An Innovative Relationship Paradigm among Families, Communities, and Welfare Actors in Cities to Prevent Social Inequality

A global and growing process of urbanization is underway also in Italy. This process goes hand in hand with the seemingly unstoppable phenom- enon of poverty. This makes it urgent to reflect on the welfare paradigms that can guarantee the rights and collective responses to the developmental needs of children. This can be done through innovative forms of parental participation in interventions to accompany the growth processes of chil- dren in vulnerable situations. Beginning with a theoretical reading of some data on this phenomenon, the article proposes an excursus on the links between parenting, poverty and those forms of welfare in cities that are capable of generating social ties between children, families, and different actors in the community. In this regard, reference is made to the service infrastructure made available through the national implementation experience of P.I.P.P.I. The stakes are high: preventing the impact of these adversities on chil- dren’s growth is an action that is nowadays recognized as a major way to prevent poverty and promote social justice.