The Adult and Family services cover an ambit of services to meet the needs of service users coming from a lifespan ranging from the 'cradle to the grave', in order to enhance them and their quality of life. These range from Smartkids - a Childcare and Family Support Centre, to Psychological and Family Therapy Services to Domestic Violence Services, the Health Services in Mater Dei and Boffa hospitals, St. Vincent De Paule Residence and Qormi Health Centre. These services support adults as individuals, and if such is the case, as parents; as well as contribute to the psycho-social and physical development of children, which work towards strengthening the family unit and the home environment.

Adults and children who pass through traumatic and stressful experiences are helped by the Agency through the Psychological Services. Alongside this, the Agency understands that no one lives in a vacuum, and therefore supportive networks need to be strengthened in order to assist individuals and families in improving their quality of life. Family Therapy Service is a therapeutic milieu offered by APPOGG to various families, parents and their children, facing difficult and stressful situations in their life, to work towards and sustain a healthy family life. In the case where there is violence in the family, the Domestic Violence Services offer support and social work intervention to victims of abuse and their children. Where necessary, shelter is provided. There is also a Perpetrators' Service which offers therapeutic services for perpetrators of domestic violence. Domestic Violence Services aim and contribute towards creating awareness in this sensitive area of work. The promotion of a 'zero tolerance to violence' ranks high on the Agency's agenda.

APPOGG is also sought by other entities for the provision of social work services in other Departments. Of particular importance are the services that APPOGG offers to the Health Department, namely Mater Dei Hospital, Boffa Hospital and Qormi Health Centre. Social work services are also offered to St Vincent de Paule Residence. The Health Services have been developed so as to ensure holistic quality of care for adults and children in hospital and primary care settings, and the elderly in residential settings.

Another area of social work intervention by APPOGG is within the are of Human Trafficking, in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Malta Police Force and the Ministry for Social Policy for the provision of social support services in cases of potential victims of human trafficking. Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery, considered as one of the largest criminal industries in the world, and the fastest growing. Victims of human trafficking are young children, teenagers, men and women. They are subject to force, fraud, or coercion, for the purpose of sexual exploitation or forced labour.

Many victims of human trafficking are forced to work in prostitution, drug dealing or the sex entertainment industry. But trafficking also occurs in forms of labour exploitation, such as domestic servitude. restaurant work, janitorial work, factory work and migrant agricultural work.

Traffickers use various techniques to instill fear in victims and keep them enslaved. Some traffickers keep their victims undr lock and key. Victims might have no contact with outsiders and making sure that any contact is monitored or superficial in nature; be isolated from family members and members of their ethnic and religous community; have their passports, visas and/or identification documents confiscated; be subject to threat or violence; threatened to be imprisoned or deported for immigration violations if they contact authorities and might also have their money controlled.

In line with the MOU, the Malta Police Force will inform the Ministry for Social Policy about each case of human trafficking which potentially will require social assistance. In such cases, the Ministry will provide social support through professional social work intervention, in which social workers will interview, assess, counsel and provide support to the potential victims. For a leaflet on Human Trafficking click here.

The Adult and Family services strive to work in an integrated manner with Children's and Community and Generic Services in order to provide holistic services to our service users, and enable them to meet their complex and challenging needs.