Trust fund created to help former B.C. foster children

VANCOUVER — Children and youth in government care born after 2007 will have access to a trust fund to pursue educational goals after high school, the Ministry of Advanced Education said Monday.

The trust fund was announced as new statistics released by the Ministry of Children and Family Development confirm the dire outcomes for this group of people.

The children’s ministry report found that slightly more than half of former foster children who turned 19 between April and September 2013 went onto some form of income assistance within six months of turning 19 and losing their social workers and government support. Of those who turned 19 between April 2012 and March 2013, less than one-third earned a Dogwood high school diploma.

The details of the trust for children in government care are still being worked out, but the money will be in addition to funding that is already in place for former foster children, said Sheldon Johnson, a Ministry of Children and Family Development spokesman.

The announcement was made as the government confirmed it will proceed with a $1,200 grant for children born in 2007 or later, announced in 2013. The B.C. Training and Education Savings Grant should be fully implemented by August and no matching contributions are required, but a child must have a Registered Education Savings Plan in place.

The NDP Opposition accused the government of failing kids in care.

“The government is legally the guardian, in effect the parent, when it comes to children-in-care. With all the resources at their fingertips, their own data shows they can do no better than a 27 per cent high school graduation rate. This is a glaring example of what the ministry would typify as poor parenting, yet the ministry is the guardian and the minister decides the standards,” said Doug Donaldson, NDP critic on children and family development.