The primary objective of the program is to assess the needs of the child, help to stabilize and offer alternatives as the primary means of service provision. The client profile for this project is of girls up to 16 years of age involved in or at risk of prostitution and with or without Child Welfare status.
The underlying premise of the provision of service is for the client to choose how she will be involved and to centre upon the client's needs and individual circumstances regardless of past behaviour with other agencies. A child could be self referred or referred by other agencies, but may primarily be referred to the program by Calgary Police Services.
A child may stay in this program a few hours or several weeks and/or months depending upon their individual circumstances. The idea is to provide for safe alternatives for children by offering a client centred focus. The objective is for the client group to make significant connections with helping agencies and move beyond the cycle of running away to the street, being briefly apprehended and then re-entering the street life.
The day-to-day interactions among the agencies will provide for the emergent needs of the clients by using the existing linkages of the agencies involved.
