Together, we have the power to change how youth in care see their future. At the Fondation des jeunes de la DPJ, compassion and understanding are central to what we do, and we encourage everyone to join us in a collective effort to help youth in care achieve well-being by building self-esteem and finding the courage and confidence they need to believe in a world of possibilities.
With that clear mandate in mind, for the fifth consecutive year, the FJDPJ is inviting organizations working with young people who are or have been subject to the Youth Protection Act, including children under DYP tutorship or subject to the Youth Criminal Justice Act, to submit a project to the FJDPJ. The goal of the funding program is to support actions that will accelerate and amplify the impact of each organization’s mission.
Financial support: Three action priorities
For this new call for proposals, the FJDPJ will be supporting three specific areas.
Family Support
By taking early action to foster harmonious development from an early age, the FJDPJ supports initiatives that can strengthen parenting skills, support the parent-child attachment bond, and prevent the onset of developmental difficulties. Supporting children aged 0 to 17, with a particular emphasis on early childhood, can include projects promoting access to services, activities or resources tailored to the needs of children and their families.
School Perseverance
It’s vital to support youths aged 5 to 25 when learning challenges are identified to ensure they have the best conditions to succeed and to celebrate their efforts. Support can be, but is not limited to, academic tutoring, various school fees such as registration, summer courses or even school supplies or computer equipment, public transit fares, graduation activities such as official photos or a graduation album, to foster normalcy in these young people’s lives.
Transitioning Toward Adulthood
This is a pivotal moment for youth in care between the ages of 16 and 25. It’s a challenging time where these youths often lack proper family support or a social safety net to help them navigate their new situation. The assistance provided here can be, but is not limited to, measures to promote housing stability, integration into the job market, initiatives to support them toward independence or even post-secondary education support.
Funding initiatives in one of these three areas will enhance the offer that is already available in a region based on the specific needs of youths who are or were subject to the Youth Protection Act, including children under DYP tutorship or subject to the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
To ensure maximum impact and a greater concentration of efforts, each project must be focused on a priority area, which will guide the evaluation and funding allocation process. The project therefore needs to have a main component, even if some activities may have an ancillary impact on other priorities.
The FJDPJ remains sensitive to regional realities. As such, an initiative aimed at youth under the DYP’s care and deemed a priority by stakeholders in a given region may be submitted for analysis at the letter of intent stage, even if it does not fit in with the action priorities indicated above.
To find out more, visit the FJDPJ’s Programs page to learn more about projects already funded by the FJDPJ through its calls for proposals.
Project submission procedure
1. Letter of intent
Applications for financial support are made in two stages. You must first submit a letter of intent by December 19, 2025. You will find the short letter of intent form (in French) that needs to be completed by clicking here.
This short step will ensure that your application does meet the stated criteria so you don’t unnecessarily fill out the whole application should your project fail to meet the criteria for our targeted support. Organizations selected following this first step will be individually invited to submit their project and a link will be provided to complete the form online.
In addition to the form, you are invited to submit a short video (max. 2 minutes) presenting your project. Although the video is optional, it’s a great opportunity to highlight your project in a lively, tangible way, to show the expected impact and to make it easier for members of the Allocations Committee to understand and appreciate your project. This is your chance to bring your proposal to life and quickly grab people’s attention.
2. Project submission
The closing date for project submission is February 13, 2026. The Fondation’s Allocations Committee will review the submitted proposals in March and April. It will then decide which projects are selected at the end of April. Note that projects must take place between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027.
Criteria
Eligibility criteria
Your organization must meet the eligibility criteria below to submit an application:
- Be one of the following types of organization located in Quebec that demonstrates sound, stringent management:
- A non-profit organization or a social economy business
- A foundation (registered charity)
- A government agency (e.g., educational institutions, municipalities, the youth protection or youth program branches of integrated health and social services centres [CISSS] or integrated university health and social services centres [CIUSSS], etc.)
- Demonstrate that the project will mostly and directly support youths who are or have been subject to the Youth Protection Act or the Youth Criminal Justice Act
- Submit a proposal that fits in with one of the three action priorities, i.e., “Family Support,” “School Perseverance” or “Transitioning to Adulthood”
- Be ready to start no later than September 2026
- Level of cooperation and quality of partnerships between your organization and community stakeholders are considered
- The financial package and sustainability plan must be clear and realistic
- Number of young people who would benefit from the project and who are or have been subject to the Youth Protection Act or the Youth Criminal Justice Act is an important criterion
- Having young people involved in the submitted projects is a major advantage
Priority will be given to proposals that:
- Take place in a region where there is a concerning gap between the support that youth in care need and the support that is available to them
- Show the project meets a need that is poorly met or unmet
- Show that they would have a potentially significant impact on youth who are or have been in the care of the DYP
- Are creative in responding to the challenges they face
- Include a sustainability plan that the FJDPJ can use to assess the value of supporting the project financially
- Emphasize that the financial support will have a leverage effect that stimulates very impactful, long-term projects
Non-qualifying proposals
- A for-profit organization
- An organization outside Quebec or that targets youth outside Quebec
- Individual initiatives
- Proposals that could be funded by government agencies
- The Fondation des jeunes de la DPJ’s mission is to only support youths who are or have been subject to the Youth Protection Act, under the DYP’s tutorship or subject to the Youth Criminal Justice Act. A proposal that exclusively supports other troubled young people will therefore not be considered for this call for proposals.
Did you learn about this call for proposals after December 19, 2025? Do you have any questions? Contact the FJDPJ’s Programs team: programmes@fjdpj.ca.
The FJDPJ is open to funding projects that it has supported in the past, as part of a consolidation process and subject to receiving a detailed sustainability plan. The FJDPJ’s financial support acts as a real lever, enabling proposed projects to maximize their impact and produce lasting change, for the greater benefit of young people. It’s also important to note that the beneficiary organization should not consider the financial support granted as being permanent or recurring.
We look forward to seeing your projects!