The City Council of Madrid has agreed in the Governing Board to continue the SERCAF-Children program, the municipal resource that responds to the needs of reconciliation and support for families with children who are in social intervention processes in Social Services. As reported by the deputy mayor and municipal spokesperson, Inma Sanz, the City Council has approved allocating 7.9 million euros to the new management contract for this service, which provides families with support for children in their travels to school or socio-educational centers, home care in situations of risk or crisis, and support in the personal care of children and adolescents.
Through SERCAF-Children, the City Council offers a professional intervention of a temporary nature to families in situations of social need, with the aim of promoting their autonomy and inclusion. It is a personalized service, tailored to the demands of each family, and with the family home as the reference intervention space, either because the service is provided entirely there or because it starts or ends there. This uniqueness adds value, ensuring the well-being and safety of the children and the peace of mind of the parents in their absence.
Specifically, user families can access the reconciliation service, which includes personal care actions for minors and accompaniment in individual and collective trips; family support service, which allows a professional to come to the home in case of a crisis (such as the illness and hospitalization of a parent) or a program to detect early possible situations of vulnerability in families that may affect the proper development of minors.
Target Population
The service, promoted by the Department of Social Policies, Family, and Equality, is provided in the 21 districts of the city and is aimed at families with children under 18 years of age who are in one or more of the following situations:
- With the need for work-family reconciliation, either because they are working or actively seeking employment; limited financial means, lack of support network, and when parents, due to their work schedules, do not have sufficient availability for the care and attention of their children.
- At social risk, needing support to learn domestic and personal organization skills that lead to adequate coverage of the needs of children. Also to promote socio-educational support for minors from vulnerable families.
- With difficulties and limitations in the development of their parenting functions, either because raising children presents special characteristics or behavioral difficulties, or because the family situation requires it.
- Going through particularly difficult or crisis situations that may jeopardize the care and upbringing system, temporarily exceeding the response capacity of parents or their family resources, such as the hospitalization of a parent or guardian and/or their serious illnesses.
- With unmet social needs going through situations of social difficulty or possible risk to the children and requiring temporary support in the role of care and attention, as well as in household tasks when necessary, always promoting the acquisition of skills for family organization and healthy habits.
More than 1,100 beneficiary families in 2024
During 2024, a total of 3,824 people, belonging to 1,176 different families, were served through this program. In particular, 1,616 minors were intervened, with a predominant age range of 7 to 9 years (33%) and 10 to 12 years (30%). The most common profile of households requesting the service is that of a single-parent family where the female parent needs support for the reconciliation of family and work life. Each beneficiary family received an average of 128 hours of support last year, and each child received an average of 93 hours.
The City Council of Madrid launched the SERCAF-Children service in 2021, and the new management contract authorized by the Governing Board on Thursday foresees a period of execution from September 2025 to August 2027, with the possibility of a 36-month extension. /
