The number of reports retained at Batshaw increased by 26% last year
MONTREAL, Dec. 2, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The Batshaw Youth and Family Centres Foundation (Batshaw Foundation), whose mission is to empower the vulnerable children, youth and families served by Youth Protection and other services, today officially launched its 'Risk to Resilience' awareness and fundraising campaign.
Through this campaign, the Foundation will raise awareness and funding to help at-risk youth overcome challenges, build confidence and unlock their full potential.
The Foundation's work rests on four pillars:
- Family Emergency and Prevention – Easing the burdens of everyday life helps keep families intact in at-risk situations. Last year, the Foundation gave financial support to more than 190 families to help pay for rent, groceries and other necessities.
- Well-Being – Enabling youth to focus on their physical and mental well-being builds resilience. The Foundation supported more than 3,200 youths by covering the costs of sports equipment, summer camp, pet therapy and other services.
- Education and Employability – Education is a direct path to breaking the cycle of poverty. Only 37% of Quebec youth in care graduate high school (by age 21) – compared to 86% of the general population by the same age. Last year, the Foundation supported more than 360 youths by launching a new 'Stay in School' program, funding scholarships, access to technology and creating employability programs.
- Transition to Adulthood – Youth in care often have little support when they reach age 18 and are 200 times more likely to experience homelessness than their general population peers. Last year, the Foundation helped 112 young adults by providing emergency rent, basic furniture, public transit passes and other services.
Watch this short video featuring the testimonials of four former Batshaw clients who chose to share their stories – batshawfoundation.ca/resilience
While the Foundation continues to support more youth each year, the needs still outweigh available resources. For example, the average cost of providing a young person with the academic tools and support to stay in school is $531 per year – but offering this to all eligible youth would cost more than $700,000 annually, about seven times the current budget of this program.
"More than 45,000 children were under youth protection across Quebec last year," says Wendy Khan, Executive Director, Batshaw Youth and Family Centres Foundation. "Here in Montreal, we saw a 26% rise in reports retained and a 127% increase in cases involving children exposed to conjugal violence. These trends reflect heightened vulnerability among children and families, in our community. The Foundation supports Batshaw clients when public funds are not available. Together, we can help these youth move from risk to resilience."
To make a donation, please visit batshawfoundation.ca
About the Batshaw Youth and Family Centres Foundation
The Batshaw Youth and Family Centres Foundation's mission is to empower the vulnerable children, youth and families served by Quebec Youth Protection and other services for youth in difficulty, by providing them with funding, tools and opportunities so that they can unlock their potential and achieve success – now and into the future. The Foundation supports the clients of the Batshaw Youth and Family Centres, where public funds are not available. For more information, please visit https://batshawfoundation.ca.
About Batshaw Youth and Family Centres
Batshaw Youth and Family Centres (now part of Santé Québec) provide services to children and their families in situations of neglect, abuse, abandonment and when youth display extremely troubling behaviour. All services are mandated by the Quebec Youth Protection Act and other applicable legislation. Most children are helped in their own home, while others are entrusted to extended family, placed in foster families or in residential care, and some are adopted. Batshaw Centres serve Anglophone and Allophone communities on the island of Montreal, the Montreal Jewish community in both official languages and provide residential placement services to English-speaking youth from all regions of Quebec.
Media Contact:
Mark Lowe, PRagmatic Communications
mark.lowe(at)pragcom.com / (514) 576-2519
Media Contact
Mark Lowe, Batshaw Foundation, 1 (514) 576-2519, [email protected], https://batshawfoundation.ca/home/
SOURCE Batshaw Foundation
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