National Child Abuse Prevention Month

WE ALL CAN PLAY A PART IN BUILDING COMMUNITY AND BUILDING HOPE

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month

The Mississippi County Sheriff’s Department wants to encourage you to participate in your community’s youth and/or family organizations and challenges you to pledge yourself to the lifelong quest of any family-strengthening initiative. 

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month.  This month and throughout the year, The Mississippi County Sheriff’s Department encourages all individuals and organizations to play a role in making Mississippi County a better place for children and families.  By ensuring that parents have the knowledge, skills, and resources they need to care for their children, we can help prevent child abuse and neglect by making meaningful connections with children, youth and families in our communities. 

Research shows that protective factors are present in healthy families.  Promoting these factors is among the most effective ways to reduce the risk of child abuse and neglect.  They are:

Nurturing and attachment

Knowledge of parenting and of child and youth development

Parental resilience

Social connections

Concrete supports for parents

Social and emotional competence of children

April is a time to celebrate the important role that communities play in protecting children and strengthening families.  Everyone’s participation is critical. 

In support of these efforts, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau, Office on Child Abuse and Neglect, its Child Welfare Information Gateway, the FRIENDS National Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention and over 30 National Prevention Partners have created the 2016/2017 Prevention Resource Guide: Building Community, Building Hope.  This guide is designed for service providers who work throughout the community to strengthen families and is available online at http://childwelfare.com/topics/preventing/preventionmonth/resource-guide/

We encourage you to start your own campaign! Be bold! Change your community!