Countywide : Nonprofit Groups to Fill Social Service Gap

Nearly $600,000 in federal and state grants will go to four nonprofit community groups that will provide family preservation services such as language instruction, counseling and parenting-training courses under a distribution approved Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors. County officials said the groups will help fill the void left earlier this year when the board made significant cuts in the social services budget after last year’s county bankruptcy filing.

The new programs also mark a further attempt by the county to have the private sector provide services, officials said.

The four groups are in Huntington Beach, Tustin, Westminster and Santa Ana. They consist of several private and public organizations, including school districts, police departments, youth clubs and churches, that will work to identify and assist families in need.