Youth in custody to be transferred from Cecil Facer in Sudbury

Staff of Cecil Facer Youth Centre in Sudbury learned this week that the 16-bed facility will close in two years.

The news was revealed in a release Thursday from OPSEU/SEFPO, a union that represents about 180,000 people in Ontario.

The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services told the union that the grounds of Cecil Facer will be used to build a 50-bed institution for adult women.

The news is devastating for the staff of the facility, the union said, who have dedicated their careers to helping young people in conflict with the law.

It will also force Sudbury area youth in custody to move hours away from their families and communities.

“This is yet another short-sighted closure of a facility for youth who need specialized help in their own communities,” Peter Harding, OPSEU/SEFPO co-chair of the youth justice ministry employee relations committee and a youth services officer, is quoted as saying in the release.

“It’s not too late to reverse this bad decision.”

“Young people shouldn’t be placed in custody hours away from their families,” JP Hornick, OPSEU/SEFPO president, said in the release.

“Our members who work with these kids every day know that community and family support is crucial for their well-being.”

While all staff displaced from Cecil Facer will be provided with employment options, OPSEU/SEFPO said the move still leaves staff worried about the impact on the youth they work with -- and are also faced with a difficult career choice.

“Now our members have to decide whether to relocate hours away to keep working with youth, or to change careers and work with adults,” said Harding.

“It’s an agonizing decision, and so unnecessary. You don’t have to move young people in custody or the staff who work with them hours away from their communities.”

The land for Cecil Facer was donated to the province by Judge Cecil Facer and his family, who wanted the land to be used to support youth in conflict with the law. Facer presided over the Sudbury Juvenile and Family Court from 1945 to 1964.

“We support the employer’s efforts to provide more services for women in custody,” added Harding.

“But not at the expense of northern youth who require services in their own communities.”