PCHAS New Orleans Child & Family

Throughout our 123-year history, Presbyterian Children's Homes and Services (PCHAS) has worked with children and families, providing a comprehensive array of child welfare, early intervention, and family preservation programs. 

The PCHAS New Orleans Child & Family (C&F) Program works with any family living in one of our Orleans-area parishes: Orleans, Jefferson, St. Bernard, and Plaquemines, with the majority of C&F Program clients living in Orleans parish. 

This in-home family preservation program, led by master’s degree social workers, stabilizes families experiencing a crisis such as poverty, abuse, neglect or homelessness.

The Program specifically focuses on serving ALICE neighborhoods within these parishes—communities where residents are Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed (ALICE), meaning they earn above the federal poverty level but still struggle to afford basic household necessities like housing, childcare, food, transportation, and healthcare. These ALICE neighborhoods include Algiers, Behrman, Belle Chasse, Central City, City Park, Desire Gentilly, Holly Grove, Iberville, Iris Channel, Lake Forest, Lakeview, Metairie, Read, St. Bernard, St. Roch, Tulane, Uptown, and Westbank.

In FY2024, 5,797 children in the 4 parishes were investigated by Louisiana Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS) for suspected abuse or neglect. Of these, 982 were confirmed victims. Jefferson Parish had the highest number of children investigated among the four parishes, 2,896. 

But the confirmed cases tell only part of the story.

The remaining 4,815—83% of those investigated—were not confirmed as victims. These families were flagged by the system, investigated, and then released without ongoing prevention services. They remain at risk. The state system is designed to respond to crisis after harm has occurred, not to prevent it.

This is the gap our program fills.

The PCHAS Child & Family Program directly addresses this critical need by partnering with at-risk families in four parishes, Jefferson, Orleans, St. Bernard, and Plaquemines, —building on family strengths, connecting them to resources, and creating protective factors that help children thrive in safe, nurturing homes.

Families in these parishes show remarkable resilience in the face of challenges such as poverty, housing instability, and limited access to resources—difficulties that, without support, can contribute to child maltreatment.

By building parental resilience and reinforcing safe, stable routines, our program helps prevent future maltreatment and supports children remaining safely at home (Louisiana Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS), 2024). Using Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI®), our Specialist also helps children who have experienced adversity develop healthy relationships and pathways to healing. Many families describe our program as a lifeline during their most challenging moments.