A Message From the Children's Bureau

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Although we strive year-round to improve family well-being and protect children, we can use this time to shine a light on the knowledge we have about what makes families vulnerable and the actions we can take— both as individuals and as a society—to better support families so they can care for their children better and mitigate maltreatment completely.

Making use of the 2021/2022 Prevention Resource Guide is a place to start.

The theme for this year's new Prevention Resource Guide is "Thriving Children and Families: Prevention With Purpose." The guide calls attention to the things we all can do to address the root causes of maltreatment and provide impactful support to families.

We at the Children's Bureau have made a commitment to addressing the factors that increase vulnerability to maltreatment and working toward ensuring all families have access to the resources they need. To prevent child abuse before it begins requires a holistic, robust, and easily accessible support system.

All families need support sometimes. Supporting families when they need it most means looking at the child welfare system as a family-strengthening service rather than just a purely punitive one. It means making asking for help a sign of strength rather than weakness. We must also ensure that the communities most impacted by child welfare intervention have equal access to the supports and services that help to build strong, healthy families.

Read more from the Children’s Bureau in the opening letter of the 2021/2022 Prevention Resource Guide and learn more about National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter and join the conversation by using the following hashtags: #PreventionMonth #ThrivingFamilies.

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