Prevention Spotlight-The Ashtabula County Children Services Board (ACCSB) is a family-oriented public resource mandated by law to help provide for the protection of children. As all children have the right to a safe, nurturing, stable home, our goal is to promote the development of strong, secure, and healthy individuals within a family. To do this, we support the provision of therapeutic, preventative, and educational services within the community to empower families to care for their children.
ACCSB serves as the public children’s services agency (PCSA) for our county. It is our responsibility to investigate allegations of child abuse and neglect that come in from the community. When incidents of abuse and neglect are found apparent, we work with families to ensure the safety of the children while the issues within the family that pose risks to the wellbeing of the children are addressed by service providers in our community as appropriate based on the circumstances. Our work is guided by our mission, “Our mission is to assure that children at risk of abuse or neglect are protected and nurtured within a family and with the support of the community.”
Matthew Wunsch, Community Support Coordinator, states that being a part of the Prevention Coalition is important to us as it allows us to build relationships within our community; the community that is providing various services to the children and families we work with. Working along with the Prevention Coalition gives us an opportunity to advocate for children and families as new service programs are developed within our community and those that have been around are reviewed to assure maximum efficiency in the delivery of services to families in Ashtabula County; we rely heavily on these services in helping us to assure the safety of children. We thank the Prevention Coalition for allowing us to be a part of this integral group for the benefit of families and children in our county.
