Youth Rights

Under section 70 of the Child, Family and Community Service Act, children in care have the following rights:

To be fed, clothed and nurtured according to community standards and to be given the same quality of care as other children (including the caregiver’s children) in the placement;
To be informed about their plans of care;
To be consulted and to express their views, according to their abilities, about significant decisions affecting them;
To reasonable privacy and to possession of their personal belongings;
To be free from corporal punishment;
To be informed of the standard of behaviour expected by their caregivers and of the consequences of not meeting their caregiver’s expectations;
To receive medical and dental care when required;
To participate in social and recreational activities if available and appropriate and according to their abilities and interests;
To receive the religious instruction and to participate in the religious activities of their choice;

To receive guidance and encouragement to maintain their cultural heritage;
To be provided with an interpreter if language or disability is a barrier to consulting with them on decisions affecting their custody or care;

To privacy during discussions with members of their families, subject to any court order made after the court has had an opportunity to consider the question of access to the child;

To privacy during discussions with a lawyer, the office for children and youth, the ombudsman, a member of the legislative assembly or a member of Parliament;

To be informed about and to be assisted in contacting the office for children and youth;

To be informed of their rights under the act and the procedures available for enforcing their rights.