Safe & Sound is committed to serving families and communities. One of the ways our Community Partnerships team supports families across San Francisco is through the Communities of Care initiative. At its heart, Communities of Care seeks to unify practices across San Francisco Family Resource Centers by using the Five Protective Factors framework. The Protective Factors are areas of family functioning that help support youth and families to be strong. Research shows that when these factors are present in populations of families, it reduces the risk of abuse, maltreatment, and negative outcomes. The project supports teams to train staff to use the Five Protective Factors framework to plan, implement, analyze and evaluate the effectiveness of their services.

Communities of Care prioritizes a deep engagement with partners and the community, meeting partners and teams where they are and not implementing a one-size-fits-all approach. This has led to a framework that prioritizes adaptation, connection and collaboration as essential, not only to the project, but also as key components of the Five Protective Factors themselves. Over the years, Communities of Care has blended these values to create an initiative that combines support for families with collaborative learning across agencies.

The initiative began in 2020 with funding from the Doris Duke Foundation and facilitation by Safe & Sound. In 2021, fifteen Family Resource Centers in San Francisco joined together in a year of planning, during which partners drafted a Theory of Change and Logic Model, while a group of “Changemakers” adapted the previously published and well-known Protective Factors Survey for potential use by participating agencies. That same year, the first cohort launched with four initial participating Family Resource Centers. In the following years additional agencies joined, four more in 2022 and two in 2023, marking steady growth of the project across the city.

A key idea that came from the early planning work was the creation of a designated collaborative meeting space, thus forming the early concept of the Communities of Care Organizing Hub (CoCO Hub). The CoCO Hub is a unique meeting space facilitated by the Safe & Sound team and shaped by the participants that meet in person on a quarterly basis. This space quickly became the heartbeat of the initiative as it sets itself apart from other collaborative and training spaces with an emphasis on participant collaboration.

All these elements come together to create a space where Family Resource Centers work together to find ways to bring consistent language, understanding, and training around the Five Protective Factors, thereby continuously refining and unifying how local families experience the web of support across San Francisco.

Feedback from participants over the years has highlighted the community and collaborative feeling that is created through the CoCO Hub. Participants have noted that the space feels “welcoming and very informative” while also providing feedback that they enjoy meeting and building relationships with others in the group. A focus on networking, sharing ideas and resources, and collaborative learning has helped build the CoCO Hub into a meeting space that is vibrant and remains regularly attended.

By creating and utilizing a space that supports implementation and capacity building within agencies, CoCO Hub strengthens the infrastructure that allows Family Resource Centers to deliver effective, strengths-based services to families. What began as a planning effort is now a citywide framework for collaboration, shared learning, and collective impact.

Since Safe & Sound’s establishment in 1973, we’ve expanded our services, deepened our expertise, and strengthened our resolve to ensure that every child grows up safe, supported, and loved. Throughout our journey, we have adapted to meet the evolving needs of children and families. We’ve embraced emerging research, learned from lived experience, and responded to crises both acute and systemic. Today, Safe & Sound is both a trusted direct service provider and a driver of systems change. In 2024, we served more than 13,000 people, operated with an annual budget of over $13 million, and employed nearly 70 dedicated staff.

We remain steadfast in our mission to prevent and heal childhood trauma and to build the conditions for family well-being. Together, we will continue to strengthen the protective factors that help families thrive, transform the systems that too often cause harm, and build a future where every child has the chance to grow up safe and sound.

In response to an increasing need for health and hygiene items, Safe & Sound has engaged in a partnership with Simply the Basics, the first large-scale Hygiene Bank in the nation. They partner with nonprofits and community groups to spread the reach of their organization and enable people nationwide to access the hygiene items they need.

Reading together in your child’s early years can be a great bonding experience, and can support their early development. The greatest amount of brain growth occurs between birth and age five. In fact, by age 3, roughly 85% of the brain’s core structure is formed. It is therefore not surprising that young children who are exposed to certain early language and literacy experiences usually prove to be good readers later. Just as a child develops language skills long before being able to speak, the child also develops literacy skills long before being able to read. [1]

Thats why charities and SF Public Library are offering different ways to help you support your child’s early literacy, to give them the best possible grounding in reading and writing from an early age.

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a program dedicated to inspiring a lifelong love of reading by gifting books to children.

If you have a San Francisco address and a child aged 0–5 you can register online to be sent a free, age-appropriate book every month until your child’s 5th birthday.

This program is supported by funding from the Department of Early Childhood (DEC) and endorsed by San Francisco Public Library.

It’s never too early or too late to start sharing rhymes, songs and books with your child! San Francisco Public Library has events and programs for babies, toddlers, preschoolers, and parents and caregivers, as well as advice for different ages for how you can play, talk, sing and read to support your child’s development.

Visit your local library and talk with the children’s librarian, or visit the website below for more information.

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[1] https://www.unitedwaytv.org/blog/fifty-top-literacy-statistics

This year, every 4-year-old in California can enter transitional kindergarten at their local school district. Recognizing that parents might not know about this option, KQED has created a comprehensive guide about this new grade in California’s public school system. The guide answers some of the most common questions parents may have about what transitional kindergarten is, how it is different from other types of preschool, what kids will learn and what parents should look for when considering if it is a good fit for their child.

Whilst TK and kindergarten are optional in California, knowing that this is available may give parents something to start considering and researching for next year, as many school districts start enrollment in January for the fall (and may give priority to school placement for those who enroll early), and schools often hold tours and information sessions in the spring.

You can read the full guide on KQED, available in:

• English
  
• Spanish

If you live in San Francisco, the Child Care Planning & Advisory Council has created a website to provide information and resources on Universal PreKindergarten (UPK) and their expansion efforts to meet the early learning needs of 3- and 4-year-old children and their families, specifically in San Francisco. You can find the website at: https://sfcpac.org/upk/

San Francisco’s Universal Prekindergarten (UPK) initiative combines Early Learning for All and Transitional Kindergarten (TK) to provide affordable, high quality child care and education until age 5:

• Early Learning For All offers free and low-cost child care to most families. Visit the San Francisco Department of Early Childhood website to find out if you qualify. You can find the website at: https://sfdec.org/early-learning-for-all/
  
• All four-year-olds are eligible to attend Transitional Kindergarten (TK) for free through SFUSD. To find out more about Transitional Kindergarten (TK) visit the USD website: https://www.sfusd.edu/schools/enroll/apply/transitional-kindergarten

You can search for child care and preschool options near you on the Children’s Council website, or connect with one of their Resource & Referral (R&R) Specialists if you qualify for a child care subsidy such as Early Learning For All, to get a list of child care, preschool and TK options that align with your subsidy type and family’s needs: https://www.childrenscouncil.org/families/find-child-care/child-care-search/

It can be tough for children and teens to transition their daily habits back to fit into the school schedule after the late nights and activities of the Summer Holidays, and it can be even harder for parents to implement a routine for school. In addition, starting a whole new journey with new classmates, teachers, and a whole new environment can be overwhelming and can cause back to school nerves. Here are some essential tips to help you get started on this school year.

• Talk about feelings, how does your child feel about returning back to school? Excited? Nervous? Why?
  
• Model positive language around school as it encourages positive thinking around school, meeting friends, and working on their education. You are your child’s most important role model, being empathetic can teach your child kindness and recognize how to treat others.
  
• Build a strong foundation of open communication that allows your children to open up about anything they might be going through. Each school year comes with its own challenges, trusting you can be a part of the problem solving process.
  
• Begin active communication with teachers and the school – this can allow you to understand how your child is developing and how you can support them.

• Set a bedtime routine so you and your child can get good rest for the next day, and create a wake up routine so you have enough time to get ready and get to school without the stress of rushing.
  
• Prepare the night before so you have everything ready to leave in the morning.
  
• Make a calendar to help you keep track of events such as sports, back to school nights, early dismissals and other commitments.

Most importantly, enjoy it. Learning can be fun and each school year is an accomplishment as well as an opportunity to know what to expect or change for the next year.

Systems change and trust must go hand in hand – it is not possible to change a system without tested input, but building trust to get that input requires changing the systems that negatively impacted families.

With trust being acknowledged as a cornerstone of system transformation, we opened our second Lunch & Learn of the 2025 season with some startling data shared by Dr. Jill Duerr Berrick: across the globe, CPS judges, workers and agencies are amongst the lowest trusted institutions, and in the USA this trust is even lower than in the majority of countries.

At Safe & Sound we work hard to earn trust from families in our community, but we also need to engender trust with organizations – those that fund our work, and those that we work in partnership with to ensure families can receive coordinated services across the city. And in turn, we need to trust communities to have the answers about what families need to thrive, to help shape and guide our work.

With that lens we opened an important discussion about building trust and transforming systems to better support families. We are grateful to our expert panel for joining Safe & Sound CEO Dr. Pegah Faed in this conversation:

• Dr. Jill Duerr Berrick – Distinguished professor of Social Welfare and a Zellerbach Family Foundation Professor at the University of California, Berkeley
  
• Ashley Downend – Senior Program Manager, Community Systems & Partnerships, Safe & Sound
  
• Jason Sharpe – Fatherhood Engagement Specialist for the Fathers First program, San Diego County

Dr. Jill Duerr Berrick shared some slides containing data on the international landscape of trust in government generally, and particularly trust for child welfare services. Revisit the slides.

Starting from August 18th, Families will be able to drop by our Bayview site every Monday from 12 to 4 PM for support in a welcoming, low-barrier, trauma-informed space.

Our popular Parent Drop In (PDI) already runs at our Waller Street location Monday – Thursday, but adding a Monday at Bayview means we can support more families in different neighborhoods. This addition is all about deepening our impact and making it easier for families to get what they need, when they need it.

We will be offering:

• Short-term case management
  
• Help with benefits and housing applications
  
• Access to resources
  
• Community-building opportunities
  
• Laptops & Printing Access
  
• Our Clinical team will be on site every Monday to offer therapy to both current and new clients. Parents bringing their children for therapy will be able to access PDI services during the same visit.

Monthly In-Person Parent Drop-In Support Groups: As part of our wraparound approach, a monthly, 90-minute caregiver support group will also take place during PDI hours. These drop-in groups will offer space to connect, recharge, and share about parenting, self-care, and more.

Note: As this is a new offering, child care will not be available at 3rd Street and there is limited in-person language access. For childcare and bi-lingual services, our Waller Street PDI will still be maintaining its Monday-Thursday schedule.

Parenting doesn’t come with a handbook and too often we rely on our experience of being parented as a guide. That’s why Safe & Sound offers groups and workshops on parenting and topics related to family well-being. When parents are supported in accessing knowledge about parenting that’s useful to them, it creates greater opportunities for individual development which carries on to child development, allowing caregivers and children to thrive.

Mayor Daniel Lurie has announced the appointments of community leaders and policy experts to San Francisco Commissions and Committees. Amongst the appointees are members of Safe & Sound’s community, including board member Ryan Hazelton and former Chief Policy Officer Jenny Pearlman both being appointed to the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families’ (DCYF) Oversight and Advisory Committee. This is a great opportunity for Safe & Sound supporters to play a role in this important department funding programs for San Francisco’s young people and their families.

“These appointees have proven their commitment to their professional communities and will bring unique perspectives to their roles on these critical city commissions and committees,” said Mayor Lurie. “With their years of experience, professional knowledge, and community engagement, they will drive San Francisco’s comeback, and I look forward to working with each of them.”

The Oversight and Advisory Committee (OAC) is the Department of Children, Youth, and Their Families’ (DCYF) advisory body. It provides a forum for community members and service providers to discuss decisions regarding the Children and Youth Fund, and also gives advice to the department. The DCYF funds programs for San Francisco’s young people and their families, focusing on educational supports, enrichment and skill building, justice services, out of school time, youth empowerment and youth workforce development. The OAC takes steps to ensure that the Children and Youth Fund is administered in a manner accountable to the community and supports DCYF’s citywide result areas and service areas.