Family Preservation Services
Family
Resource Services
​
Families in Crisis
Life occurrences such as loss of employment, physical and mental health challenges, drug dependency and homelessness can result in children being neglected and abused.
Family Resource Services program was created to provide families, who have experienced a crisis, the services necessary to bring restoration to the family unit and help prevent the removal of children from their homes and expedite family reunification.
​
Evidence-based studies conclude that when proper resources are available to families in crisis, the family unit rebounds more efficiently and is less likely to become dependent upon state interventions and services in the future.​​​​
Family Preservation
A crisis can affect any family at any time. When a crisis strikes, it is often difficult for a family to "see their way out." It is the support of the extended family, the community and its resources that help divert a devastating occurrence and bring hope and healing to families in need.
​
EPACT assists families by implementing programs that prove successful for its clients. Caring and supportive case managers, staff and volunteers impart the tools and resources necessary to eliminate the need for a child to be placed outside of the home.
Out-of-Home Support
When children are removed from their homes, placement decisions that consider safety, permanency and well-being in both the short and long term future are established. Oftentimes, children are placed with non-relative foster families until a relative’s home is deemed safe for a child to reside.
Many times, foster placements are far from a child's familiar environment. Although there are placement considerations for siblings to remain together, it is not often possible for a foster family to extend its care to siblings. Access to the child’s family, friends and other significant people can be limited; and it can take one to two years for a successful family reunification to occur.
​
EPACT strongly supports family reunification and works diligently to infuse evidence-based principle and practice models that assist families toward this goal. These models engage families in more meaningful and productive lifestyles that help avert subsequent State involvement and provide a foundation of frameworks that result in timely family reunification.
Post Permanency
Safe and stable reunification should not end once children return to the care of their parents. When parents are ready to reunite with their children, careful consideration and follow-thru are necessary for successful restoration of the family. A family's capacity to continually keep their children safe is key to preventing future occurrences that may lead to subsequent maltreatment.
​
One-in-five children in foster care return. Many of these children have physical, emotional and behavioral concerns that require on-going support. EPACT's Post Permanency efforts follow the family's progress and address all signs of regression that may lead a child back into foster care.
​
Children oftentimes experience emotional difficulties and exhibit stressful behaviors when they initially return home to their parents. EPACT conducts comprehensive family assessments to assist parents in strengthening their support networks and addressing all avenues of concerns that may impede a family's progress.
​
​