Families Growing Together enhances the services offered within the continuum of Children’s Friend programs. The project’s vision is that by increasing the protective factors in families affected by illicit substances and HIV/AIDS or other significant medical issues, children’s social, emotional and overall well-being will be improved and family functioning will be strengthened.
Families Growing Together focuses on:
- Parent-child relationship-based therapeutic intervention and support to strengthen attachment and improve social-emotional development
- Comprehensive, integrated services to improve parenting abilities
- Permanency facilitation through caregiver supports and frequent parent-child visitation with coaching
- Training and consultation to improve workforce knowledge and competency.
Services utilize the Promoting First Relationships approach
- Modeling and coaching parenting skills
- Weekly home visits
- Case management and service coordination
- Supervised parent-child visitation when children are in out-of-home placement
- Advocacy
- Linkages to community and natural supports
- Concrete services to meet basic needs
- Supports for relative and foster care providers
In addition, the staff receives training to improve their knowledge of trauma and toxic stress, and other factors affecting work with this population, as well as the impact of such factors on child well-being.
Families eligible to participate in this program must live in Providence, Pawtucket, or Central Falls, and have a child age birth to 24 months. In addition, they must have a child who meets one of the following criteria.
- Perinatal exposure to drugs or alcohol
- Perinatal exposure to HIV/AIDS
- Medically at-risk for placement outside the home
For more information contact Valentina Laprade at 401.276.4352 or vlaprade@cfsri.org.