Florence Family Centre Inaugurated at the Istituto degli Innocenti

Florence today welcomes an important new initiative in support of families: the inauguration of the Centro Famiglie Firenze (Florence Family Centre), the result of a collaboration between the Municipality of Florence, the Società della Salute di Firenze (Florence Health Society), and the Istituto degli Innocenti. The Centre - named Centro Famiglie Firenze and also supported by the Tuscany Region as part of pilot projects involving the Regional Documentation Centre for Childhood and Adolescence - is designed to coordinate a range of interventions to meet the diverse needs of families, through the integration of social, educational, psycho-pedagogical, and healthcare services.

The Centre was inaugurated this morning at the Istituto degli Innocenti, in Piazza Santissima Annunziata, in the presence of the Tuscan Regional Councillor for Social Policies, Serena Spinelli, the Councillor for Welfare, Hospitality and Integration of the Municipality of Florence and President of the Florence Health Society, Nicola Paulesu, and the Chairwoman of the Institute, Maria Grazia Giuffrida.

The Centro Famiglie Firenze, a space for participation, relationship-building, and strengthening of family and social bonds, is organised across two main locations:

• the Istituto degli Innocenti, where families can access a walk-in information desk, guidance and counselling services, the Crescere Insieme (Growing Together) programme for parenting support, Bambinial Centro (Children at the Centre), a family mediation service for couples experiencing high levels of conflict, focused on safeguarding the psychological and physical well-being of children, as well as spaces for workshops and group meetings;
• the headquarters of the Municipality of Florence in via Palazzuolo, where families can access the services of the fostering centre, the adoption centre, the family mediation service, speech groups for parents and children, counselling activities, seminars and support for single women or mothers who are victims of violence.

The Istituto degli Innocenti provides an ideal setting for developing the activities of the Centro Famiglie Firenze, as it is already frequented by numerous families thanks to the wide range of services it offers, such as the educational services of the Polo 0-6 Innocenti (the 0-6 Innocenti Centre for Childhood), the residential communities, the child protection conferences, the Crescere Insieme programme and the Bambini al Centro family mediation service.

Inside the Istituto degli Innocenti, the Centre occupies an area of approximately 143 square metres, recently renovated and equipped thanks to a substantial investment made by the Institute. This investment was also supported by resources received from private individuals through bequests and donations. The space, located near the Institute’s garden, adjacent to the Local Health Authority’s Consultorio (Family Counselling Centre), includes:

• A reception room, an information point manned by specialised operators;
• A room for family mediation meetings and counselling;
• Two rooms dedicated to protection conferences, arranged to welcome children and their parents, and equipped with play areas and settings that facilitate relationships;
• Outside, but adjacent to the other areas, a space with direct access from the inner courtyard and the Institute garden, which will be used for group activities with adults and children.

The establishment of the Centro Famiglie Firenze stems from the 2012 National Family Plan, which defined the Family Centre as a physical place managed in collaboration with the networks of associations in order to meet the needs of families in the local community. The increase in material and socio-relational fragility has prompted the Department for Family Policies of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers to support the Regions, through the National Fund for Family Policies, when setting up and developing these Centres. The Tuscany Region is committed, also through the Regional Documentation Centre for Childhood and Adolescence, to supporting and monitoring its development in the region.

The Chairwoman of the Istituto degli Innocenti, Maria Grazia Giuffrida, expressed her gratitude to “the Tuscany Region, the Municipality of Florence and the Società della Salute di Firenze for having collaborated with commitment and dedication to achieve this important goal. Together, we want to send a strong message of care and support to the families of our city so that every parent and every family feels welcomed with care and professionalism. The Family Centre we are inaugurating today therefore aims to become an important reference point for parents, children and all those who need support in the complex but wonderful world of family life. We are convinced that families are the pillar of our society, and that is why we intend to offer them tangible means of support”.

"Our institution,” commented Sabrina Breschi, General Director of the Istituto degli Innocenti, “could not help but enthusiastically embrace the call from the Tuscany Region. In fact, at our headquarters in the centre of Florence, there is already a rich array of services and activities aimed precisely at providing support, assistance and care to children, parents and families. Today's inauguration seals a centuries-old commitment and strengthens our role as a key point of reference in the region. We are confident that, thanks to the collaboration with the Municipality of Florence and the Società della Salute, this project will contribute significantly to the well-being and harmonious growth of families, enhancing relationships and the role of parenting”.

For more information: Piazza SS. Annunziata 12 - Tel. +39 (0)55/2037150 or centrofamiglie@istitutodeglinnocenti.it