PHILADELPHIA, PA — Philadelphia’s Office of Children and Families (OCF) and the Department of Human Services (DHS) are seeking partnerships with organizations that can help uplift the city’s children, families, schools, and communities. The agencies have issued several Requests for Proposals (RFPs), inviting all eligible organizations to apply.
An RFP is essentially an invitation for suppliers, often through a bidding process, to submit a proposal on a specific commodity or service. In this case, the OCF and DHS are looking for organizations that can provide certain services to the city’s families and children.
One of the RFPs calls for the establishment of a Resource Parent Support Team. The aim is to find a provider who can support resource parents — individuals who foster or adopt children from the child welfare system. These parents often face unique challenges when caring for children and youth who have experienced trauma or loss. The ideal provider would offer support groups where resource parents could connect with other adults in similar situations and access resources to help them care for the children in their homes effectively.
Another RFP seeks applicants to establish Parent/Child Visitation Houses, also known as Family Time Homes. These would be specialized, intensive parenting empowerment programs offering hands-on support and guidance from parenting resource professionals. These professionals would work with biological parents or caregivers working towards reunification, helping them achieve their parenting goals in a supervised setting.
The third RFP relates to suicide prevention in the juvenile justice system. The DHS and Juvenile Justice Services (JJS) are seeking qualified applicants to facilitate a curriculum for juvenile justice staff across all departments. This curriculum would cover the warning signs of suicide, risk factors, behaviors, and symptoms that might indicate a person, particularly a youth in custody, is at immediate or serious risk for suicide or a suicide attempt.
These initiatives are crucial for Philadelphia. They represent a commitment to supporting some of its most vulnerable residents — children and youth in the foster care and juvenile justice systems, and the families and professionals who care for them. By bolstering resource parent support, enhancing family visitation houses, and prioritizing suicide prevention, the city is focusing on areas that can make a profound difference in these individuals’ lives.
The RFPs are open until March and April 2024. Interested organizations can find more information and apply through the city’s eContract Phila portal. This call for proposals is an opportunity for local organizations to contribute their expertise and passion to create a safer, more supportive Philadelphia for its children and families.
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