The Advocate for Children and Youth PSI Report: What It Means for Saskatchewan Kinship Caregivers

The Report That Put PSI Caregivers on the Map

In April 2023, Saskatchewan's Advocate for Children and Youth, Lisa Broda, released a special investigation titled "In Their Sufficient Interest?" It was the first systematic look at how the Province's Person of Sufficient Interest program actually functions for the caregivers and children inside it — and the findings were not flattering.

The report changed the conversation about kinship care in Saskatchewan. If you are a PSI caregiver or considering the PSI route, here is what the report found and what has changed since.

What the Investigation Uncovered

The ACY investigation documented structural problems in how the Ministry of Social Services administered the PSI program:

Minimal oversight between annual reviews. PSI children are classified as non-wards — they are not in the care of the Minister. In practice, this meant minimal caseworker contact. A single annual home visit was often the only check-in, leaving evolving developmental and safety needs unaddressed for months at a time.

Eighty percent of PSI children are Indigenous. The report highlighted that the PSI stream disproportionately affects Indigenous children and families, raising questions about whether the program's lighter oversight framework adequately serves communities already facing systemic barriers to support services.

Caregivers left without guidance. Many PSI caregivers reported receiving their court order and their first maintenance cheque — and then hearing nothing from the Ministry for a year. Questions about school enrolment, medical consent, respite care, and additional funding went unanswered between annual reviews.

The Eight Recommendations

The Advocate issued eight recommendations to the Ministry. Seven were accepted:

• Establishing a comprehensive qualitative review of PSI placements
• Updating caregiver guidance materials and intake procedures
• Enhancing staff training on PSI-specific needs
• Improving cultural connection planning for Indigenous children
• Strengthening the annual review process
• Better tracking of PSI placement disruptions
• Expanding access to the Traditions of Caring educational program for extended family caregivers

The Ministry declined Recommendation 8, which called for extending financial maintenance and support services for PSI youth up to age 21 — a benefit already available to permanent provincial wards. The Ministry's position is that a PSI court order expires at age 18, ending their statutory jurisdiction.

This means PSI youth still face an abrupt cutoff of financial support on their eighteenth birthday, while youth who were permanent wards can access transitional support until 21.

The PSI Action Plan 2024–2027

In response to the accepted recommendations, the Ministry launched a multi-year PSI Action Plan. Concrete changes implemented so far include a 2% increase to basic maintenance rates in 2023–24, followed by a 3% increase across all family care providers in 2025–26. The Traditions of Caring training program — a PRIDE-based module designed for extended family caregivers — has been expanded province-wide.

The Numbers Tell a Complicated Story

Saskatchewan child welfare statistics show a persistent decline in active PSI orders alongside a rise in children in formal Ministry care:

The drop in PSI numbers does not mean kinship care is declining — it suggests the Ministry is relying more heavily on formal wardship as family complexity and substance use issues escalate. For relatives who can navigate the PSI process, the program still offers non-means-tested maintenance equal to foster care basic rates, plus supplementary health coverage.

What This Means for You

If you are considering a PSI arrangement, the ACY report and subsequent reforms mean several practical things:

• Expect more structured annual reviews than caregivers received before 2023
• Ask about Traditions of Caring — it is now province-wide and provides training specific to extended family caregivers
• Know that maintenance rates have increased and confirm the current rate with MSS or your ICFS agency
• Plan for the age-18 cliff — PSI support ends at 18 with no transition benefit, so building toward the youth's independence starts well before that birthday

Our Saskatchewan Kinship Financial Help Guide explains how the PSI program works in practice — the application process, the maintenance rates, what the annual review covers, and how to prepare for the transition when the child turns 18.

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