CPFSA on Drive to Improve Services to Children at Risk

The Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) is on a coordinated drive to improve the quality of services it provides to children at risk.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the CPFSA, Laurette Adams-Thomas, addressing a JIS Think Tank, today (March 12), said that during this calendar year several initiatives will be undertaken to strengthen the policies and procedures governing the operations of Residential Child Care Facilities (RCCF).

“The CPFSA, while it has a broad mandate, is really now focused on strengthening its position as the benchmark Child Protection entity in the Caribbean, and then to go further, to gain international recognition as a leader, within the child protection sector,” she explained.

High on the agenda is strengthening the workforce capacity of the agency.

According to the CEO, the CPFSA is working with the Ministry of Education and Youth (MOEY) to fill a number of positions.

“The idea is to streamline those critical areas that we need to have within our structure and as quickly as possible to conduct the recruitment exercises,” she said.

She added that it is one thing to have the complement of people, but there are skillsets those potential employees must have to meet the needs of the children.

Mrs. Adams-Thomas pointed out that specialised skill sets are required to take care of those children with behavioural challenges; therefore, a series of training and development programmes will be undertaken locally and internationally to ensure that the staff is equipped with the necessary training and skills to manage children with those challenges.

In addition, the recruitment and hiring process will be revamped to ensure that the persons selected to provide care and protection for the children possess a high level of moral soundness and the personality suited for this role.

Currently, a police record is requested and a report from the Department of Correctional Services to determine whether the prospective employee is listed on the Sex Offenders Registry.

However, unless a person is convicted of a crime, their name would not appear in those databases.

Therefore, a more comprehensive background check as well as psychometric assessments will be incorporated as a part of the hiring process.

The CPFSA is governed by the Child Care and Protection Act and provides services to children deemed to be in need of care and protection by the Courts, those who are awaiting the outcome of a court proceeding, and families having difficulties caring for their children.