The purpose of al
l Children and Youth Services is to provide child welfare services designed to protect children from abuse, neglect, and enable children to remain safely in their homes. It provides services to help families overcome problems that result in dependency, neglect, and delinquency, and to enhance the family’s capacity to provide for their children’s educational, physical, and behavioral health needs.
Services are available to children from birth to 18 years of age. Children and Youth Services promote and protect the health and welfare of children with the focus of keeping families together through protective services. When placement does occur, the goal is to reconnect and reunify the child with the family in as an effective and timely way possible, while ensuring the safety of the child.
In each separate program, a Catholic Social Services Caseworker will meet with family members in the home to assist the family in working through problems. The frequency of home visits will be decided by the parents and the Caseworker.
The Catholic Social Services Agency providing Children and Youth Services is located at 100 North Wilkes-Barre Blvd, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702 and the telephone number is (570) 822-7118.
Parenting
These families are referred through Children and Youth Services, schools, other agencies or by the families themselves.
Intensive Family Reunification Services (IFRS)
This is a closed intake program limited to families involved with Children and Youth who are actively working to rectify issues that resulted in their children being removed from their care.
Parent and Student Success Program (PASS)
Intake is open to all school age, even kindergarten, and their families in Luzerne County. Referrals can be made by children and Youth Services, schools, other agencies or by the families themselves.
Supervised Visitation
This is a closed intake program limited to families involved with Children and Youth and are referred to us so parents can visit with their children while they are with a foster family.
Family Education and Support Program (FESP)
This is a closed intake program limited to families referred by Luzerne County Children and Youth Services.
Visit Coaching
Referrals are made by Luzerne County Children and Youth to families who are working towards reunification with their children.
Specialized Adolescent Assessment Unit (SAAU)
This is a service geared for children with an age range of 12-17 that are currently living in a home with extensive parent/child conflict that is negatively affecting the families daily living.
Check and Connect
This is a closed intake program limited to families involved with Children and Youth who have Truancy concerns that have not been addressed following multiple judicial attempts and agency involvement.