Prevention of parental care loss: development and implementation of social services for crisis families

The article deals with the process of designing and implementing of social services for families with children in difficult life situations (family in crisis). The author analyzes official statistical data, results of empirical study of the opinions of social services recipients - parents of the crisis families - about the nature and quality of social assistance. It is established that the child protection system is mostly reactive with the dominant approach of early institutionalization of children. Transactions of the trusteeship system and the system of family support services have non-reciprocating and discrete nature. Basing on the analysis the author formulates guidelines aimed at the efficiency improvement of the national system of children protection.