Through the Family Preservation program, intensive support services are provided to families with children who are at risk of out-of-home placement. This program emphasizes keeping families together in a safe, nurturing environment and providing them with skills that will last when they leave the program.

Family Preservation staff develop intervention techniques that are tailored to fit the individual needs of families. Each year, nearly 120 overburdened families within the Children & Family Services Bureau (CFS) and Probation departments receive intensive services that help them stay together safe and healthy.

Typical Family Profile

Early this year Ms. Baker's two small children were living with a foster family as she struggled with the burdens of poverty and being a single parent. Within six months her children were returned to her care, given she still faced many challenges, she was referred to the Family Preservation program. She nervously entered the program and was surprised when a worker came to her house to start services in her own community. Over the next few months, with the help of her Family Preservation worker, Ms. Baker developed an individual family plan that met her specific needs, received individual counseling and family therapy with the children, developed a safety plan, and got referrals to community based service providers to help with the transition out of Family Preservation. She now lives with her two children in a safer, healthier setting and is connected to many community resources.

Families access services through the Children & Family Services Bureau and the Probation Department. Services are available countywide; for more information email Rhonda Smith at the Employment & Human Services Department at smithr@ehsd.cccounty.us.