The province has struck a committee that will review child welfare legislation, and make recommendations to government in the spring.

The committee held its first meeting at the Legislature today. Families minister Scott Fielding says child welfare reform is a big priority for the provincial government.

"We're excited about that process and we want to work with Indigenous leadership, we want to work with the federal government on reforming the child welfare system," says Fielding.

The committee is comprised of seven people: Sherwood Armbruster, Diane Redsky, Michael Redhead Champagne, Joanne Crate, Dave Daniels, and Audrey Frances Chartrand. Rossmere MLA Andrew Micklefield is chair of the committee. Micklefield, a former principal at The King's School, says it's a great honour.

Champagne, the founder of Aboriginal Youth Opportunities, and one who has gone through the child welfare system himself, says the reforms they're starting to work on are long-awaited. He calls it a daunting task.

"I see many, many, many barriers to where we want our families and our communities to ultimately be... I'm excited to be able to ask the general public for their support, and to ask anybody who is listening or paying attention to this file to participate in this process," says Champagne. He says they will have online forums and in-person forums in a variety of communities.

"What we really need is people that are affected by Child and Family Services, and people that have an understanding of what needs to change, to come forward and help us as a committee to identify what those specific legislative changes are so that we can put together a report that is not going to sit on a shelf, a report that is going to accurately inform the reform of child welfare in Manitoba," says Champagne.

Fielding says speaking with children in care is key. He says reunification of families is the most important aspect of the child welfare system, something he says the government has heard from Indigenous communities.

"We want to build that lifelong connection so families are reunited, and if that's not possible because of safety reasons, we want to create a sense of permanence," says Fielding.

He says the overarching goal for the government is to reduce the number of children in care and the days in care, with more of a community-driven process, and funding for success.