 |
| Family Strengthening Programs help at-risk households. |
|
Photo: Ms. L. W. Neilsen |
The best way to care for an orphaned or abandoned child is to help them and their families before they become orphaned or abandoned.
That is what our family strengthening programs work to do: To act preventatively and spare children the trauma, heartache and psychological devastation that comes with losing a parent and family.
Parents living in poverty and faced with a crisis often lack the resources and ability to cope with the situation. Their ability to care for their children is compromised or impossible. Many families lack essentials like money to pay for their groceries, doctor’s and school fees. Their health and confidence suffer in the long run.
Through our family strengthening programmes we hope to empower families help themselves and create a better future; a future where they are independent and self-sufficient.
 |
| To prevent child abandonment, SOS works to help their parents help themselves |
|
Photo: Ms. H. Atkins |
SOS Children's Villages is convinced that it is always best for children to grow up in families. Millions of children across the world have already lost the protection of their families, and SOS is working to prevent more from suffering the same loss. Poverty, disease, violence, natural disasters and armed conflicts mean that every day there are more children who are at risk of being abandoned, neglected and/or abused, making family strengthening programs a vital and growing part of our work.
SOS Children's Villages works with communities and local partners collaboratively to provide support for disadvantaged families around the world. Its family strengthening programmes are oriented according to local circumstances towards specific hi-risk target groups such as single mothers, families that have been affected by HIV/AIDS or families with financial problems that are often linked to addiction, illness and exclusion.
SOS Children's Villages' family strengthening programmes are divided into three phases.
Short-term support for families
Medium-term support for familes
Long-term support for families