Nancy Chamberlain, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Thunder Bay Counselling and CW/VAW Collaboration Committee Co-Chair, shares; “CW and VAW sectors have distinct yet complementary roles in promoting the safety and well-being of women and children, and operate within a broader network of community partnerships, service systems, agreements, and protocols designed to address violence and trauma. This collaboration reflects a partnership of mutual learning and respect that continually evolves to reflect the changing needs, priorities, and lived realities of the communities we serve.”
The following agencies, which are funded by the Ministry of Children Community and Social Services, are members of the agreement:
Child Welfare:
- Children’s Aid Society of the District of Thunder Bay
- Dilico Anishinabek Family Care
- Tikinagan Child & Family Services
Violence Against Women:
- Beendigen Anishinabe Women’s Crisis Home and Family Healing Agency
- Faye Peterson House
- Geraldton Family Resource Centre
- Marjorie House
- Thunder Bay Counselling
The agreement lists several key areas in which CW and VAW agencies will come together to develop collaborative actions from the onset when an agency receives information regarding a child maltreatment and a woman where abuse may be or is occurring, to service planning, assessment, and safety planning.
The main outcomes of these key areas are to increase the safety of women and their children, increase accountability of the individual(s) who perpetrated violence, and to make family wellness a priority.
According to Michelle George, Service Manager for the Children’s Aid Society of the District of Thunder Bay and CW/VAW Collaboration Committee Co-Chair; “Children are the most vulnerable members of our society and have a high likelihood of experiencing trauma as a result of violence perpetrated against their mother. Our goal through this collaboration agreement is to provide support to women who have experienced abuse so that they can continue to care for their children. By keeping women safe, we keep children safe.”