Aspiranet’s Home Visiting and First 5 Centers help families maintain close bonds

CONTRA COSTA, Calif. - March 31, 2015 - PRLog -- The latest Child Maltreatment (http://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/cb/cm2013.pdf) report by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services states that there were a nationally estimated 679,000 child victims of abuse and neglect, and an estimated 1,520 children who died from mistreatment in 2013.

Child Abuse Prevention Month in April is an opportunity to acknowledge programs that can reduce and prevent abuse in families and services that contribute to healthy families. Throughout this month, Aspiranet (http://aspiranet.org/), one of the largest nonprofit human services agencies in California, will highlight its Strengthening Families Framework, an ongoing commitment to support families.

For more than 39 years, Aspiranet has launched innovative programs that have strengthened families including: Delta and Monument First 5 Centers, Harmony House, and in-home programs, such as the Welcome Home Baby home visiting program.

The Delta and Monument First 5 Centers focus on “making the first five years count” by providing families with children under the age of five programs, services, and activities that improve children’s health and well-being while advancing children’s potential to succeed academically. “Research shows that a child’s brain develops most dramatically in the first five years. This is when caregivers need to positively shape the way a child thinks, learns, and behaves,” explains Odessa Caton, Aspiranet Director of Early Childhood Services in the Bay Area. “First 5 works to develop positive parenting tactics and strengthen family relationships so that children have the foundation they need to succeed in school and life.”

Program Overview:

Aspiranet’s Delta First 5 and Monument Centers operate under the principle that the parent or primary caregiver is the child’s first teacher, offering parent-child and parent-only classes that focus on positive child interaction and helping young children build their skills. These centers educate parents in positive discipline practices, social, emotional and physical needs of young children, and improve their confidence as parents.
Harmony House is a safe haven for youth ranging from newborns to age 17 when they have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. While in the center, county social workers work to bridge the gap between youth and their next home by providing comfort and support to them through the initial trauma.
Welcome Home Baby is a home visiting service for all families with expecting parents or infants under 4 months old. The program helps strengthen attachment between children and parents, enhances parent bonding, and reduces isolation by connecting families to community resources. Each family creates a personalized service plan with their home visitor, including participating in a research-based curriculum with hands on multi-sensory activities that boost children’s intellectual, physical and emotional development.

The foundation of the Strengthening Families approach follows Five Protective Factors to end the cycle of child abuse: Knowledge of Parenting and of Child and Youth Development, Social Emotional Competence of Children, Parental Resilience, Social Connections, and Concrete Supports for Parents. These protective factors are critical for parents and caregivers as they provide a helpful conceptual framework for guiding children and their families.

“Our work is built around the Family Strengthening Standards,” observes Caton. “The Five Protective Factors lead to family resilience and increase parent understanding of child development. This helps parents have appropriate expectations of their young children and is crucial to the child’s attachment, development of self-regulation and self-esteem.”

About Aspiranet

Aspiranet, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charity, supports foster children, siblings, families and the community with 35 core programs offering specialized services throughout 45 locations within California. Aspiranet strengthens children, families and communities through seven core programs including: Foster Care, Adoption, Residential, Transition Age Youth, Behavioral Health, Wraparound and Family and Community Services.

Founded 40 years ago as a six-bed group home for young boys in Moss Beach, Calif., Aspiranet is one of the most diverse nonprofit social service agencies in the state. With a statewide network of innovative services, Aspiranet serves more than 10,000 families each year. For more information, please visit www.aspiranet.org.