Support Center for Child Advocates to hold training for volunteers

The Support Center for Child Advocates of Philadelphia will hold a "Volunteers Training Workshop" on Thursday, Oct. 19, from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Philadelphia Bar Education Center in the Wanamaker Building, East Penn Square, Suite 1010 in Philadelphia.

The workshop offers five substantive credits plus one credit in ethics. Costs are $125 for child advocate volunteers; $135 for Philadelphia Bar Association members; $150 for non-members, and $25 for non-lawyers and volunteer lawyers who audit. To register, call the Pennsylvania Bar Institute at (800) 932-4637.

The Support Center for Child Advocates provides legal assistance and social service advocacy to abused and neglected children in Philadelphia County. The Support Center is one of the most successful volunteer models serving children in the country.

Each pro bono attorney is teamed with a staff social worker and assigned one child or sibling group. The child advocate conducts home visits, participates in service planning meetings and court hearings. All volunteers must attend this full-day training program, which includes presentations and skill sessions on the Juvenile Act, the Child Protective Service Law, the role of a child advocate in a criminal case, representing parents in dependency proceedings, service planning, and the dynamics of child abuse. Its training manual How to Handle A Child Abuse Case, with the latest Family Court rules and procedures, is provided to attendees. The American Bar Association’s recently issued Standards of Practice for Lawyers Who Represent Children in Abuse and Neglect Cases will also be provided.

This course also provides certification for eligibility to receive court-appointed dependency cases. For Questions about Child Advocacy, call (215) 925-1913.

Back to PaTLA