Duty to Support: Supporting Families to Stay Together
Date
Wednesday 15 May 2024
Time
5-6:30am (14 May 2024, 1-2:30pm ET)
Location
Online
Organised by
Learning Network and Knowledge Hub
Cost
Free
The Webinar is based on findings from a community project hosted by RainCity Housing that engaged mothers, fathers, grandparents, young parents, and youth who have all been impacted by the child welfare system, as well as the community organizations that support them.
Listing of training and other events does not constitute endorsement by the New Zealand Family Violence Clearinghouse. Information is as provided by the organiser. For further information or queries about training or events, please contact the organiser using the links or contact details provided.
This Learning Network and Knowledge Hub webinar focuses on the Duty to Support - the idea that community has the responsibility to support parents to care for their children and keep the families together. It is a response to the current mandate to report families whose children are perceived to be at risk. In the current child welfare system, families experience state-based violence that ruptures family structures, contributes to marginalizing women, and perpetuates cycles of trauma. The current system is rooted in colonized practice and reinforces it by disproportionately removing Indigenous, Black, and racialized children and children of families living in poverty.
The Webinar is based on findings from a community project hosted by RainCity Housing that engaged mothers, fathers, grandparents, young parents, and youth who have all been impacted by the child welfare system, as well as the community organizations that support them. Together the project team generated data on how to move away from punitive and disruptive state interventions to harm reduction alternatives and community-based support. Throughout the project engagements, community partnering organizations reflected on and implemented the findings from the families. The project advocates for the Duty to Support as a commitment from service providers to better support families to stay together safely and reduce the harm that comes with state intervention.
Learning Objectives
By participating in this Webinar, participants will better be able to:
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Critically assess the child protection system and the harms of reporting
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Apply lessons from families on the barriers they face and how to better support them in community
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Strengthen community by sharing ideas and building connections across sectors, experiences, and perspectives
This Webinar will run in English with simultaneous French and American Sign Language (ASL).
A Webinar recording will be made available after the Webinar. Register for the Webinar and receive an email when the recording is posted.