Centro de Referência da Assistência Social - CRAS: retrato da proteção social básica no município de Portalegre/RN

Abstract

This paper addresses the provision of essential social protection in the city of Portalegre, Rio Grande do Norte through the city's Social Assistance Reference Center (SARC). in order to deepen the discussion on the insertion and professional practice of the social worker in this socio-occupational space. The methodology of the work included a survey and literature review from which we sought to analyze trajectory of the Social Assistance Policy bibliographical review was made to achieve deepen the Basic Social Protection, highlighting the implementation of the Reference Centers and the Services offered by it: Coexistence and Bond Strengthening Service, and Protection Service and Extensive Family Assistance. A documental analysis was also accomplished from the reading of institutional documents. The documents were obtained from the Municipal Department of Labor, Housing and Social Assistance, aiming to create a socio-historical context of the municipality, highlighting the creation of SARC when implementing the Social Assistance Policy. There was also a survey of data from observations made during the experience of a mandatory internship in one of the Municipal Social Assistance Reference Centers from February to April 2021. This allowed the analysis of essential protection services and the Social Worker practice within the institution. This paper identified that the Reference Center offers essential social protection services despite some challenges, such as precarious working conditions and difficulties facing the social work practice. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they had to reinvent themselves to achieve their goals with users. This study seeks to contribute to future research subjects since there were no academic papers regarding the social assistance policy in Portalegre city.