Strengthening Families
The Children’s Rights Council (CRC) was incorporated in 1985 to ensure that children have continuing meaningful interactions with both of their parents regardless of their parents’ marital status.
Providing Access, Working for Reform
CRC is constantly working towards strengthening families, encouraging laws and public options that enforce the sentiment behind the statement “The Best Parent is Both Parents.”
It is the mission of CRC to reduce the emotional, physical, and financial suffering of children that can be caused by growing up without both parents. This can be achieved through:
- Providing access services to help interactions between non-custodial parents and their children
- Advocating for custody reform
Our Advocacy and Our Access Centers
The Children's Rights Council’s (CRC) main goal is to ensure that children have the active involvement of both parents in their lives, regardless of the parents’ marital status. CRC accomplishes this through advocacy and operating access centers.
CRC works for all children and parents. This is why we advocate amending our national social policy and state statutes to reflect sensitive family and child custody laws. One way we have made important change is working with the courts to offer Safe Haven Access Centers. Instead of one parent and the “winner takes all” doctrine of the past, we believe in “shared parenting” that offers proper access and visitation to both parents; even if that access must be supervised. In situations where parents have a history of high conflict, CRC can arrange for private neutral drop-off and pick-up or offer convenient and continuous supervised access (visitation) time.
Supervised Visitation and Peaceful Transfer of Custody
These access centers allow for supervised visitation and the peaceful transfer of custody between parents. CRC operates child access centers in partnership with community & faith-based organizations in Maryland to provide neutral drop-off and pick-up of children, and supervised access (visitation). Whether a chapter or center, all CRC operations are dedicated to helping children by promoting family formation, reducing divorce and strengthening families through custody reform; parental mediation and training; conciliation and access; parental educational support systems; legislative revision and court briefs to lessen the occurrence and effects of divorce and relationship breakups among parents in conflict.
A Knowledge Center
By guiding, informing, and coordinating alternative options for parents, educators, health and human service professionals, faith-based counselors, legislators, and the public at-large, CRC is able to help reduce divorce and strengthen families through custody reform; parental mediation and training; conciliation and access; parental financial and educational support systems; legislative revision and court briefs.