Residential Shelter Program

Service Description

The Unidos por Cristo Residential Shelter has been operating for over 20 years, authorized by the local municipality and registered with the National Ministry of Children and Adolescents, as well as with Seprelad (National Secretariat for the Prevention of Money Laundering), the Treasury Attorney's Office, the Ministry of Health, and other relevant agencies. Our Residential Shelter program provides care for children and adolescents separated from their families and/or communities due to violations of their rights, which force them to endure various traumatic situations. They are referred to our shelter by court order from different judicial districts throughout the country. Currently, the shelter houses 70 children and adolescents under the Residential Shelter model. Those of school age attend the on-site educational center from preschool through third grade, and there is also a literacy program for adolescents who enter the shelter with no formal education within the community. Upon completion of these grades, they pursue higher education and/or university studies. The home's infrastructure, in its early days, was divided into pavilions, one for girls and one for boys. Given the type of care the home offered and considering the new regulations for alternative care for children and adolescents in foster care programs and shelters, modifications began in January 2016, changing the care model from institutional to residential. This was done so that the children and adolescents would live under the care of a family figure. Furthermore, considering the length of stay for the children and adolescents and the lack of family relationships due to the absence of efforts to maintain these bonds, a multidisciplinary technical team was established at the home. This team undertakes the work of maintaining these bonds, getting to know the families of the children and adolescents living in the home. Their aim is to foster relationships with these families, if conditions are favorable, and to report each situation encountered during this process to the relevant court.