SirBlazinBowl
New Member
The children can never invite friends over after school. They live in fortified houses with stepped-up power lines. They sleep in humid rooms with mould on the walls, breathing in pesticides and herbicides floating through the air in the house.
RCMP in British Columbia find children in about 20 per cent of homes busted for having an indoor marijuana-growing operation, a recent study found. Although statistics could not be confirmed yesterday, observers said authorities have been required to deal with hundreds of children annually.
After several years of handling each situation on a case-by-case basis, social workers with the British Columbia Association of Social Workers called on the provincial government yesterday to develop a standard approach for dealing with the children.
Current policies are limited to a "safety-in-the-moment approach," Paul Jenkinson, spokesman for the association's child welfare and family committee, said yesterday. "If the kids are out of the grow-op, that is assumed to have created safety." However, more attention should be directed toward where the children are placed. When arresting a parent with a grow-op in the home, authorities often ask the parent for the name of a relative or friend who could look after the children. However parents who operate grow-ops are often part of a circle of family and friends who also run indoor marijuana-growing operations, Mr. Jenkinson said. "If we removed a kid from a house where he is being assaulted by his parent, the ministry would have social workers assess his aunt . . . and if they're fine, that's where a child would go. Most of the time, that's a good approach," Mr. Jenkinson said.
But a more extensive assessment is required that goes beyond whatever someone at the moment thinks is the right thing to do, he said. The ministry should be required to check out the physical safety of a home recommended by a parent at the time of the grow-op bust. A criminal record check should be conducted to ensure that the children are not being left with others involved in the drug trade. The children should be taken to a hospital for a thorough physical examination on the day after the police bust.
The social workers association has also recommended that the ministry should remain in contact with the family for at least three months after the children are returned to the parents. A family court supervision order should be obtained that sets out that the parent will not initiate or be found in a grow-op and the social worker will have access to the house and children.
These children are in danger of poisoning from the large amounts of fertilizers in their homes, Mr. Jenkinson said. They are at risk of electrocution and house fires caused by the illegal high-voltage hydro connections. Windows with bars and multiple looks on the doors mean the children have no way of escape if a fire breaks out. Children are also at risk of being exposed to violence from rival gangs or growers, he said.
"We need to take this as a much more serious issue," he said. "I'm not saying it is not taken seriously now. But we have to write something out, and make sure all social workers are on the same page."
Mark Sieben, acting assistant deputy minister in the Ministry of Children and Family Development, said the ministry agrees with the association about the seriousness of the problem. "The issue has been flagged for social workers in all regions of the province," he said.
However current legislation, ministry standards and the professional judgment of the province's social workers can deal with these circumstances, he said.
Contrary to the suggestion of the association, authorities determine the appropriateness of placing children with family members of friends, he said.
"At the end of the day, parents have an opportunity to identify someone else who can look after their child and it's our responsibility to make an assessment," Mr. Sieben said.
Newshawk: SirBlazinBowl - 420times.com
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 2005, The Globe and Mail Company
Contact: letters@globeandmail.ca
Website:https://www.globeandmail.ca/
Author: Robert Matas
RCMP in British Columbia find children in about 20 per cent of homes busted for having an indoor marijuana-growing operation, a recent study found. Although statistics could not be confirmed yesterday, observers said authorities have been required to deal with hundreds of children annually.
After several years of handling each situation on a case-by-case basis, social workers with the British Columbia Association of Social Workers called on the provincial government yesterday to develop a standard approach for dealing with the children.
Current policies are limited to a "safety-in-the-moment approach," Paul Jenkinson, spokesman for the association's child welfare and family committee, said yesterday. "If the kids are out of the grow-op, that is assumed to have created safety." However, more attention should be directed toward where the children are placed. When arresting a parent with a grow-op in the home, authorities often ask the parent for the name of a relative or friend who could look after the children. However parents who operate grow-ops are often part of a circle of family and friends who also run indoor marijuana-growing operations, Mr. Jenkinson said. "If we removed a kid from a house where he is being assaulted by his parent, the ministry would have social workers assess his aunt . . . and if they're fine, that's where a child would go. Most of the time, that's a good approach," Mr. Jenkinson said.
But a more extensive assessment is required that goes beyond whatever someone at the moment thinks is the right thing to do, he said. The ministry should be required to check out the physical safety of a home recommended by a parent at the time of the grow-op bust. A criminal record check should be conducted to ensure that the children are not being left with others involved in the drug trade. The children should be taken to a hospital for a thorough physical examination on the day after the police bust.
The social workers association has also recommended that the ministry should remain in contact with the family for at least three months after the children are returned to the parents. A family court supervision order should be obtained that sets out that the parent will not initiate or be found in a grow-op and the social worker will have access to the house and children.
These children are in danger of poisoning from the large amounts of fertilizers in their homes, Mr. Jenkinson said. They are at risk of electrocution and house fires caused by the illegal high-voltage hydro connections. Windows with bars and multiple looks on the doors mean the children have no way of escape if a fire breaks out. Children are also at risk of being exposed to violence from rival gangs or growers, he said.
"We need to take this as a much more serious issue," he said. "I'm not saying it is not taken seriously now. But we have to write something out, and make sure all social workers are on the same page."
Mark Sieben, acting assistant deputy minister in the Ministry of Children and Family Development, said the ministry agrees with the association about the seriousness of the problem. "The issue has been flagged for social workers in all regions of the province," he said.
However current legislation, ministry standards and the professional judgment of the province's social workers can deal with these circumstances, he said.
Contrary to the suggestion of the association, authorities determine the appropriateness of placing children with family members of friends, he said.
"At the end of the day, parents have an opportunity to identify someone else who can look after their child and it's our responsibility to make an assessment," Mr. Sieben said.
Newshawk: SirBlazinBowl - 420times.com
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 2005, The Globe and Mail Company
Contact: letters@globeandmail.ca
Website:https://www.globeandmail.ca/
Author: Robert Matas
