Profile: Family Preservation Services

Family preservation services are short-term, family-based services designed to assist families in crisis by improving parenting and family functioning while keeping children safe. These services developed largely in response to the over-reliance on out-of-home care that characterized services in the 1970's. Family preservation services grew out of the recognition that children need a safe and stable family and that separating children from their families is traumatic for them, often leaving lasting negative effects. These services build upon the conviction that many children can be safely protected and treated within their own homes when parents are provided with services and support and empowered to change their lives.