Family work to support school attendance is a service for students in the 4th-9th grades who have serious difficulties with school attendance and have accumulated a lot of absences. We work with the family in their everyday life and cooperate with the school.
Who is the service for, and how can I access it?
The service is intended for children in the 4th–9th grades and their families.
You are eligible for this service if:
- you have accumulated a lot of absences or have stopped going to school entirely
- you are a client of family social work or child welfare services
- your need for health services and other early support measures has been assessed
- support measures provided at school have been tried, but they have not been sufficient.
The child or young person’s designated social worker will assess whether the service is suitable for your family’s needs.
How is the work carried out?
We will support the child and the whole family to make it easier for the child to attend school.
- Generally, you will meet with an employee 1–4 times a week.
- There will be meetings with the child, with the parents and with the whole family together.
- These meetings can take place in the morning to help the child with getting ready for school, or at other times.
Most meetings will take place at your home, but we can also hold meetings at school, at other locations in your local area, and at various offices of the City, such as our office in Herttoniemi.
Together, we will look into the causes of the difficulties with school attendance. We will work with the family and the school to find solutions.
We will assess the need for support together roughly every three months. The provision of support usually continues for 6–12 months.
Our team consists of six social instructors, and the team’s supervisor is the senior social instructor. We will assign a designated social instructor to your family. They will work with the school, your family and other employees.
If you wish, you can view the records we keep via the Maisa portal.