Family Resource Centers

Note: Throughout the Covid crisis, our Family Resource Center staff members are working remotely to continue to provide family support services. Even though our doors are closed, most of our services are still available.

The Sacramento Children’s Home operates three Family Resource Centers (FRCs) that are community-based and proven services at no cost. Our programs provide:

  • Intervention Services
  • Court Approved Parenting Education
  • Home Visitation
  • Engagement Services
  • School Readiness

We operate our Family Resource Centers in the diverse communities of Meadowview, North Sacramento, and Valley Hi. Additional activities vary by location, and include:

  • Transportation
  • Socialization and recreational activities
  • Support groups
  • Other services to support healthy and effective families
  • Play and Learn classes
  • Baby bonding classes
  • Relax and refresh
  • Stress management and coping
  • Nutrition classes
  • Arts and crafts
  • Holiday events
  • Fitness classes
  • Parent leadership
  • Car seat class
  • Dads groups
  • Moms groups
  • Girl Scouts
  • Medical and dental referrals including Medi-Cal services
  • Domestic violence services
  • Playcare
  • Love and Logic

Home Visitation

Home Visitors work with a multidisciplinary team to provide home and community-based support services to families identified as at risk for child abuse and neglect or who are interested in improving their parenting skills. Home Visitors deliver an individual support plan for each family in order to meet their needs. They provide lessons and activities from different curriculums in the Nurturing Parenting Program once a week. These lessons are specifically designed for fathers, pregnant women, parents, and caregivers with children under the age of 0-17 years of age. As a participant in-home visitation services, parents learn nurturing parenting skills while having fun and growing closer as a family.

  • Home Visitation is available in multiple languages and varies between the FRCs
  • Free voluntary program for pregnant women or families with children 0-17
  • Follows the Nurturing Parenting Program
  • The program designed to enhance confidence, develop empathy, gain new insight into how to use positive discipline and become an empowered parent
  • Home Visitors also provide community resources and referrals to support the family

More than 97% of families who have used the Home Visitation Program remain free of an open CPS case.

Effective Parenting Workshops

The Family Resource Centers offer a variety of free parenting workshops and classes in multiple languages.

  • Nurturing Parenting Program – Parents learn about child development, empathy, discipline, and empowerment. Classes are available to expectant families, parents of infants, toddlers, preschoolers, school-age children, and fathers. Approved for Court Mandated Parent Education. Nurturing Parenting Program is Available for Families with Children through Age 12.
  • Make Parenting a Pleasure – Parents learn effective parenting skills, how to manage stress, and positive discipline. Approved for Court Mandated Parent Education.
  • Dare To Be You – Parents learn how to teach their children to feel better about themselves, communicate, be responsible, and make decisions.

Over 85% of parents show an increase in their ability to handle the day-to-day challenges of raising their children after they have completed a parenting workshop.

Intervention Services

When families are in crisis, parenting can be a stressful and difficult job. The Intervention Specialist at the Family Resource Center helps families in crisis reduce their problems so they can refocus on their parenting. The Intervention Specialist will:

  • Provide short-term case management for families who are in need of support.
  • Connect families to community resources that may reduce their crisis situation in the areas of domestic violence, homelessness, addiction, financial difficulties, and Medi-Cal concerns.
  • Facilitate stress relief classes at the FRC, where parents can spend time alone while their child is cared for. This service varies by location.

School Readiness

The School Readiness Home Visitor helps parents prepare their children to be successful individuals. The School Readiness Home Visitor offers age-appropriate learning, as well as developmental and reading resources. The School Readiness Home Visitor will:

  • Provide information on developmental milestones and social and emotional development.
  • Work with parents on how to establish a reading routine and provide library resources.
  • Link families to their local school districts, preschool programs, and childcare resources.
  • Facilitate parent-child interactive groups to create an opportunity for both parents and children to play and learn new skills.

Engagement Services

The Engagement Specialist at the Family Resource Center assists families with school-age children (ages 6 through 17). The Engagement Specialist will:

  • Connect families with school-age resources
  • Offer IEP (Individual Education Plan) support
  • Facilitate Nurturing Parenting Program school-age parent education workshops
  • Provide community-based school-age activities
  • Outreach for the Family Resource Center and its School Age Program

The Village Program

The Village Program is focused on reducing Infant Deaths in the African American community by enriching the lives of the entire family. The Village is a community service program that was developed from the Blue Ribbon Commission’s findings on African American Childhood Deaths. The Result of this study showed that a great number of African American children were dying from three major causes: child abuse and neglect, infant sleep-related deaths, and third-party homicide. The Village was charged with the task of providing African American parents in the Valley Hi and Meadowview (95822, 95823, 95828, 95831, and 95832) communities with information on child abuse and infant mortality prevention in an effort to reduce, and eventually eliminate, this epidemic. The Village focuses on families who have children 0-5 years old and accomplishes its mission primarily through culturally centered classes, home support, community events, resources, and outreach. Join or support the Village Program today. Contact The Village at the Valley Hi Family Resource Center Site, 7000 Franklin Blvd, Suite 820, Sacramento, CA 95823, (916) 290-8281

The Cultural Broker Program

The Cultural Broker program is a voluntary advocacy program that supports African-American families that are involved in the child welfare system. The goal of the Cultural Broker is to reduce the disproportionality and disparity rates among African-American children who enter the system. Brokers help repair the communication gap between African-American families and the welfare department and work with a team of providers to provide families with the appropriate services for reunification for the families. Cultural Brokers, families, and county workers partner to help families successfully navigate the child welfare system with a focus and strong emphasis on the importance of child safety. Contact Cultural Brokers at the Valley Hi Family Resource Center Site, 7000 Franklin Blvd, Suite 820, Sacramento, CA 95823, (916) 290-8281

Success Stories

Birth & Beyond Home Visitation

Kelly was referred by Child Protective Services to a Family Resource Center for in-home visitation services because she struggled with living independently with her seven young children. As a family they bounced from house to house, often staying with friends and family when they had nowhere else to go. Kelly has never had her own, stable housing and has not worked for the past 10 years. With a lot of support from her in-home visitor, Kelly and her children moved into her own apartment and she is found a job as a caretaker for two elderly women. Kelly has not required CPS involvement for over a year and is engaged with the North Sacramento’s Nurturing Parenting Program. Kelly is not only demonstrating effective parenting with her children, but she has learned how to have fun and enjoy being a parent.

Effective Parenting Workshops

Alyssa, a mother of two small children, came to us as a court-mandated participant in the Make Parenting a Pleasure classes. Her children had been removed from her home by CPS and she was required to attend in order to get them back. She was so excited and engaged with the classes that upon graduation she pursued an opportunity to become a parent leader. Alyssa is now an active parent leader, working with other parents in similar situations and is in the process of getting her children returned.

Crisis Intervention

A pregnant mother of two children who was homeless was referred to the FRC for crisis services. The intervention specialist helped her access homeless assistance from the Department of Human Assistance where she received a hotel voucher for emergency shelter. The intervention specialist provided her information on low-income housing and supported her in caring for her children. Mom was able to secure housing for herself and her children and subsequently gave birth to a healthy baby girl. Mom is now working and is able to support herself and her children. She utilized the resources provided by the FRC to help keep her children safe and off the streets. She comes to the women’s support group at the FRC when she has days off because she enjoys the support she gets from other women. The intervention specialist continued to provide support for this mom to plan for future stresses. She helped her open her first checking and savings account. She didn’t think she could because she was undocumented. Mom is very thankful to the intervention specialist, Birth & Beyond, and to the Crisis Nursery South for all the help they gave her and the ongoing support she receives.


Funding for Birth & Beyond Sacramento Family Resource Centers is provided by the First 5 Sacramento Commission which uses Proposition 10 (tobacco tax) funds to support the healthy development of children ages zero to five. Additional information about the First 5 Sacramento Commission is online at www.first5sacramento.net or by calling 916-876-5865.