When it comes to children, we all play a role in ensuring their safety, and this is particularly true during this difficult time. Manitobans must continue to work together to ensure we all get through this unprecedented time safely. While we are proud to see the great efforts of all Manitobans to keep our community safe from COVID-19, we are also calling on Manitobans to do all they can to ensure that our vulnerable children remain safe in these circumstances.

The isolation we are experiencing brings new risk to children. We must all be aware of that and creative in how we check-in and make a difference in a child’s life.

A safe place for children and youth to tell.

Together with our partners, we coordinate and collaborate to address the needs of child abuse victims or children who have witnessed violent crimes. As the only child advocacy centre in Manitoba, we help to minimize system-induced trauma by providing a child-friendly setting for child victims or witnesses and their families.

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(video transcript)

Snowflake Place Staff

When Emma first came through our doors, I could tell she was scared. What child wouldn’t be? She was only nine years old, and two weeks ago she told her mom that a close family member had been abusing her for over a year. Her mother reported the abuse to Child and Family Services, and now they were here at Snowflake Place for the first time. I introduced myself and gave Emma a warm smile. I walked Emma and her mom to the Family Room, helped them get comfortable and told Emma that the Forensic Interviewer will be with her shortly.

Forensic Interviewer

The children I meet at Snowflake Place are often scared and wondering what will be happening next. As the the Forensic Interviewer, my job is to help put the child at ease and explain the process before accompanying the child to the interview room. A case like Emma’s, unfortunately, is quite common.

It’s extremely difficult for the child, and the entire family, to relive what’s happened through an interview. At Snowflake Place, the interviews take place in a soft interview room. It’s comfortable and quiet. Video and audio recording capture the entire interview for future court proceedings. It is my job as the Forensic Interviewer, to obtain a statement from the child in an un-biased and fact-finding manner.

Police Officer

My job as the police officer is to conduct the criminal investigation. While the interview is taking place I moniter the interview in a different room from a video feed. At Snowflake Place we have a neutral, family-friendly space, all focused on the child—it really does make a huge difference. After the interview, I meet with the family to talk to them about the next step in the investigation.

Child and Family Services

As a worker with Child and Family Services, my job is focused on the safety and protection of the child. While Emma’s being interviewed, I’m watching it from a video feed. This way there is no need to ask the child to do another interview unnecessarily. In the past, a child would be interviewed by a Child and Family Services worker and by police. Usually at different locations and on different days. The model here at snowflake place has changed all that. In Emma’s case, once her interview was complete, I met with her and her mother in the Family Room and I talked to them about safety planning and resources available.

Victim Services

The Victim Services role is to reduce trauma. I’m there to offer information and support regarding the court process and let the family know about the resources available to them. Being there while the interview is taking place is not only easier for Emma, it allows all of us – the police, the Forensic Interviewer, Child and Family Services, and Victim Services – to collaborate and share information. I will be there for Emma and her mother after the interview, and be their main contact going forward, wherever the journey takes them.

Snowflake Place Staff

Snowflake Place is a unique and special place. Children come first in all that we do. Our child-focused environment and team of professionals all working together under one roof lets children know that they are safe, that they have support and that they’re special and unique, too.

Emma told her story. She came forward; she told the truth. What she did took a lot of courage and it wasn’t easy. To see a smile on her face and just be a kid again, that’s why we’re all here, that’s what Snowflake Place is all about.

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About Snowflake Place

Snowflake Place for Children and Youth is a child advocacy centre which focuses on the needs of children and youth who have experienced abuse. The centre is designed to facilitate multi-system collaboration and foster best practices in child abuse investigations, to ensure that child victims receive sensitive and immediate support in a child-friendly setting that puts their needs first.

Making a Difference

By supporting Snowflake Place, you are making an impact on the lives of children and youth who are affected by physical and sexual abuse. Together with Snowflake Place, you can help child victims and their families to begin the healing process.

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27.9%

of alleged perpetrators are known to their child victims

20.7%

of sexual abuse cases involved girls and 31% involved boys

18%

of physical abuse cases involved boys and 40% involved girls

20.7%

of physical abuse cases resulted from inappropriate discipline

'Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect', the first nation-wide study to examine the incidence of reported child abuse in Canada.