Social engagement service for families with children

The objective of family consultations is to, motivate, provide social assistance and give advice to families with children living in a difficult social situation that excludes them from the rest of society. The purpose of providing services is to help families with issues they cannot resolve by themselves, which have a negative impact on the family environment and the development of the child. We emphasise long-term and intensive cooperation, individual social assistance with standing up for one’s rights and legitimate interests and honing parental skills.

Actions and steps directed at solving the family’s problems are carried out with the family’s knowledge. Members of the family are involved in solving the situation as much as possible. Our policy while providing the service is that the child’s concern and welfare always comes first, even before the parents’ concern, while also respecting the parents’ primary responsibility for their children.

The aims of this service include:

Helping to raise the life quality of all family members in terms of material conditions, environment, relationships, health, nutrition, mutual care, etc. through consultations. We mainly concentrate on the healthy development of the child. The family is offered assistance, aid and support in the course of dealings with the authorities, help with documents, recommendations, and mediation of communication with other institutions, services etc.

Finding and reinforcing the internal family resources, to actively involve family members in solving difficult situations and increase their competences so that they can cope with problematic situations by themselves in the future. In the course of the service, the family is encouraged to use other sources of help, the wider family, friends, teachers, curators, etc. Our work tries to inspire the family to become involved in the activity. The goal is for the family to learn to recognise problem situations and start dealing with them by themselves. Our ambition is to create a situation where family members have learnt to communicate with authorities and institutions, capable of independent individual communication in written or electronic form.

Helping the family by creating a good environment for the children’s entry to the school educational system. We greatly encourage regular school attendance by the children, we help them and their parents with homework for school, we also offer more meaningful ways of spending of free time. We do what we can to prevent the children from dropping out of education prematurely.

Involving the family in the network of locally available activities for children and parents (nursery schools, after-school activities in schools or other institutions, clubs, etc.). The goal is for the family to be able to identify which activities they need, how to search for such activities, find financial resources for them and regularly attend them.

Provide the family with other professional help locally available. We help ensure collaboration with other entities that could contribute to solving the family’s unfortunate situation.

Our goal

The main goal of our social service is to maintain or re-establish the functions of the family in its natural environment. Primarily we want to stop the family’s social situation from deteriorating any further, then we try to contribute to the improvement of their social abilities, living standards and the family members’ well-being. 

Our services are directed towards families with children under the age of majority who find themselves in situations which may exhibit some of these signs:

• problems with the children’s upbringing and care,
  
• struggle to create conditions for successful return of children to the family,
  
• difficulties with the family budget and running the household,
  
• problems with school attendance,
  
• socially pathological phenomena in the family (crime, addictions, …),

furthermore they meet at least one of the characteristics listed below:

• substandard or unstable housing,
  
• absence of people in the family or its environment who could help with the family’s situation,
  
• lack of knowledge and skills for solving difficult situations (especially because of low level of or prematurely terminated education),
  
• the household income is low, comprised mainly of social benefits and pensions,
  
• debts,
  
• long-term unemployment and low chances of employment in the market.
  

Our principles

Confidentiality – this is one of the main principles of our service. All personal information provided is strictly confidential. We do not pass on any information without the family’s knowledge and consent. The only exception is the obligation under the law to report a crime.

Voluntary involvement – we provide our services only if the family itself wishes it and only to the extent they choose. They may terminate consultations at any time without stating a reason.

Individual approach – we look for a solution to suit each family’s particular situation; we respect the uniqueness of each family and its members.

Empowerment – we lead the family towards participation in solving their situation according to their abilities and capabilities, and taking responsibility for their decisions.

Intensive and long-term – our workers are in regular and long-term contact with the family, usually at least once a week for at least an hour, the course of consultations generally lasts a year or at least six months.

The child’s interests – always superior to the interests of others.

Fieldwork – we provide our services in the family’s natural environment, in its home (unless not prevented by an exceptional situation in the family, for instance domestic violence).