ABOUT US
The Greater Victoria Child and Family Counselling Association (affectionately called CAFCA and pronounced ‘KAFKA’), is a Registered Charity, duly incorporated as a Society under the laws of the Province of British Columbia. CAFCA is staffed by more than 50 staff comprising of management, administration, counsellors, autism interventionists, behavioural consultants, and a music therapist to serve children, youth and families in Greater Victoria.
CAFCA was formed in 1986 to assist the Ministry of Social Services (now called the Ministry of Children and Family Development) in their work with child protection and children with mental handicaps.
CAFCA first became accredited by the Council on Accreditation in 2003 and was reaccredited in 2007. This means that the agency meets the highest international standards for professional performance and is reaccredited every four years. There are rigorous mechanisms in place to ensure accountability and continuous quality improvement. CAFCA’s Annual Reports describe the annual activities achieved by the Continuous Quality Improvement committee.
CAFCA is committed to offering effective programs and services that support individuals and families to reach their potential. We achieve this through a wide variety of service delivery programs. These consist of:
Ministry of Children and Family Development referred programs:
Family Preservation and Stabilization teams support families and caregivers to reduce risk to children/youth to the extent that the Ministry is no longer concerned with the welfare of the children/youth in the context of their care environment.
Youth Independent Living teams strive to help youth find safe, supportive living arrangements and learn about health and self-care skills. The youth workers also help their clients with educational and employment needs, the transition to independence, family and social relationships, social presentation and emotional and behavioural development.
The Youth Justice program enhances the safety of the community. This is achieved by supporting and facilitating the young person’s participation in activities and programs directed at his or her needs, thereby facilitating rehabilitation and reintegration and consequently reduced recidivism while also monitoring compliance with the orders of the court, or conditions of release from custody.
Youth Outreach Services locates and identifies youth who are absent without leave (AWOL) and provides immediate crisis counselling and assessment, assist in developing an immediate risk reduction plan, and establish, in concert with the youth and other relevant community resources, an ongoing plan to ensure that the safety of the youth is maintained.
The goals of Community Living Services program includes making progress towards achievement of shared goals related to clients’ overall development, including increasing independence in activities of daily living in the home and community; increasing skills in self-care, self-expression and self-advocacy skills; and increasing interaction with, and use of, community resources.
Fee for service program:
The Autism Services Program provides intervention, social groups, day camps, music therapy, and/or behavioural consultant services to parents of children and youth with autism. Parents of children and youth between 6 and 19 years of age are able to access our services.
In 2000, CAFCA branched out and formed CAFCA Integral Solutions Society (CISS).
If you have any questions, or would like more information about CAFCA or CISS, please do not hesitate to contact us contact us.