BAYS Family Connections (Functional Family Therapy)

These services are achieved thanks to the support of our sponsors: LSF Health Systems, Community Partnership for Children, Children's Network of Hillsborough, Orange County, Partnership for Child Health, Central Florida Cares and The State of Florida, Department of Children and Families.

                                               Click here to access our Meet our Funders page for more info.

Please, see below to access our BFC Brochure:

• BFC Brochure

‍Please, see below list to access our referrals forms:

• Osceola and Brevard
• Orlando
• Jacksonville
• Hillsborough
• Gainesville
• Volusia

Program Philosophy

BAYS Family Connections (BFC) believes that every family is capable of healing, growth, and resilience—no matter the challenges they face. Through Functional Family Therapy (FFT), we walk hand in hand with families, offering not just guidance, but unwavering support, understanding, and hope.

When youth struggle, their entire family feels the weight of that hardship. That’s why our approach is rooted in compassion, acceptance, and respect, meeting families where they are with open hearts and without judgment. We see their strengths, honor their experiences, ensure that they feel like experts in their lives, and help them rebuild connections that foster love, trust, and healing.

We empower families with the tools to navigate life’s difficulties and create lasting change.  More than just an intervention is a promise—a promise to stand by families in their most vulnerable moments, to lift them up with kindness and expertise, and to help them move toward a future filled with hope, stability, and love.

Program Description

BAYS Family Connections (BFC) is a compassionate and strength-based program that provides Functional Family Therapy (FFT), designed to support families through life’s challenges with understanding, empathy, and care. FFT is a short-term evidence-based intervention that typically lasts 12 to 14 sessions over three to five months, aimed at helping youth, ages 10-18, who are struggling with behavioral or emotional challenges. These youth are often referred by the juvenile justice, mental health, school, or child welfare systems. Our services are offered in flexible settings—both clinical and home environments, as well as schools, child welfare facilities, probation and parole offices, and mental health centers—ensuring that care is provided where it is needed most. FFT has also been vetted by the Title IV-E Prevention Clearinghouse and has been rated as Well-Supported.

At the heart of FFT is a strength-based approach and foundation of acceptance, respect, and compassion. We approach every family with the understanding that change is a journey, and that each family has unique strengths. By focusing on the resilience of both the youth and their family, we offer a pathway to healing, fostering growth in a way that respects their dignity and empowers them to face challenges with confidence. Resilience is key: we work with families to recognize their inherent strength, develop coping strategies, and build the tools needed to navigate difficult situations, ensuring long-lasting positive change.

At its core, the FFT model focuses on assessment and intervention that addresses the risks and protective factors that influence a youth’s development, providing a compassionate, holistic approach that looks at the entire family system. The five core components of FFT—engagement, motivation, relational assessment, behavior change, and generalization—are designed to build strong, healthy relationships between youth and their families. Each component is tailored to meet the needs of the family, with a focus on understanding, connection, and the fostering of new, positive behaviors.

Through FFT, families are not only supported in the present but also empowered with the resilience and skills to create lasting change, ensuring a brighter future for the youth and the family as a whole. By partnering with families and providing the right guidance and support, BFC helps each family member see the strength within themselves and each other, leading to sustained success in overcoming challenges.

Program Goals  

1. We help families heal, reconnect, and grow through open communication, trust, and mutual understanding, providing the tools and support for lasting change. 

2. Every young person deserves to be seen, heard, and supported. We help youth build resilience and skills to navigate challenges and find hope for the future. 

3. True healing happens in safe, familiar spaces. Our in-home and community-based approach ensures families get the care they need in a comfortable, accessible environment. 

4. Conflict can be overwhelming, but through Functional Family Therapy (FFT), we help rebuild relationships, repair trust, and create peaceful home environments. 

5. Every child deserves a stable, loving home. We address risk factors and strengthen family dynamics to prevent separation and promote reunification. 

6. We help families access mental health, substance use, and community resources, ensuring they’re never alone on their healing journey. 

7. Every family is unique, and so is their path to healing. We tailor interventions to honor each family’s strengths, values, and potential. 

8. We empower families with tools, confidence, and resilience to thrive long after services end, helping them create a hopeful, brighter future together. 

Provision of Services 

·       Target at-risk youth ages 10-18 and their families (must have caretaker) 

·       Focuses on family relations and communication; builds on strengths as motivation for         change 

·       Homebased intervention 

·       10-12 cases per therapist

·       Phases of Treatment: Engagement &Motivation, Behavior Change and Generalization

·       Weekly Team Supervision

·       Length of treatment: 3 to 5 months

         -   12-16sessions for moderate cases  

          -  26-30sessions for more serious cases 

Supportive Services Offered  

Individualized Behavior Plans 

Safety Planning 

Individualized Assessment and Intervention

Strength-Based Therapeutic Approach

Flexible Service Delivery

Behavior and Mood Management 

Community Support and Advocacy 

Comprehensive and Extended Family Support  

Population Served

Youth and families that are eligible for funded services, at risk of entering the child welfare or juvenile justice system; or at risk for out of home placement with youth’s behaviors identified by referring entity as a factor affecting the youth’s safety and placement status.

·       Priority Services Provided to:

                   o Youth with anti-social behavior

                   o Aggressive, conduct disorder

                   o Drug Use, school behavior referrals

                   o Truanting and drop-out

                   o Family Conflict

Admission Criteria: (included but not limited to)

1.    Inclusion Criteria

                   a. 10 to 18 years old

                   b. In community or ready to go into the community

                   c. Family available

                   d.  Youth is returning to family

                   e.  Inclusionary referral behaviors include externalizing

                       behaviors, internalizing symptoms, and/or substance abuse.

2.    Exclusion Criteria

                 a.  Youth 9 years of age or below (as primary referral)

                 b.  Nonshared sense of future amongst youth and caregiver  

                 c.  Youth who have no psycho-social system that constitutes

                      family (shared history, sense of future, some level of co-habitation)

                 d. Youth is scheduled to be sent away from family.

                 e. Sexual Offenders.

                 f. Youth with current acute psychosis.

                 g. Youth that present with severe psychiatric illness (I.E., active ideation).

Duration

BFC will serve each family for approximately 12 to 14 sessions over three to five months, delivered in settings that best meet each family's needs, such as homes, schools, or community centers to best meet each family's needs and to reinforce progress and address any emerging challenges.

Recognizing that the journey to positive change is ongoing, families can request additional booster sessions after completing the initial therapy. These booster sessions offer additional support to help empower families maintain confidence and build upon the positive changes achieved during the program.

Transition from Program

As families approach the conclusion of their journey with BAYS Family Connections (BFC), the focus shifts to ensuring a smooth transition from structured therapy to independent family life. Aftercare services are established 2-3 weeks prior to the last session. During this process, the youth, family, and therapist identify potential resources to ensure continued support and success after the termination of BFC services. If the youth and family are engaged with other service providers or community-based resources, the therapist will notify those parties of the upcoming discharge ensuring that families feel confident in maintaining their progress.

Once any recommendations for future service needs for the family are addressed, the therapist, youth, and family collaborate to complete a Relapse Prevention Plan. The Relapse Prevention Plan is a comprehensive document that outlines the family's success, skills taught, warning signs for conflict, and contact information for any aftercare recommendations made. This tool is designed to empower the family to continue utilizing the skills taught following discharge from the BFC program. It also allows therapists to work collaboratively with families to apply the positive changes and skills they've developed to real-world situations beyond the therapy environment.

To support sustained success, BFC offers booster sessions as needed, providing families with additional guidance and reinforcement of key skills. These sessions are designed to address any emerging challenges and to strengthen the family's resilience as they navigate future obstacles. By the end of the program, families are not only equipped with practical tools but also empowered with a renewed sense of hope and connection, ready to face life's challenges together with confidence and compassion.

‍