Family Connections Program
|
Family Connections News!
We are proud to have hosted the Family Connections Program Kick-Off event for San Francisco County. Read the press release and check-out a photo album of the event...
|
Serving families with children who up until now have required extended placements in high level group homes, the Family Connections Program uses a methodology that fundamentally transforms the nature of traditional residential services. This new approach breaks down the traditional barriers between residential treatment and intensive in-home services and replaces them with an integrated, family-based intervention that delivers continuity of care in whatever environment a child or youth might temporarily be living.
The mission of the Family Connections program is to ensure that all children and youth who receive services are ultimately able to connect or reconnect with family, school and community following placement. To help achieve this goal, the program provides for active family involvement, behavioral stabilization, intensive treatment, parallel community services, and follow-up support. Click here for the Family Connections Program guiding principles.
Ultimate goals are permanency and connectedness.
program services
- Residential interventions to help address and stabilize a child’s or youth’s challenging behaviors;
- Intensive treatment interventions that facilitate safe and stable reunification with the family and community;
- Parallel family and community services offered while the child or youth is in the residential component to prepare for reunification; and
- Follow-up services after the child or youth has rejoined the family, or entered another permanent placement to assure stability of the connection while the gains made during the intensive services phase are generalized to everyday life.
A unique aspect of FCP is that each child or youth and family will experience continuity of care across living environments. The same direct care team will work with them whether the child or youth is in the residential cottage, in a foster or relative care home, or back home with her or his family. More...
location
Who It Helps
Male or female children or youth ages 6 through 16 and their families who:
- Are under the supervision of the San Francisco Human Services Agency
- Are in an RCL level 12 or higher group home,
- Have behavioral needs that at present can not be managed in the community using wraparound or other intensive community-based services,
- Have family members or other primary caregivers who are willing to work with the program to help the child or youth achieve permanency, safety and well-being,
- Most likely cannot accomplish a sustainable permanency plan within the next 6 months unless intensive work is done to resolve difficulties in attachment and to address challenges presented by the child or youth’s persistent pattern of dangerous or disruptive behaviors.
partners and funders
The Family Connections Program is part of the RBS pilot project for the state of California authorized by AB 1453 to implement a Residentially Based Services (RBS) approach.
City and County of San Francisco, St. Vincent’s School for Boys and the San Francisco Boys and Girls Homes, and Seneca Center.
key facts
Although each child or youth and family will follow their own path, the average course of care during the typical 2 year duration of enrollment will be 4 to 6 months of stabilization in the residential component while family coping strategies are being developed in the family connections center and community care capacity is being developed through parallel community services. Then some children and youth will move directly to their permanency homes and others will transition through temporary placements with relatives or foster parents. The goal will be to have most children and youth living in their permanency homes within 12 months of enrollment so that the remaining 12 months of care can include about 4-6 months of intensive in-home services and supports and 6 months of follow-along and aftercare support prior to graduation from the program.
contact us
