| PRESS RELEASE, AUGUST 11, 2003: City/County Needs Assessment Report Offers View into the Lives of Local Families CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA--The Charlottesville/Albemarle Commission on Children and Families (CCF) released a wide-ranging study today of the needs of local children and families. The study, “Comprehensive Needs Assessment of Charlottesville/Albemarle Children and their Families, 2003”, includes the results of telephone interviews with 847 local families with children and a series of focus groups. An accompanying document, “Summary of Findings and Recommendations” suggests action steps that residents, service providers, and elected officials may follow in order to better conditions for local families. Among the survey findings is that despite the fact that over 98% of adults in the survey population worked either full or part-time, household income emerged as the single most important factor in predicting unmet needs locally. “What we found, “ says Gretchen Ellis, Planner/Analyst at CCF, “is that lower income, ‘working poor’ families are more likely to have unmet needs for medical and dental care, mental health services, or emergency financial services than higher income residents.” “Despite the high level of extracurricular involvement of City and County children generally,” says Saphira Baker, CCF Director, “children in lower income homes were less likely than those in higher income homes to participate in productive activities, such as sports and recreation, music/arts programs, or volunteer activities.” As a result, the work group recommends further exploration of how to connect low-income youth to the rich array of extracurricular activities available locally, as well as increased use of the Earned Income Tax Credit and expanded mental health and substance abuse resources. The report also revealed surprising new information about how residents typically seek to have their needs met. Residents report that they turn to medical professionals, family, and friends when they need assistance for their families and are less likely to utilize “traditional” human services to obtain information. Individuals who participated in focus groups indicated that a knowledgeable neighborhood leader would be a preferred source of information, in addition to friends and family. Work group members recommend the development of neighborhood lay-leaders, increased alliances with health professionals, and one-on -one outreach to residents. “The focus group findings reinforce the importance of an active and informed neighborhood network to bridge the gap between service providers, local institutions and those in need of services”, states work group member Karen Waters, Director of the Quality Community Council. One of the positive findings in the report is that the needs of a high proportion of local children and families are reported as being met (although at a lower rate for “working poor” families). Residents were asked to identify household needs in a variety of areas, including early childhood, child and adolescent intervention, education, health, family life, and crisis situations. The survey found that the majority of individuals and families received help to address their concerns. Work group members attribute this to a high level of effective prevention and intervention resources available to residents in the schools and in the community. University of Virginia Psychology professor Melvin Wilson, a member of the work group charged with designing and conducting the survey, praises the report, stating, "The report can serve as the basis of understanding the current status and developing future intervention of the Charlottesville-Albemarle community." The report is intended to provide information about local needs and resources to residents, service providers, policy makers, and elected officials. The Commission on Children and Families will share the findings with the community and local leaders, and seeks to use the findings to partner with community groups to formulate policies and programs to address unmet need of local children and families. For more information, to receive a copy of the report, contact Gretchen Ellis at 872-4545 (elllisg at albemarle.org) or log on to www.ccfinfo.org. ### | back to news | |
Art courtesy of the
Global Children's Art Gallery, www.naturalparent.org
Global Children's Art Gallery, www.naturalparent.org