Youth treatment centre company Venture Academy says it is ending operations after years of alleged breaches under Ontario’s child protection laws and a Global News investigation into allegations of sexual abuse.

An automated email reply from the company’s main general inquiries address indicated that Venture Academy had been “winding down” operations after 25 years of “serving struggling teens and families from across Canada,” and was no longer processing emails or accepting applications.

The company’s landline and toll-free numbers appear to have been disconnected, and a business listing for Venture Academy suggested it was “permanently closed.”

“The organization has been proud to have walked alongside youth, families, funders and community partners for two and a half decades,” the automated response reads.

Global News’ emailed requests for comment to Venture and its founder, Gordon Hay, were not returned as of Friday afternoon. Hay’s email generated an automatic reply that read “responses to this email address are now very limited.”

Venture Academy billed itself as inpatient treatment for youth facing addiction, mental health crises or behavioural issues. But multiple youths interviewed by Global News said they suffered psychological and emotional harm while in Venture’s care, all under the guise of therapeutic rehabilitation.

Families desperate to find help for their children could send them to the for-profit Venture Academy, where they would receive inpatient treatment for about $15,000 for the initial month and $10,000 for every month after that. Clients would attend classes and therapy sessions throughout the day, and then live with “host families” in the community after programming hours.

Global’s six-month investigation into Venture’s operations included interviews with more than 70 former clients, family members, staff and host parents across Venture’s three locations in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia.

The investigation uncovered provincial authorities had concerns about the company for years. Ontario’s Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (MCCSS) found 147 breaches of the Child, Youth and Family Services Act in 2024 and 2025 alone — including children not being informed of their rights, communications being monitored and a repeated lack of documentation — according to documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.

Global’s investigation also learned that there have been at least four allegations of sexual assault from youth connected to Venture going back to 2010.

Company officials did not respond to specific questions from Global News, citing privacy and confidentiality concerns. But the company’s statement in August 2025 called Venture Academy a “lifeline for youth and family in crisis.”

“With a strong parental and family component, Venture Academy has supported nearly 2,000 youth and families from across Canada since inception,” the statement read.

The investigation raised questions about oversight of the murky world of for-profit treatment centres, at a time when mental health and addiction issues are on the rise and public options — particularly for inpatient treatment — are limited.

Hay founded Venture in Kelowna, B.C., in 2001 and grew the business to open locations in Red Deer, Alberta and in southern Ontario. The Kelowna location shuttered in 2021, and Venture Academy declined to say why when contacted by Global News.

A typical stay for Venture’s clients began with a 30-day assessment, referred to as a “crisis stabilization” period. Client’s communications with their parents were strictly limited during that month, only able to send and receive letters, while undergoing “psycho educational” training that was outsourced to a local psychology clinic.

Based on that month, Venture said they created individualized treatment plans for the client and recommended a length of stay between three and 12 months, during which time they are billeted to local host parents.

The company’s Ontario location was investigated by a local children’s aid society in 2020. The Simcoe Muskoka Family Connexions (SMFC) probe was looking into concerns Venture was “causing risk of emotional harm” to its clients.

Of the 13 youths interviewed by the SMFC, five were judged to be at risk of emotional harm. The agency issued 26 recommendations to the company, including the need to get youths’ informed consent for treatment, enhancing social interaction within the program and providing training for host families.

Former clients and staff described a “boot camp”-like atmosphere in facilities billed as providing a therapeutic experience.

Thirteen former clients at Venture’s Ontario campus said that the rules were so stringent that children wet themselves because their access to the bathroom was limited. One girl described soaking her pants with blood while menstruating because she couldn’t visit the washroom.

The SMFC also found that students would receive collective punishment, such as the loss of lunch or free time for the same length that children used the washroom outside of prescribed times.

Several former clients also raised issues with their time at host parents’ homes, including inadequate sleeping accommodations, insufficient food and abuse, including cases of sexual abuse.

“[We were told to treat youth] like they don’t exist, they are not human, that they have no rights,” one former staff member told Global.

Months after the SMFC investigation, Venture’s Ontario campus was referred to the Ontario government’s Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services (MCCSS) Investigations and Enforcement Unit.

The provincial body raised several issues with Venture’s operations, including cameras in homes, the removal of children’s shoes, host parents yelling at children and youth being prevented from sharing personal information with one another. The company spent another 15 months under MCCSS review.

Instead of responding to questions from Global’s investigation, Venture sent a two-page statement about the company, its ethos and operations. It described itself as a company that prioritized “transparency, feedback, and continuous improvement,” with a “strong parental and family component.”

The company also quoted a survey of parents and youth who participated in the program between 2016 and 2024.

Without disclosing any methodology or sample size, it said 99 per cent of parents felt their child benefited from the program, 99 per cent of parents agreed or strongly agreed that their child was safe and well-supervised while in the program, and 97 per cent of youth agreed or strongly agreed that they had a positive overall experience during their time at Venture.

With files from Ashleigh Stewart and Krista Hessey