Youth facility receives funding to boost safety
Staff to be added after violent attack
A youth-care facility where a 60-year-old female worker was attacked before two teens were charged with attempted murder says it has received funding for more overnight staff.
“We are happy to announce that Children’s Services has increased funding to support double staffing for overnights within Elk Island Child and Youth Ranch,” said the facility in a Friday news release.
On Thursday, the children’s services ministry placed a conditional status on the licence of the facility. Children’s Services Minister Danielle Larivee said revoking the ranch’s licence is still on the table.
“As part of our closer consultation with this facility, we asked them to take a closer look at their current staffing model and evaluate their immediate staffing needs,” spokesman Aaron Manton said in a statement Friday. “As a result, we provided a temporary increase in funding to Elk Island Youth Ranch to ensure additional supports are available during this difficult time.”
Two teenage boys were charged with the attempted murder of the care worker after the 11 p.m. Saturday attack at the Lamont-area facility. Fort Saskatchewan RCMP and emergency medical services were not called to respond to the ranch until 1:15 a.m. where they found the seriously injured woman who remains in Edmonton hospital in stable condition.
One of the youths charged in the assault has a history of violence at the facility. He pleaded guilty Wednesday in Fort Saskatchewan court to three earlier assaults in October and January.
In the Friday news release, the facility said it has been in touch with its accreditation body, the Canadian Accreditation Council.
“They completed a complete review this past September of our practices to ensure that standards were being met and received 100 per cent compliance on all standards,” the statement said.