Family Outreach & Support: Child and Family Wellbeing
The Family Outreach & Support: Child and Family Wellbeing program is part of the Kasserian Ingera Program at the Children’s Aid Society and aimed to provide intervention for Black and African-ancestry families involved with child welfare.
Our Philosophy
We care about you, your family, and supporting your family to achieve better success.
Ifarada and Durham Children’s Aid Society have developed comprehensive, supportive advocacy, outreach, and family support program that addresses challenges that children, youth, and families experience. Our programs are designed to enhance outcomes for Black and African-ancestry youth and reduce Black families’ involvement in child welfare. We advocate with families as they access services for families, and can support families as they navigate through the Society’s assessment. We outreach with families to connect with resources within the community. We collaborate with families to improve their relationships and address concerns.
- Family Outreach: We connect with families to support them accessing the resources they may require within their lives. Outreach services include:
- Connecting families with specialized mental health and addiction support,
- Guiding families to access parenting supports and other resources,
- Supporting families to access financial, housing, and other resources to help them live successful lives.
- Advocacy: We support families by attending meetings with child welfare workers or other professionals. We support families to address anti-Black racism they may experience, and guide them on how to navigate resources that are also embedded with anti-Black racism.
- Family Support: We provide intensive support to families when needed to address crises, reduce further concerns, and strengthen the family system.
- Referrals: We guide families to make referrals and connect with community professionals who can help the family address challenges they face.
We accept self-referrals and community referrals
Once a referral is made:
Our team of Family well-being workers will connect with you within 72 hours. The team member will also connect with the Durham Children’s Aid Society Worker to introduce themselves and confirm the receipt of the referral.
Building therapeutic alliance:
Our initial goal with families is to build an alliance and connection with our families. At some point, the DCAS worker is brought into the service planning depending on the level of support required by the family. Once we understand the family’s cultural, social, financial, and community experiences, we work with the family to develop a service plan.
The service plan is usually 3, 6, or 9 months in length.
The service plan identifies goals that are geared to support the family in the way they wish to be supported.
Serving the Durham Region
We love to hear your feedback about the services offered and our team. Please feel free to connect with us at: info@ifaradainstitute.org