SUPPORT CENTER FOR CHILD ADVOCATES
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Mission Statement
To advocate for victims of child abuse and neglect with the goal of securing safety, justice, well-being and a permanent, nurturing environment for every child.
About This Cause
The Support Center for Child Advocates (CHILD ADVOCATES) is the country's oldest and largest volunteer legal services agency dedicated exclusively to abused and neglected children and youth. Our mission is "to advocate for victims of child abuse and neglect, with the goal of securing safety, justice, well-being and a permanent, nurturing environment for every child." CHILD ADVOCATES advances client interests by providing teams of volunteer attorneys and staff social workers and lawyers who represent our young clients in Dependency Court, securing vital social services and permanent homes and supporting children when they testify in court. We also use the knowledge and skill gained from our years of direct representation to engage in systemic advocacy and improvement efforts that help to benefit all children and families who interact with the child welfare system. Our agency began as a committee of the Young Lawyers Division of the Philadelphia Bar Association, recruiting attorneys to represent children in dependency proceedings in Family Court. Incorporated as a non-profit in 1977, we have remained true to our service model of assigning child victims to specially trained volunteer attorneys and staff social workers and lawyers who advocate in court for the services that our children need to recover from physical and emotional trauma. From a small caseload in the 1970s, we have become one of the region’s leading solutions to the problem of child abuse, annually accepting more than one-third of the City of Philadelphia’s substantiated cases of abuse and serving 1,000+ children and youth each year, with close to 330 volunteer lawyers providing pro bono services valued at approximately $5.5 million. CHILD ADVOCATES offers legal and social services to child victims through two service lines: Direct Representation Services and Child Advocacy Leadership & Training. Comprised of several programs, Direct Representation Services provides teams of lawyers and social workers to child victims of physical and sexual abuse (“Child Safety & Justice Program”); to teens and young adults (“Empowering Older Youth Program”); and to children with complex educational, behavioral health, and medical needs related to child abuse or severe neglect (“Health & Well-being Program”). Staff specialists lead these programs and focus on client populations with heightened needs, such as child victims of sex abuse and trafficking, those with serious medical, behavioral health, and education issues, and older youth who are transitioning out of the child welfare system. Child Advocacy Leadership & Training services are offered throughout the five-county region and beyond by our Center for Excellence in Advocacy (CEA). In our 2021 fiscal year, CEA offered 86 training programs throughout the five-county region and beyond, helping improve the skills and knowledge of 4,599 professional service providers and lay caregivers whose clients and children are served by the child welfare, juvenile justice, and/or behavioral healthcare systems. Through technical assistance and consultation, we frequently assist private providers and government entities in shaping their own practice models and delivery systems. With our commitment to distance learning, we have a positive impact on professional and lay service providers locally and throughout the country. During the COVID-19 shutdown, we offered virtual training programs, and some of these focused on the self-preservation needs of service providers, including easing the stressors associated with the COVID-19 crisis. Our attorney-social worker team model has helped to establish our agency as an experienced and trusted resource for some of the city’s most severe and complex cases. Most of the cases referred to our agency involve physical abuse, sexual abuse, serious neglect and/or multiple siblings. All of our services are offered free of charge to Philadelphia County children and young adults who range in age from birth to 24 and need specialized child advocacy due to child abuse and lack of familial support. We serve predominantly minority and single-parent families who need or participate in services from multiple public benefit/service systems. Cases are referred to us by the District Attorney's Office, area hospitals, social service agencies, schools and public sector agencies. Representations are by appointment from the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia. Among the children whom we recently served is William,* who was only four-weeks-old when he was hospitalized due to severe head trauma. Following emergency brain surgery, William’s medical needs were so challenging that his Mom had to receive training on how to care for him before he could return home. Our attorney-social worker team advocated for him to be temporarily placed in a specialized pediatric program and closely tracked each medical visit, ensuring that William attended his follow-up appointments on time and saw a specialist outside of his regular network provider. During this time, William’s mom began the intense process of learning how to care for her son. Just as she began her training, COVID restrictions were put in place, and the classes became virtual. This meant that she was unable to practice what she was learning, and instead, she had to verbally explain the procedures to the nurses. At one point, the facility was forced to shut down to all visitors. Despite restrictions, we advocated for William’s mother to have as much visitation with her son as possible, though that meant that her only recourse for visits was to stand in the lobby and visit with William through a glass door. Even with these challenges and setbacks, the mom persevered, and William returned home, with medical equipment in place and regular nursing support scheduled! *Name has been changed to protect client confidentiality.