Nunavut launches internal review of youth sent to unlicensed group homes

Nunavut Premier P.J. Akeeagok says his government takes the safety and well-being of the territory's most vulnerable very seriously.

That's why he says he's launched an internal review, to start immediately, that will investigate how eight youth in the government's care were sent to unlicensed group homes in Alberta.

"When I first became aware of the issue late last night, I immediately worked with my officials to ensure that there's measures in place to ensure [the] safety of the affected children," he said Thursday on CBC Nunavut's morning show, Qulliq.

"We will undertake a full internal review to ensure that all the policies and the protocols that we have in place were followed."

The children were placed with a company called Ever Bright, which said their licences were valid until January 2023. Alberta Children's Services told Radio-Canada that the licences were canceled in April of 2022 — a few months before the youth were placed in the facilities.

The province wasn't alerted to the youths' presence until months after their arrival.

The Nunavut government has said inspections in February showed no children were at immediate risk. As of Friday, seven of the eight children were still in the care of Ever Bright homes.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Nunavut's Department of Family Services said that at the time the government entered into a contract with Ever Bright Complex Needs Support Services, "the company provided proof of its accreditation and licences," which were subsequently rescinded.

"We are in the process of [moving] youth out of Ever Bright and are in the process of reviewing our processes to ensure that this does not occur again," said Mads Sandbakken, the department's director of policy and planning, in an email.

"We will also have to explore what caused the communication issues with Alberta and how we can improve to ensure our children receive the proper care needed."

MP 'shocked'

Nunavut's NDP MP Lori Idlout said she was "shocked" by the news, and that she's long had concerns about Nunavut youth being placed in "a completely different environment and culture."

She said the change needs to be systemic, and should come from the federal government.

"That's why I chose to run," she said. "Because there's been such a long neglect in investment."

Idlout said she's willing to help solve the issue, if the government can't.

"I think that at this point, we need to make sure that the Government of Nunavut is given its time to fix what happened," she said. "If they don't have enough resources … they can reach out to me to try and help fight for them."

It's not unusual for youth in Nunavut to be sent out of the territory for care. Right now, 88 youth in care are living outside of the territory.

Iqaluit-Tasiluk MLA George Hickes said the problem is something he's been bringing up for over a year now in the Legislative Assembly.

Last June, he says he asked the minister what type of oversight contracts are in place with the people receiving those youth. He says the minister responded that there's client liaison positions located in Edmonton, Ottawa and Winnipeg to do that work.

"So it's very concerning that even though we have positions that are strictly dedicated to making sure that these contract conditions are adhered to, that there's still businesses or contracts that are falling through the cracks."

Hickes also said it's time to provide more services in Nunavut.

"We need more of those services in the territory and that's one of the things that I've been ... bringing up."

"We have to work at providing more and more services to all demographics of our population in the territory," Hickes said, alluding to the parallel problem of elders who are sent south to long-term care homes. "But I can't emphasize enough … how much of a priority it needs to start at the children and youth level."

Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., which works on behalf of Nunavut Inuit, declined to comment.