A second Winnipeg home for at-risk parents to take their children when they need a short break will open this spring in the North End.
The first “Granny’s House” opened more that a year ago as a pilot project in a modest two-storey home in North Point Douglas. The goal of the $400,000 initiative was to keep kids out of the child welfare system. It was so successful, Families Minister Rochelle Squires announced $810,000 to extend the pilot for another year and to open a second Granny’s House.
“We’re investing in preventions services for families to help reduce their risk of involvement with child and family services,” Squires said Friday. She and Mental Health, Wellness and Recovery Minister Audrey Gordon held a joint news conference to talk about $1.2 million in program funding, including $810,000 for Granny’s House.
The short-term respite for parents is keeping kids from being apprehended by child and family services, said Josie Hill, executive director of Blue Thunderbird Family Care Inc., which runs Granny’s House