New Foundry Centre Locations Announced
We’re very happy to see four new Foundry centres included as part of the 2021/2022 Ministry of Mental Health & Addictions (MMHA) budget announcement. All young people and their caregivers across BC should have equitable access to integrated health and social services, and this expansion brings us closer to that goal.
Staying true to our culture of collaboration, we’ll be partnering with four communities in BC to implement these new Foundry centres, creating seamless pathways of care for young people and their caregivers.
We’re so grateful to the Government of BC, our partners and supporters, and we look forward to further collaboration to bring this expansion to fruition.
On June 14, 2022, the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions announced Fort St. John will join the Foundry network. Over the summer, we will announce the additional three communities.
Questions? Email expansion@foundrybc.ca
Land Acknowledgement
At Foundry BC, our provincial work extends across lands that are built on a complex history of colonization. These lands are home to many First Nations, Métis and Inuit Peoples today. Indigenous people’s histories, knowledges and ways of being are diverse and unique to every community Foundry has a presence in.
We recognize and respect Coast Salish Peoples as traditional stewards of the stolen, occupied, and ancestral lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-waututh), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), S’ólh Téméxw (Stó:lō), Stz’uminus Nations and the Hul’qumi’num Treaty Group that our central office is located on.
Foundry’s 2020 Expansion
On June 15, 2020, the Province of BC announced eight new Foundry centre locations joining the Foundry network, which will significantly improve access to health and wellness resources, services and supports for young people ages 12 to 24 and their families across British Columbia.
We will be working with the following eight communities and lead agencies to bring integrated mental health, substance use, primary care, youth and family peer supports, and social services to their communities:
- Burns Lake: Carrier Sekani Family Services
- Comox Valley: John Howard Society of North Island
- East Kootenay: Ktunaxa-Kinbasket Child and Family Service Society
- Langley: Encompass Support Services Society
- Port Hardy: North Island Crisis and Counselling Centre Society
- Sea to Sky: Sea to Sky Community Services Society
- Surrey: Pacific Community Resources Society
- Cariboo Chilcotin: Cariboo Chilcotin Child Development Centre Association
There are currently nine open Foundry centres across the province in Campbell River, Victoria, Kelowna, the North Shore (North and West Vancouver), Prince George, downtown Vancouver, Abbotsford, Penticton and Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows. There are also two more expected to open in 2020 in Richmond and Terrace.
View a recording of the expansion announcement and read the press release, which both detail the expansion of Foundry’s network to a total of 19 centres province-wide by 2023.
Welcome from Foundry’s Eight New Communities:
The Expansion Process
Our expansion is part of the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions’ “A Pathway to Hope,” strategy, which is the BC government’s 10-year vision for mental health and addictions care that was launched in 2019 to provide British Columbians with the services they need to tackle problems early on and support their wellbeing.
In October 2019, we issued a call for expressions of interest (EOI) from communities across BC. Non-profit organizations and health and social system agencies serving youth were eligible to submit. In total, we received 40 EOI submissions– a moving demonstration of not only the need, but also the resiliency and strengths that exist in BC.
Two independent panels consisting of youth and caregiver advisors and subject matter experts reviewed those submissions to determine a short list of 19 communities who would move forward to a second phase (convening) of our selection process . The convening phase focused on the lead agency’s readiness to successfully open and operate a Foundry centre, and enabled communities to network with each other and Foundry central office and network staff, as well as Foundry’s youth and caregiver advisors.
Below, you’ll find a video which outlines our expansion process!
Services for youth across BC
Our centres will continue to be the place where young people and their caregivers can find the help they need, when they need it, to improve their health and wellbeing – even during this challenging and unprecedented time.
For those unable to access Foundry centres due to physical distancing, location, and/or stigma, Foundry now offers virtual drop-in counselling and peer support sessions using voice, video and chat, and will soon also offer virtual primary care services. Please visit foundrybc.ca/virtual to learn more.