Another failure of Social Services

[Rosemary1]

http://www.castanet.net/news/Canada/175 ... arving-son

Heartbreaking. Another failure of social services and the system to save a child. If BC social services was involved, why was he left with the parents until they disappeared to Alberta? If Alberta's social services removed him for a year, why was he returned to the parents.

There must be better tracking of families with children at risk known to social services across the country. Why can't law enforcement engage in search through parents ids? How about special 'amber' alerts for such cases. Such families have lost the right to any privacy concerns . A child's life is more important than any privacy concerns of abusive parents.

[Piecemaker]

It's difficult to say, based on the information in the news story.
Looks to me like he was in care in BC for a year, then back home for 4 years before family moved to Alberta in 2008.
He could have been doing well medically for a period of time and if so, the family's files would have been closed.
If the family was under scrutiny and indeed "fled", the RCMP can assist in locating them. However, Canada is a big place. People don't always update their ID, etc. The child was home schooled and therefore, not visible in the public eye. Perhaps he did not see any health professionals either.
Canada does not have a centralized Child Protection system. Each Province and Territory has their own. While there is good cooperation between jurisdictions, information can get waylaid. Errors are made. Such may be the case here.
While we all like to blame "social services", the truth is that it is the parents' responsibility to protect their child. And it is further the responsibility of extended family, family friends, community professionals and each of us to report when a child may be in need of protective intervention because the parents are not fulfilling their responsibility as parents of the child.

[Rosemary1]

Based on article alone, while in BC and living with parents, social services was involved and lost track when family 'fled' to Alberta where he ended up in care for a year and returned to the parents. Yes its easy to say its the responsibility of parents extended family etc. to protect the children, but when they fail to or can't, it is then falls on social services too provide a safety net that works.

[Barney Google]

Without a doubt Canada needs a centralized Child Protection system to help families and protect children at risk.
It's time Canada steps up to the plate and addresses this problem head on.
Cut the bureaucracy and fix the problem.