About The Village Facility

It is a Village by name but for the children in care and parents who live here, it is simply referred to as home.

The lush green trees almost exceed climbing heights for the children. Almost! Squirrels run, rabbits will hop in to say hello, and the only sound drowning out the birds are the kids … and that is most heartwarming sound of all. And then of course there’s the healthy competition on the sports court. The kids are out there at every opportunity. Even in the middle of winter they’ll be out there shooting hoops.

But more than the five big, beautiful homes and the picturesque setting, the Village represents a unique model of healing. It functions to provide some of the very things that these children have lost. The Village provides a sense of community, connection and belonging, in a system where isolation is all too frequent. This Village shouts to kids in care, “You Matter!”

“We’re so thankful to have a place we can call home and where we can have a family. We didn’t believe about families before we came here. We’re a family now, and you all gave us this gift.”

* Please note that due to privacy laws (and our desire for the children to live as normal lives as possible), we cannot show the children’s faces in photos and we do not allow the general public to visit our Village. Additionally, volunteers cannot work with the children and youth in our Village.

Caregivers in our Village are not employed by SideBySide Children’s Village Society.

And because of their unique experiences and vulnerabilities, kids living in alternative care require consistent opportunities where they are able to experience success. Only then can they feel as though they are worth something; that they belong just as much as any other child. Given the range of special needs – such as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder – among these children, programs are in place to give them the tools necessary to grow into successful and contributing adults.

As much as we try to be their teachers, we learn from these kids everyday. We witness them working out their differences playing in the yard, communicating EXACTLY what they are feeling, and always willing to give others a second chance.

These kids have expressed to us that their Village neighbours are like extended family. Many say that even though they are all different, they are all in alternative care and share that together.

We own the five homes and Village Centre on our wooded 2.5 acre site, with the other five homes integrated in the surrounding geographic area. Through a $450,000 capital campaign from 2014 – 2017, we built five much-needed transition suites for homeless youth who age out of the foster care system when they turn 19.

With your help, we can continue to offer a village of support, both for the children living in the Village and those within our communities.

A Community Of Belonging

SideBySide Children’s Village Society provides support and care for children in the foster system and young adults transitioning out of care. Our dedicated Village is designed specifically to meet the needs of youth and children in these circumstances. The children at the Village were removed from their homes due to a number of reasons. They spend their childhood with foster families selected by resource workers, who work for the Ministry of Children & Family Development or delegated agencies. The kids fill the Village with their energy, making it an active place. They have access to an array of social, education, cultural, and mental health services.

The caregivers are also a core of the Village, because its unique model provides them support and develops caregiver skills and abilities to better care for the children in their homes. The model we built helps the children live and thrive in a family based care environment, creating a place of belonging. The Village places a high priority on maintaining family connections between siblings, generally placing them in the same house.

Most children that stay at the Village are there for the majority of their childhood (continuing custody) until they are ready to age out. SideBySide also provides a bridging program, Year Intensive Housing (one-on-one intensive housing support), where we prepare our youth for independence.

Regardless of where youth become connected to our programs and services, we try to stay connected to these individuals throughout their life – ensuring they have a place to call home and somewhere they know they belong.

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