Welcome Week: Affirming Belonging in Child Welfare

In our work at CWICE, at the intersection of child welfare and immigration, we are reminded that refugee and immigrant children and families arrive daily. They carry with them strength, courage, deep resilience, rich cultural identities, and powerful aspirations for safety and belonging.

Refugee and immigrant families may have endured displacement, separation, systemic exclusion, racism, discrimination, precarious immigration status, as well as migration problems. These experiences can have lasting impacts and present an urgent call to action: for us to ensure that all children, regardless of immigration status, are seen, protected, and supported within our systems in Canada. Uncertainty must never translate to moral neglect. In Canada, every child has the right to be safe, nurtured, and valued.

At CWICE, we often support children and youth with unresolved immigration status, those navigating care or leaving care, and families facing risks. We work alongside colleagues and communities across Ontario, in hopes of finding clarity within complexity. We offer support, consultation, and guidance to ensure that immigration challenges do not compromise a child’s safety, permanency, or access to services. This is part of how we can contribute to the development of a sense of belonging in communities.

In Canada, Welcome Week is September 12-21, 2025. Events planned will raise collective awareness about our immigration system, and the contributions of refugees and immigrants settling in Canada. Founded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), this is a time to celebrate. IRCC offers helpful information about our planned immigration system in Canada:

-  Part of becoming more welcoming is understanding how we select, screen and set up immigrants for success in Canada.  Find out how Canada’s immigration system works.

-  Immigrants help grow Canada’s future.  Learn more about how immigrants contribute to different sectors like sports, business and health care.

-   Read what the research says about how Canada’s immigration system works for all of us (IRCC, 2025)

A true commitment to inclusion means more than just language access or cultural awareness. It requires us to look deeper at the systems, policies, and practices that foster belonging and those that may unintentionally exclude. Inclusion demands structural advocacy, cross-sector collaboration, and a willingness to address the ways immigration status can shape child welfare outcomes.

At the heart of our work is equity, care that affirms identity and protects rights, and service responses that foster belonging. In this way, we help build a stronger, more just system for everyone. Inclusion is a fundamental part of ethical child welfare practice. And our collective commitment to refugee and immigrant children and families must reflect not only what we do, but who we choose to be.  We invite you to get involved online or within your communities. Happy Welcome Week to all!

To refer to CWICE, please connect with us at: cwice@peelcas.org

Information:

Welcoming communities - Canada.ca

About the Authors:

Ghezal Wallid is a Data and Research Coordinator at Peel CAS in the Child Welfare Immigration Centre of Excellence (CWICE). She holds a Master of Development Policy from the Korea Development Institute (KDI). Ghezal has over 5 years of experience in the humanitarian and social services sectors. She has experience working with the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) and CORDAID to create a safe, positive, and caring environment for the community, with expertise in coordinating program and response plans and researching evidence-based practices and interventions to improve the quality of services to the vulnerable. In her current role, Ghezal focuses on leveraging data-driven solutions to enhance child welfare practices and outcomes at Peel CAS.

Danielle Ungara (she/her) is a Registered Social Worker and a dedicated leader known for her creativity, and commitment to excellence and equity in practice. As CWICE Manager, Danielle has brought innovative thinking and strategic leadership to the Centre of Excellence since its inception.