Children's Aid Society worries COVID-19 is silencing vulnerable children

Advocates for child welfare in Windsor-Essex are concerned with how the COVID-19 pandemic is isolating children vulnerable to neglect and abuse.

The Windsor-Essex Children's Aid Society [CAS] said there has been a "considerable drop"in the number of referrals and investigations it would typically have atthis time of year. Thirty-five per cent fewer calls are coming in to the agency.

"Obviously if it were under more normal circumstances we'd say 'great maybe there's good support and things happening for families in the community'... but when we know what we're dealing with, that's a real worry for me," said Derrick Drouillard,the executive director.

Meanwhile the anxiety level among families the agency does see is at "an all-time high,"said Drouillard, who is also concerned aboutthe lack of accessibility children have to other public safety nets specifically schools.

The biggest referral source for the Children's Aid Society is schoolsbut since they are closed, Drouillard worries that removes a significant set of eyes for CAS. And whileteachers are conducting online learning, "it's certainly not the same as having 'eyes on' or kids in front of you in your classroom or in your schools," he said.

Windsor-Essex CAS being creative to stay connected

The Children's Aid Society is staying connected with families they already serve. While some face-to-face interaction still occurswhen necessary, the majority of the support happens through video conferencing and phone calls.

"It's a really tricky balance of understanding the vulnerability of the families we serveand trying to do our part to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the children, our staff and the community," said Drouillard who is strongly encouraging the public to become more vigilant to help keep children safe.

"We're not asking the community to investigate or to determine if the child may need assistance but...if you have a concern, we're open," he said.

Once physical distancing restrictions are lifted,CAS expects the phones to start ringing and the caseload to increase significantly.

Some women may be hesitant about leaving their current situation and coming to a communal living area during this crisis.- Thom Rolfe, Executive Director, Hiatus House

"The research shows that after a difficult economic downturn in the community, you see shortly thereafter an increase in reported cases of concerns for children," he said.

Hiatus House is Windsor's largest emergency shelter for women and children who are victims of abuse. It is also expecting an uptick in calls for help once COVID-19 restrictions start to relax.

"When we went through the economic downturn in 2008, we didn't really see the impact of that until the next year. I suspect that we're going to see a similar thing happen now." said Thom Rolfe, executive director of Hiatus House.

Similarto CAS, Hiatus House has seen a reduction in crisis calls.

"Some women may be hesitant about leaving their current situation and coming to a communal living area during this crisis," said Rolfe.

The shelter has taken steps to accommodate women who seek out their help during the pandemic, while maintaining physical distancing. It has converted two floors of the facility into four isolated areas. Those areas will house four women [and their children] and they will stay in isolation for 14 days before being integrated with the rest of the shelter.

"This pandemic puts women at a greater risk in their own homes where we're asking them to stay and be safe. So it's a bit of a difficult situation for abused women," said Rolfe.

Windsor Police are answering the call of duty

While fewer people are reaching out to agencies for help, Windsor Police saidthey'recontinuing to answer domestic violence calls.

In a written statement to CBC News, Windsor police public information officer SgtSteve Betteridgesaid domestic violence is a community concern, adding that "officer respond to reports of domestic violence on a priority basis.

"Although our communities are self-isolating, and physical distancing, thanks to the advances in technologies, people still have a number of avenues available to communicate with one another," wrote Betteridge, in an email.

"Teachers are teaching online, medical professionals are communicating with patients, community members continue to communicate with one another, and neighbours see and interact with each other daily while practicing physical distancing," he said.

Betteridge added that Windsor police continue to work with local community partners to "provide assistance to victims and offer safe avenues to recovery while enforcing the law."

"Our communities have the trust and confidence in our service that if they call in a domestic violence complaint, it will be properly and professionally investigated, and we value that trust," wrote Betteridge.