Focal Point: Social Institutions Area of Emphasis: Family Provision for Basic Needs Availability of assistance to children and families to assure the provision of the basic shelter, food, clothing, and social needs. Commentary The condition of family divisiveness brought on by the inability to meet basic needs can be effectively neutralized if citizens and community agencies work together to bring about this change and provide its citizens with the services needed to fulfill this fundamental right of all people. Such a comprehensive program, however, will cost millions of dollars. States cannot possibly meet this burden alone. Federal government policies regarding basic assistance to families must be reexamined and redeveloped so that all citizens enjoy this birthright. Providing for the basic needs of every family is a fundamental goal of every society. When parents are unable to accommodate the needs of their families, all members may experience feelings of frustration and anxiety. Such unsettling conditions within the family can foster delinquent behavior in children. See generally National Advisory Committee on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals, Report of the Task Related Standards Force on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Standard 3.7 (1976) [hereinafter cited as Report of the Task Force]. Enhancing the opportunity to meet survival needs is critical for the physical well-being of the family. It can also increase a parent's feeling of adequacy thereby freeing him/her to attend to a child's emotional needs. Report of the Task Force, supra at Standard 3.7. While various income maintenance programs exist, information regarding the types of services available to families is often poorly disseminated. This results in an ill-informed citizenry and a costly, under-utilized public service program. The responsibility rests with state and local government agencies to provide this information. See Standards 1.1111.114, and 1.121-1.125; see also Report of the Task Force, supra at Standard 3.7. In addition, local communities should work to inform the public of available health care, housing, and employment information while simultaneously eliminating the stigma which often surrounds the utilization of such services. Public service messages carried by radio and television can also greatly assist in this effort. 1.111-1.114 Organization of the Local Juvenile Service System 1.121-1.125 Organization of the State Juvenile Service System 1.131-1.134 Organization and Coordination of the Federal Juvenile Service System 1.21-1.29 1.429 Data Base Development and Collection Administrative Personnel Related Strategies Focal Point Individual: Cor. F-1 Individual and Family Counseling Cor. F-3 Crisis Intervention Provision of adequate community day care and drop-in child ices. Thus, other recommendations suggested by these care services for children of all ages. Commentary A child's involvement in delinquency has often been traced to parental neglect and lack of supervision. See National Advisory Committee on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals, Report of the Task Force on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Standard 3.8 [hereinafter cited as Report of the Task Force]. However, the provision of adequate parental care and supervision of children often conflicts with the necessity to seek work. Adequate day care centers can obviate this dilemma. A child's visit to a day care facility can be an enjoyable learning experience when activities are structured in a proper fashion. School will remain the most important social institution affecting a child's life. Day care facilities, however, can be a child's first positive introduction to social interaction and self-awareness. strategies are also implemented. See Focal Point Social Institutions, Strategy, Cor. F-1, Cor. Ed-2, Cor. Rc-1; Focal Point Individual, Strategy, Cor. Ed-2 and Cor. H-1. Drop-in day care services can also provide child care on an occasional or emergency basis. Such services should be located in an area easily accessible to parents. Facilities could be located in schools for those parents wishing to continue their education and near places of employment for those parents who work. Neighborhood homes can join together to develop their own day care programs. Their staff support can come from various other centers which employ day care counselors and aides. Parents who assist in the program can obtain day care at reduced or no cost or obtain vocational training credit to become a counselor or aide. Day care programs are one way of alleviating the problem of stress within a family. With its utilization, there may be less of a financial strain on the family and absenteeism at work can decrease. Children will receive an enhanced opportunity to interact and grow with new and different children, learn to cooperate with others, and be properly cared for while parents are working. Sponsorship can vary, utilizing both public and private organizations to serve preschool children. Day care programs can direct children's activities around self-image enrichment and peer cooperation, cross-cultural appreciation and health. Related Standards Further, day care programs can provide nutritionally balanced meals during the day, a variety of ethnic material from which children can begin to develop cultural awareness, and field trips to supplement the centers' activities and expand the children's knowledge. In order to foster a child's well-being and "achieve the overall goal of promoting healthy and harmonious families," Report of the Task Force, supra at Standard 3.8, day care centers should maintain close coordination between their programs and existing health, education, and welfare serv 1.111-1.114 Organization of the Local Juvenile Service System 1.121-1.125 Organization of the State Juvenile Service System 1.131-1.134 Organization and Coordination of the Federal Juvenile Service System 1.21-1.29 Data Base Development and Collection Personnel Providing Direct Services to Juveniles Focal Point: Social Institutions Area of Emphasis: Family Provision of 24-hour crisis intervention services to assist Commentary Since links between crises and anti-social acts have been noted, and since family integrity is conducive to a law-abiding society, 24-hour crisis intervention programs can have some effect in detering delinquent behavior. 1.111-1.114 Organization of the Local Juvenile Service System 1.121-1.125 Organization of the State Juvenile Service System As indicated in Focal Point Individual, Strategy, Cor. F-3, Related Standards the 24-hour crisis intervention service advocated by the National Advisory Committee is an important element in a program geared toward providing comprehensive protective services to a community. One of the primary functions of crisis intervention is to provide shelter care and guidance to abandoned children or to families who have lost their place of residence. Typically, crisis intervention is required when young children are left unattended for an extended period of time, when the conduct of parents is temporarily detrimental to a child, when parents die suddenly, become ill, or are taken into custody leaving no one to care for their children. 1.131-1.134 Organization and Coordination of the Federal 1.21-1.29 Data Base Development and Collection Personnel Providing Direct Services to Juveniles 1.425 1.427 1.429 Planning Personnel Administrative Personnel Crisis intervention often provides the final attempt to maintain family integrity before intervention by the family court. The objective of the 24-hour service is to preserve the family unit whenever feasible and to provide trained Related Strategies emergency caretakers to assist families in times of need. Supported by the American Humane Association, crisis intervention has proven to be a valuable asset to many communities across the country and has been recognized as such in a comparative study of protective service systems sponsored by the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. See Two Community Protective Service Systems Operations (N.C.J.R.S. Accession Number 09900.00.046703). Focal Point Individual: Cor. F-1 Individual and Family Counseling Cor. F-3 Crisis Intervention |