SASKATOON - Saskatchewan's children's advocate says two kids and their rehabilitated mother were not treated fairly by the child welfare system.

Bob Pringle said it was correct for Social Services to take the boy and girl from their mother, who was a drug addict and prostitute. Pringle also said ministry staff initially took the right steps to reunite the family by working with the mother to help her get better.

But he said those efforts stopped when the ministry sought permanent wardship of the kids in 2008 — even though policy says it should have continued.

That was unfair to both the mother and her children and something that needs to be acknowledge by the system, he said.

"We believe the decision to not provide concurrent planning and continue to work co-operatively with (the mother) may well have affected the bond between the children and their mother," Pringle said in a report released Wednesday.

Pringle said once the relationship between child welfare workers and the mother dissolved, "adversarial positions became entrenched."

That led to fewer supervised family visits — even though they were court ordered — and a lack of consideration of the parent's progress or options other than permanent wardship for the children, he said.

Pringle launched a rare administrative fairness investigation into the case in January after a court decision garnered media attention.

Last fall, Court of Queen's Bench Justice Geoffrey Dufour scolded the province's child welfare system for ignoring court orders to arrange regular visits between the children and their mother.

Dufour said he was impressed with the young woman's remarkable turnaround from a prostitute and addict to a healthy and devoted mother. He ordered the children be returned to her.

The judge was not as impressed by social workers. He issued an ultimatum: explain your blatant disregard for the courts or face further action, such as criminal charges of contempt of court.

The advocate's report noted that the mother turned her life around.

In April 2009, she told the ministry that she was addressing her health needs. She got her own home and completed two addiction treatment programs.

"This information was not assessed as progress...and was not given due consideration in reducing the assessed risk," said Pringle.

The report said Social Services could have withdrawn the application for the permanent wardship and that the decision not to do so — with evidence of progress made by their mother — "was substantively unfair to the children."

"(The mother) and her children experienced shortcomings in administrative fairness. This needs to be acknowledged," wrote Pringle.

"To help this family move forward, we would like to see optimal, not average, supports put in place. Their road will not be easy, and every effort should be made to help this family succeed."

Andrea Brittin, executive director of service delivery for Child and Family Services, said in February that a provincewide review is underway to ensure compliance on all court orders. She added that annual department audits will now include a review of whether court orders are followed and staff training will emphasize the issue.

— By Jennifer Graham in Regina

News from © The Canadian Press, 2012