Moving from Crisis Intervention to Crisis Prevention

In Bermuda, abuse and neglect plague both children and their parents. Many families function perpetually in crisis mode from generation to generation, unable to escape the vicious cycle.

Purpose and Impact of the Grant

In 1996, the Family Centre, a nonprofit organisation that opened its doors in 1990 as an academic enrichment programme, decided to broaden its focus. The centre launched Caring for Families, an outreach effort designed to help stabilise families with primary school-aged children.

The programme provides families with access to individual and family counseling, home and school-based interventions, and group therapy. Every family in the programme works with a family-support specialist and a psychologist. In 2004, the Caring for Families programme served 110 families. As a result of Atlantic funding, the centre was able to eventually increase the number of families helped to 130.

In addition to Caring for Families, the centre also manages community projects aimed at improving services for children and families. Its Communities That Care programme, for example, seeks to reduce risks and promote resilience. In partnership with the Ministry of Health, the centre manages the Bermuda Prevention Network, the Bermuda National Standards Committee and the Inter-Agency Committee for Children and Families. These efforts to promote quality service and facilitate community development made the Family Centre the first social service agency in Bermuda to receive international accreditation.

With its 2005 grant from Atlantic, the organisation has begun taking steps to ensure its sustained ability to build on this strong foundation of support and credibility. The centre is crafting a long-term development strategy and business plan to continue introducing best practices to Bermuda so that fewer families will experience debilitating crises.