Re: "Third centre will open more doors to justice," Sept.7
B.C. has a third Justice Access Centre, says Justice Minister Shirley Bond. Great!
Is that door open enough for the thousands of grandparents raising their grandchildren 24/7 so that those little kids don't have to enter the foster system?
The research (Legal Issues Project 2009) and I think not. There are more grandparents raising grandchildren than there are kids in foster care in B.C.
From a sample of 126 grandparents ages 40 to 80, raising more than 200 children, 77 per cent said they need legal advice.
Of those who applied for legal aid, since most live below the poverty line, 74 per cent reported they did not receive help. Eighty-eight per cent of grandparents raising a grandchild came to be involved through a crisis situation. No time to even get a crib, let alone a helping hand or legal advice.
And get this - if they become the legal guardian, as 75 per cent wanted to, they usually receive no financial help, not even the small sum a few were receiving before ensuring a secure home for their grandkids.
It was Grandparent's Day Sunday. Together with a belated card or candy or flowers, why don't we all write to our MLA or Bond advocating for real support for grandparents? At great personal and health cost, and from their hearts, they make a home for the children we all care about.
Barb Whittington
School of Social Work University of Victoria
