Note for agencies seeking inclusion: If you read these criteria and decide that your program fits our database, go to 2-1-1 VIRGINIA and enter your agency through the website. You may also dial 2-1-1 to contact a database management team member to assist you.
Disclaimer: 2-1-1 VIRGINIA database does not endorse, rate, or recommend particular human services. We endeavor to give our consumers access to updated, accurate information about services, but maintain that the consumer is in the best position to evaluate these services.
The following criteria for 2-1-1 VIRGINIA follow the standard practices set forth by the Alliance of Information & Referral Systems, Inc. (AIRS).
The agency/service provider must provide a human service. Human services are defined as: The activities of human services professionals which help people become more self-sufficient, sustain independence, strengthen family relationships, support personal and social development and ensure the well- being of individuals, families, groups and communities. Specific human services include ensuring that people have access to adequate food, shelter, clothing and transportation; financial resources to meet their needs; consumer education and decision support; criminal justice or legal services; education and employment; health and mental health care, including substance abuse services; and environmental protection, both routinely and in times of disaster or other emergencies. Human services also facilitate the capabilities of people to care for children or other dependents; ensure that protective services are available to those who are vulnerable; provide for the support of older adults and people with disabilities; offer social, faith-based, and leisure time activities; provide for the cultural enrichment of the community; and ensure that people have the information they need to fully participate in community life.
NOTE: From the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems (AIRS) as adapted from the definition of "Social Work" in the Dictionary of Social Work published by the National Association of Social Workers.
The agency/service provider must serve the residents of Virginia. The agency/service provider must have been in existence more than six months in order to indicate a degree of permanence. This criterion may be suspended when either:
The agency/service provider may be either government or non-profit. For-profit organizations and unincorporated groups meeting critical human service needs shall also be included.
If a database manager has reservations with including an agency in the 2-1-1 VIRGINIA database, they shall confer with their Center Director who will make the final decision. The Database Management Team (database managers and the statewide database coordinator) can be included, if needed, in the decision process.
If a program is found ineligible for listing in the database, the Center Director will inform the service provider of the decision. Notification shall be in writing, with a brief statement of the reason for ineligibility and the appeals process, within 30 days from the service providers submission of program information.
2-1-1 VIRGINIA shall have an appeal process in place. Service providers must request an appeal hearing in writing no later than 30 days from the date of denial. A representative of the excluded agency will be allowed to meet with the Center Director to present the service providers case. The Database Management Team may be included in this meeting if needed.
To eliminate misunderstandings where exclusion is contested, 2-1-1 VIRGINIA shall add a notice on each survey or update form stating that 2-1-1 VIRGINIA may exclude or remove an agency for any reason - inclusion is a privilege, not a right.
Agencies and services included in the 2-1-1 VIRGINIA database are required to maintain up-to-date listings. Ideally, the service provider will provide updated information in response to an annual update request. If reasonable attempts to contact a service provider prove unsuccessful, the service and/or agency may be removed from the database without further notice.
The Database Management Team of 2-1-1 VIRGINIA shall review these criteria at a minimum annually.
2-1-1 Virginia is brought to you by the Virginia Department of Social Services in partnership with:
Council of Community Services • The Planning Council • United Way of Central Virginia •
United Way of Greater Richmond & Petersburg • VAIRS
P.O. Box 598, Roanoke, VA 24004
