver fatigue," she said. "What we're offering today is an opportunity for the families to stay together."

The Families department announced the development of a two-year out-of-home respite initiative last year, which aims to develop two homes — one in Winnipeg and one in Brandon — to offer out-of-home respite for stays of up to one week per month for children with disabilities.

Details of longer-term service models have yet to be determined, the province said, but will be targeted to families who need out-of-home supports longer than one week per stay, but who do not need full-time care for their children.

Manitoba Families will issue an expression of interest to find partnering agencies for the pilot.

The province acknowledges the needs of families of children with disabilities exceed the current support system, Squires said, which can result in caregiver fatigue and children being placed into CFS care.

That gap in services was highlighted in a report last year from the Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth.

The report came after the death of a child whose family struggled to navigate disability services in Manitoba. It included extensive data analysis of Children's Disability Services, Child and Family Service records, and voices of over 400 people who served as consultants and advocates for children with disabilities and their families.

"What we heard from Manitoba families is that many of them are struggling with underfunded services inside a complex public system that leaves them unsure where to turn for supports," Ainsley Krone, Manitoba's acting advocate for children and youth, said at Friday's news conference.

"Today's announcement is a win for those children and youth and for their families, who will have additional care options that can be tailored to the changing needs of youth with disabilities."