Child welfare social work

The customers of child welfare social work are children and young people whose growth or development is at risk, and other support services are not sufficient. Child welfare social work also works with the families and close ones of the client children and young people. The customer relationship with child welfare services can be initiated when the child's growth conditions or the child's own behaviour jeopardise their growth and development. A customer relationship may also be initiated if the child or their family needs services and support measures that are provided under the Child Welfare Act.

The aim of child welfare social work is to improve the situation of the child and family so that the need for child welfare services goes away and the family can live independently or with the support of other services. The duration of the service depends on the child's situation and need for support as well as on the individual assessment of the child's best interests. Children and young people living with their parents as well as those living in foster care can be customers of child welfare services. At the longest, the customer relationship may last throughout childhood.

A social worker will be appointed to a customer of child welfare to take care of their affairs. The duties of the social worker include e.g.:

• assessing the support needed by the child and family and organising services
• drawing up a client plan for the child and monitoring its implementation
• ensuring that the child's opinion is heard and their best interests are realised
• preparing or making decisions concerning the child, for example, regarding services and foster care or restrictions during foster care
• documenting the situation of the child or young person.

Child welfare social work operates systematically. This systematic approach focuses on the child's experiences and their entire life cycle. In systematic work, the lives of children and families are seen as a whole, all parts of which influence each other. It is therefore important to focus on the child as part of their family and network of their relatives and loved ones.

The social work provided in child welfare services is part of the services of the family centre. A family centre is a set of services where your family can find services that promote well-being, health, growth and development as well as early support, care and rehabilitation services and special services for children, young people and families.