Collaboration
Redefined
Partners for Children South L.A. (PCSLA) is a collaborative effort of 40+ health and human services organizations that partner to provide links to services and cross-agency care coordination for children from birth through 5 years and their families.
Partner Agencies
40
Individuals Served
14,000
The mission of Partners for Children South L.A. (PCSLA) is to improve access to high-quality healthcare, early education, and family supports for the youngest and most vulnerable children in South Los Angeles.
We Started
by Listening
In 2009, when visionary foundation funders asked us to go out there and build a system of care, we answered with a resounding yes! From the get-go, we knew that to be successful, it had to be driven by community needs versus organizational priorities. The first thing we did was convene a series of parent forums involving community residents. Through the feedback we gathered in those forums, we were able to design and build a system that is truly responsive to the community. We’re confident that embracing community-centered design is a key reason we have such a high success rate.
Out of Many, One System of Care
We started on a small scale, learned along the way, and launched our Early Childhood System of Care in 2013. Today, we have grown to nine full-time staff and more than 40 highly respected, carefully vetted partner agencies serving over 14,000+ individuals.
Our evolution: During the first few years, with just one staff member and seven partner agencies, we developed new ways to help parents and caregivers access, connect with, and benefit from the social service agencies in one of Los Angeles County’s most underserved regions, Service Planning Area 6 (SPA 6).
Many children and families in SPA 6 have complex needs that require the services of multiple agencies. It was imperative that our unique System of Care help families more easily navigate the complex array of agencies and service organizations to meet their unique needs.
We brought together community providers that had never before worked with each other. These organizations agreed to a shared vision, shared tools and to committing their own resources to help transform the lives of South L.A. children and families.
