Foster homes operating with expired licences, a lack of criminal record checks and hundreds of children staying in emergency placements well beyond the six-month time limit were just some of the issues highlighted in a scathing report issued by Manitoba's auditor general Friday.

Norm Ricard issued 43 recommendations aimed at ensuring sufficient funding to the child welfare system and to make sure standards are met in foster homes.

"Many homes are operating properly in accordance with the standards. Unfortunately, many others aren't," said Ricard.

"It's a concern to me because we were looking for the compliance to standards that are there to ensure the safety and well-being of children in care."

In Manitoba, there are more than 9,600 children in foster homes and short-term places of safety, which can include treatment centres or the homes of extended family.

Ricard said the province does not have dedicated funding for child-welfare agencies to do home inspections, check criminal records and examine the child-abuse registry to make sure potential foster homes meet provincially set standards.

The report found eight of 40 newly licensed foster homes audited in the report didn't meet requirements.

Abuse allegations not properly documented

No criminal record check was done for 32 adults in the licensed homes. This includes two cases where the foster parent was identified as high-risk.

Ricard said there was no evidence that the agency followed up on those individuals.

Norm Ricard, Manitoba's auditor general, says the province lacks ways to ensure foster homes are being properly managed by child and family service agencies. (Warren Kay/CBC)

In a press conference Friday, the auditor general said the individuals without security checks remained in the foster homes.

His report also noted numerous instances where outdated security checks were used to support licences issued in 2016 and 2017.

Ricard reviewed 20 complaints about caregivers that included allegations of child abuse and found only 55 per cent were properly documented.

None of the nine child protection investigations were done according to all applicable policies, the report said.

He also found that cases of alleged abuse were not properly documented by a social worker and new children were placed in the home. The worker did not record the conclusion of the investigation and the supporting rationale.

Unannounced visits needed

Ricard's report also found issues in renewing existing licences for foster homes. He found many operating with expired licences.

In the homes the auditor reviewed, just over a third of annual reviews were completed on time, and he said home inspections were not thorough.

"More frequent home visits, with some unannounced, would help ensure foster-care workers get an accurate sense of how a home operates."

That recommendation met resistance from child and family services agencies that said it could interfere with their relationship with foster parents, according to Ricard.

"My perspective is the relationship that [agencies] need to be most concerned of is your relationship with the child that you put in care," he said.

Kids stuck in emergency placements

Ricard found that as of June 2017, nearly 400 children in what were intended to be short-term emergency placements were staying beyond the six-month time limit.

"Longer-term placements in a place of safety is a concern because each of these homes is essentially operating as a foster home, but without the same safety standards, supervision and support," he said.

While there have been improvements, he said, risks still remain.

"Some officials told us that child placement decisions were sometimes made out of desperation rather than best fit, and that supply issues had led to a reliance on more expensive placements."

Funding among lowest in Canada

The funding provided to foster parents to pay for necessities such as food and clothing hasn't changed since 2012, despite an inflationary increase of more than 13 per cent.

"There was no known rationale to support the adequacy of the rates," said Ricard, adding there is strong evidence these rates needs to be re-evaluated.

The attorney general said Manitoba's rates are either the lowest or second lowest for children of almost all ages, compared to the nine provinces surveyed.

Manitoba Families Minister Heather Stefanson said she welcomes the recommendations of the auditor general. (CBC)

Families Minister Heather Stefanson says she agrees with many points made by the auditor general, and said his recommendations are consistent with changes the government has already made.

"We have shifted away from child apprehension through a single envelope funding approach, which provides CFS authorities and agencies the flexibility to direct funding towards the best interests of children and families," said Stefanson.

NDP Opposition Leader Wab Kinew says the report shows the government is not doing enough to protect children in care.

"I think that all the experts who have looked at this issue have told us that these vulnerable children in Manitoba are not being dealt with fairly," said Kinew.

Kinew says block funding is resulting in less money per child in care.

The office of the auditor general will follow up on the implementation of the recommendations in September 2021.