Community Partnerships for Protecting Children (CPPC)

Result areas:
Stable Self-Sufficient Families

Community Partnerships for Protecting Children (CPPC) is an approach to child protection in which communities are reclaiming their responsibility to keep children safe from abuse and neglect. Underlying the approach is the belief that one agency alone can never ensure that children are not maltreated; the diligence of the entire community is required. Georgia is implementing CPPC in eight counties based on the national experience in four cities: Jacksonville, FL; St. Louis, MO; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Louisville, KY. The Georgia counties are Brantley, Catoosa, Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton, Jenkins, Muscogee and Peach.

Vision
Georgia's children will develop within nurturing, caring, permanent families. Families will thrive in supportive communities with a functioning partnership that engages local resources to ensure that every child will be safe from abuse and neglect and will become a healthy, literate and economically self-sustaining adult.

Core Beliefs
Five beliefs and values that underpin our work are:

Child focused. We value children and their right to be free from abuse and neglect.
Family focused. We respect families' capacity and skill in caring for their children.
Results accountability. We define results; implement strategies; evaluate and are accountable for results.
Strengths based. We build on strengths, whether working with families, communities, colleagues or systems.
Shared leadership. We promote involvement of all key parties in the design, implementation and evaluation of all strategies.

Core Components
Four core components drive our work:

1. Develop family-centered, individualized course of action for vulnerable families and children that:

• Engage families in assessment, planning, tracking progress, and sustaining change.
  
• Involve DFACS and other community agencies.
  
• Value family and neighborhood informal supports.

2. Develop neighborhood and community networks of services and supports that:

• Are designed for prevention and intervention activities.
  
• Include key providers in neighborhood networks.
  
• Include informal helpers.
  
• Offer welcoming places for families to gather, seek supports, and participate in activities.

3. Change Child Protective Service agency policy and practice to:

• Individualize responses to reports of maltreatment.
  
• Outstation and/or geographically assign staff.
  
• Promote staff connections to community resources.
  
• Improve training in engaging families, assessment and service design.
  
• Promote local and state policy that supports community child protection work.
  
• Celebrate successes.

4. Share decision-making between families, community members and service providers to:

• Ensure resident voices have a prominent role.
  
• Ensure decisions are data-driven and outcome-focused.
  
• Engage a broad spectrum of partners beyond the social service support network.
  
• Encourage partners to identify, leverage or provide resources to realize their shared goals.

Role of Family Connection Partnership
FCP is a partner with the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) and the eight communities in developing, implementing and evaluating the initiative. FCP provides staff support, training and technical assistance to the CPPC counties and facilitates opportunities for peer-to-peer learning. In partnership with DFCS, FCP manages the CPPC Initiative.

Related Links

Edna McConnell Clark Foundation
This national foundation provided financial support for the national initiative, Community Partnerships Protecting Children.
www.emcf.org

Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP)
This national center manages the national initiative, Community Partnerships Protecting Children.
www.cssp.org

Safe Futures for Georgia's Children
The plan outlines the vision for child welfare reform in Georgia, the principles and goals of child welfare practice in Georgia and the corresponding major statewide initiatives. As revisions are made to the plan, updated versions will be placed on the web site. www2.state.ga.us/departments/dhr/childwell.pdf

Contact Information