CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION TOOLKIT

A Culture of Family Support

We must change the way our society cares for children and families. This requires shifting how we view families in our community from a culture of surveillance – looking for problems to report – to a culture of support – one that values and uplifts people who are raising children.

By setting the example of how individuals and groups can work to strengthen families, we can create a prevention ecosystem designed to proactively respond to the concerns and needs of families with compassion and resources.

Why Does It Matter?

We are the stewards of the next generation. We know that our ability to raise healthy children who will lead tomorrow’s communities requires smart and innovative thinking today.

Children are shaped by their earliest experiences and relationships. Creating a supportive environment allows families to develop stable, nurturing relationships. These early connections are the basis of child development that promotes lifelong learning and success.

What is the Issue?

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), such as child abuse and neglect, can cause high levels of stress. When stress is frequent and prolonged, it can dramatically change how the brain develops. In the absence of supportive relationships and community resources, these early adversities can affect a person’s health, educational obtainment, and economic opportunity over their lifespan and can even carry over to the next generation.

Challenging life circumstances can overload and overburden parents and caregivers, making it difficult to provide the necessary care and support to their children. While abuse and neglect occurs in families from all ethnicities, it is important to acknowledge that families of color continue to face differential access to supportive resources that prevent the need for DFCS involvement.

How Do We Solve It:

Child abuse and neglect is caused by multiple factors related to the individual, family, community, and society at large. Environments that have high rates of violence, inequitable access to community resources and social services, and are disproportionately affected by poverty or unemployment are contributors to child abuse.

Science shows that bolstering protective factors and providing positive conditions for early childhood can prevent or even reverse the damaging effects of early life stress, with lifelong benefits for learning, behavior, and health. Addressing community adversities and providing concrete supports to families and children is more effective and less costly than attempting to address the consequences of adversity later in life.

By increasing access to supports for all families and investing in policies and programs that work to overcome individual and widespread adversities, we can strengthen families across Georgia.

Who Can Solve It?

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to celebrate the good things our community does and lift up the work and partners we still need to ensure every child has the chance to thrive. Below are a few examples of how caring and innovative adults, including policy makers, business leaders, and community members can prevent child abuse and neglect or other early adversities. To see a more detailed list of roles and actions to help Georgia’s families thrive go to: www.BelongingForHope.org/Roles.

• Business Leaders can promote a culture of parent support.

• Policy Makers can listen and learn from those with lived experience to enact policies that reduce barriers to families receiving needed supports and positively impact their lives.

• Faith Communities can offer space for caregivers to build social connections, get peer-support, and a place for youth to be active an engage.

• Family and Youth Serving Organizations can train staff on preventing, recognizing, and responding to child abuse using Connections Matters, Protective Factors or Mandated Reporter Trainings.

Material from Georgia State University