The Caribbean Development Bank’s (CDB) Basic Needs Trust Fund (BNTF) and Prime Minister of Jamaica, the Honourable Andrew Holness, officially handed over Jamaica’s first therapeutic centre for children in state care. The value of the centre is J$202 million. The centre now belongs to the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA).
The Therapeutic Centre is located at the Maxfield Park Children’s Home in St. Andrew. The centre will meet the need for a facility to deliver effective screening, assessment and therapeutic treatment for children exhibiting behavioural challenges.
“The Children’s Therapeutic Treatment Centre is a state-of-the-art facility that will provide vital services such as residential inpatient programmes, a day treatment program and outpatient counselling and psychotherapy services to children with special needs and their families from all parishes,” said CDB’s Vice President, Operations, Mr Isaac Solomon.
“The Centre is equipped with the latest technologies and will be staffed by highly trained professionals who are dedicated to providing the best possible care for their young patients,” he said while adding that the BNTF had also financed the training of 27 social workers in Clinical Social work and another 161 Caregivers from 48 State homes island-wide in First Aid, Fire Safety, Supervision Management, Conflict Management and Basic Counselling Skills.
Overall, the project will benefit 4,491 Jamaican children in child protection placement facilities such as children’s homes, places of safety, and foster care, as well as youngsters in need of psychosocial or mental health intervention. Additionally, 16,000 children and/or families who access the services of the CPFSA annually will also benefit. The BNTF financed J$116,280,688.68 of the overall cost, while the CPFSA contributed J $85,820,544.13. BNTF provided the funds to the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF), which implemented the project.
