Child Welfare Facts and Figures
- In Ontario, there are 50 designated children’s aid societies and Indigenous Child and Family Well-Being Agencies (child welfare agencies). Thirteen are Indigenous Child and Family Well-Being agencies and three are faith-based (two Catholic and one Jewish).
In the fiscal year 2023-2024*:
- On a monthly average, there were almost 8,200^ children and youth in care.
- Nearly 56% of those in care or receiving supports were youth aged 16-22+ (as of the end of the fiscal year).
- More than 125,000 calls and referrals were made. Approximately 63,000 of these required a full child protection investigation.
- The rest of these referrals did not require a full investigation and/or were referred to services available in the community.
- Of the investigations that were completed, 86% did not require further protection.
* These numbers were reported from 37 non-Indigenous member agencies. They are derived from the Q4 2023-2024 Ministry Quarterly Reports (as of October 31, 2024).
^ This includes 4,038 children and youth in the care of a child welfare agency or in customary care; 470 youth receiving supports through a Voluntary Youth Services Agreement (VYSA); and 3,719 young adults 18+ years old receiving services through the Ready, Set, Go program. This excludes 2,622 children and youth in kinship service. For more information, view our infographic here.
About Children’s Aid Societies | Child Welfare Data and Results
