North Cowichan is looking for land or a suitable building where a Foundry Centre for youth could be established in the municipality.
Councillors Christopher Justice and Chris Istace made the successful motion at the council meeting on Sept. 3 for North Cowichan to identify land or space where a Foundry Centre could be set up, and the motion also referred to staff for a report on the issue.
Foundry is a province-wide network of integrated health and wellness services for young people aged 12 to 24.
Justice said youth in North Cowichan are facing a mental-health crisis that requires a comprehensive, community-based response.
He said the 2025 North Cowichan Youth Services Review clearly illustrates a critical gap in youth mental-health supports in the community.
“The report found that rates of poor mental health are alarmingly high among both Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth, with existing services primarily focused on crisis intervention rather than prevention,” Justice said.
“According to the report, there is a notable lack of accessible, timely, and free counselling services in North Cowichan. Service providers and youth consistently reported long wait times and insufficient availability of care, particularly through Island Health. Many youth are left with no option but to self-medicate, and school counsellors are often only able to respond to academic-related concerns. Social challenges such as bullying, isolation, and post-pandemic anxiety further compound the problem. These findings point to an urgent need for a more coordinated and inclusive approach that integrates health, social, and community services.”
Justice said a Foundry Centre would directly respond to these gaps, offering preventative care and early intervention within a welcoming and stigma-free environment.
He said the Regional Youth Services Gap Analysis, conducted by the Cowichan Women’s Health Collective and recently presented to council, recommends establishing a Foundry Centre in the Cowichan region.
“A Foundry Centre, combined with the planned youth psychiatric space in the new hospital, would make North Cowichan more attractive to youth psychiatric specialists, a resource currently lacking in the region,” Justice said.
Provincially supported Foundry Centres bring together a range of supports in one location, including mental health care, substance use services, physical and sexual health care, peer support, and social services such as housing and employment assistance.
The model is designed to improve access by co-locating services in youth-friendly spaces and offering multiple ways to connect, including drop-in, scheduled appointments, and virtual options.
This “no wrong door” approach is intended to simplify the process for young people seeking help, regardless of the nature of their needs.
The model emphasizes early support and coordination across sectors, with the aim of making services more responsive and accessible to young people and their families.
Justice said that while municipalities are not health-service providers, they can play a key role in supporting such initiatives through things like community planning, advocacy, and potentially identifying suitable land or buildings.
“Supporting this motion will allow staff to explore how North Cowichan can be a partner in establishing a Foundry Centre locally and contribute to a successful bid,” he said.
Istace said that after being a mentor in a couple of youth programs and for youth at risk, as well as being an employer of teenagers, he sees how important it is to have places that provide support and services for them.
“If we could at least be a municipality that provides the space, then that could be the foundation that the other groups doing good work in the community can build upon,” he said.
Coun. Tek Manhas said he has been a fan of the Foundry concept for years.
“This is one of the programs brought in by the previous Liberal government, and I’m glad that the NDP government has kept it,” he said.
