Announcing our new Child and Family Services Department

Moose Cree First Nation is proud to announce it is beginning work on a child and family services law, using our own Cree traditions. Under our law we will transition to a Moose Cree approach to child welfare.

We have always had our own Cree laws, based on our own ways of living, and our own ways of helping one another. We know our laws are there.

But when it comes to our children, youth and families, our laws have often been pushed aside by the provincial child welfare system and by federal policies.

We are going to put our own laws in front again. Chief & Council have given preliminary notice to the government of Canada and government of Ontario that we intend to exercise our jurisdiction.

There are new opportunities to ensure our laws can be recognized and respected. The federal Act respecting First Nation, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families, also known as C-92, helps to open a door that we at Moose Cree have been pushing against for many years.

We plan to change the system towards our own Cree model, using a phased approach. We are going to empower our own families and our own people through this process.

“Our first priority is to make changes for Moose Cree children and youth who need alternative care, often called customary care.”

Our first priority is to make changes for Moose Cree children and youth who need alternative care, often called customary care. They are vulnerable, and right now their needs are not being met in the current system. They must be cared for in a way that makes sense in our culture and customs, and makes sense for our people, both in Moose Factory and elsewhere. That’s our first priority. 

Members of our Child Welfare Committee will be working on this along with our Child & Family Services Department and its new Director. They will be reaching out to Moose Cree citizens in the coming months as part of this work.

It takes all of us together to raise our children. We encourage everyone to come together, to share your knowledge. Please stay tuned for opportunities to participate and be part of this important work.

For more information about this announcement, visit our Child and Family Services department page, or contact:

Jennifer Cool, Director of Child and Family Services
(705) 406-4489,

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