In order to protect and preserve the innocence of childhood and the future of our communities, preventing child abuse is a responsibility that each of us shares. Whether we are parents, educators, clergy, or members of the general public, we can take active steps to help keep children safe from abuse and neglect. Please explore the resources below to learn more about how to prevent child abuse:
- Child Welfare Information Gateway, US. Department of Health & Human Services: https://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/
- Prevent Child Abuse Utah: http://www.preventchildabuseutah.org/
- Prevent Child Abuse America: http://www.preventchildabuse.org/index.php
- Childhelp: http://www.childhelp.org/
- Child Abuse Prevention Center: www.brightfutures4kids.org/blog/
- Help Me Grow Utah: www.helpmegrowutah.org. This website links Utah parents to community-based resources that help support families with children ages 0-8.
- Five Protective Factors: The Center for the Study of Social Policy has outlined Five Protective Factors that help families create nurturing home environments—Parental Resilience; Social Connections; Concrete Support in Times of Need; Knowledge of Parenting and Child Development; and Social and Emotional Competence of Children. More information about these factors and how they comprise the foundation of the Strengthening Families Approach is available at http://www.cssp.org/reform/strengthening-families/the-basics/protective-factors.
- The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study: Ongoing collaborative research suggests that exposure to childhood trauma correlates strongly with increased health, social, and economic risks throughout the life cycle. Learn more about this important study at www.acestudy.org and http://www.cdc.gov/ace/.
- The FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-based Child Abuse Prevention: www.friendsnrc.org/home.
- The ARCH National Respite Network provides a nationwide Respite Care locator to help families access supportive resources and promote the development of quality Respite and Crisis Care programs throughout the United States: www.archrespite.org.
- Utah Foster Care supports Utah children who are currently residing in foster care. Visit www.UtahFosterCare.org to learn more about supporting/joining this organization.
- Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children: www.blog.casaforchildren.org/blog/