1. This act is to be administered strictly in accordance with the general principles laid down in this section, which are declared to be the public policy of this State, whereby the safety of children shall be of paramount concern and the best interests of children shall be a primary consideration:

(a) That the preservation and strengthening of family life is a matter of public concern as being in the interests of the general welfare, but the health and safety of the child shall be the State’s paramount concern when making a decision on whether or not it is in the child’s best interest to preserve the family unit;

(b) That the prevention and correction of dependency and delinquency among children should be accomplished so far as practicable through welfare services which will seek to continue the living of the children in their own homes;

(c) That necessary welfare services to children should be strengthened and extended through the development of private and voluntary agencies qualified to provide the services;

(d) That wherever in this State necessary welfare services are not available to children who are dependent or adjudged delinquent by proper judicial tribunal, or in danger of so becoming, then the services should be provided by this State until such times as they are made available by private and voluntary agencies;

(e) That the State may assist private, public, and voluntary agencies to construct, purchase, upgrade, or renovate youth facilities for the residential care or day treatment of children in need of these services; and

(f) That each child placed outside his home by the State has the need for permanency: through return to the child’s own home, if the child can be returned home without endangering the child’s health or safety; through adoption, if family reunification is not possible; or through an alternative permanent placement, if termination of parental rights is not appropriate.

L.1951, c.138, s.1; amended 1979, c.309, s.1; 1999, c.22; 1999, c.53, s.20; 2015, c.255, s.3.