This report summarizes findings from a number of research reports relevant to the theme of Australian National Child Protection Week 2016 “Stronger Communities, Safer Children”. Key messages are shared from research on building safe and supportive families and communities for children in Australia, building safe and supportive families and communities for Indigenous children in Australia, and what children value in their communities and what changes children would like to see in their communities. A paper on the concept of community capacity is also summarized, as well as a paper that applies…
The Alabama Department of Child Abuse Prevention (DCAP) -- The Children's Trust Fund (CTF) has a more than 25 year history as the only state agency explicitly focused on educating our communities about child abuse and neglect and providing prevention programs. DCAP is focused on supporting family-strengthening community programs andinvesting upfront in efforts to enhance the chance that children in our state grow up in a nurturing and supportive home. A 2007 study by the Universityof Alabama revealed that child abuse and neglect costs taxpayers $520,800,290 every year.In Project Year 2007-…
This action plan reviews both federal and state barriers to identifying and serving children of incarcerated parents, and offers policy recommendations for the U.S. Congress and the Administration. The action plan is designed to help federal leaders improve policies for children of incarcerated parents, but also includes recommendations of value to states and local governments that can facilitate and complement federal initiatives and result in better responses to this population. (Author abstract)
Launched in 2005, the Illinois Integrated Assessment (IA) process is designed to provide better information about child and family strengths, support systems, and service needs. In this study, we examine the extent to which fathers -- stepfathers, putative fathers, legal fathers, adoptive fathers, or biological fathers -- were interviewed as a part of the IA process and the factors associated with fathers being interviewed. An analysis of over 9,000 completed IA cases indicates that when both parents were interviewed as part of the IA, children were significantly more likely to be reunified…
Through this issue brief, young people who are in, or have been in, foster care offer their insights and aspirations to help guide the actions of child welfare systems as they seek to provide more normal experiences for these youth. The brief begins by explaining new provisions in the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act that promote normalcy, including the requirement for States to implement a “reasonable and prudent parent” standard that allows caregivers to make more daily decisions for young people in their care; a mandate that child welfare systems engage all young…
Early childhood home visiting programs typically target pregnant women and mothers of young children, but increasing attention is being given to the practice of engaging fathers as well. This study aimed to understand how home visiting programs engage fathers, what fathers’ experiences are in those programs, and the perceived benefits of fathers’ participation. Qualitative interviews were conducted with home visiting program administrators, staff members, and participating fathers and mothers in five programs implementing strategies to engage fathers in home visiting services. The findings…
Until communities offer multiple pathways to connect with ladders of opportunity, many young families headed by out-of-school and out-of-work (OSOW) youth will be unable to achieve financial independence. To break the cycle of poverty, many human service organizations use two-generation approaches with "young families" (that is, families with children in which the parent is an OSOW young person ages 15-24 years). One hallmark of these two-generation approaches is the use of strategies that address the developmental needs of the young parents, their children, and the families as a whole. The…
This toolkit provides information and resources to assist stakeholders in incorporating domestic violence and child maltreatment awareness into service provision, including information that will increase service provider's understanding of these issues and will also help them identify other beneficial resources or referrals in the community that may support their efforts to institute healthy relationship policies and practices. (Author abstract)
The Sure Start Plus pilot program was implemented in England to target support services to teen parents. The initiative was intended to reduce social isolation and improve parenting skills, health care, housing opportunities, and child care. Through a variety of models, Sure Start Plus offered individual advisors, advocacy, group therapy, and parenting classes. This executive summary presents an overview of the program and highlights the findings of an evaluation. The review indicated that crisis services, parenting activities, and health assistance were successful in helping the young women…
This study documents that nonresident fathers of children in foster care are not often involved in case planning efforts and nearly half are never contacted by the child welfare agency during their child's stay in foster care. By not reaching out to fathers, caseworkers may overlook potential social connections and resources that could help to achieve permanency for the child. A total of 1,222 local agency caseworkers were interviewed by phone about 1,958 specific cases between October 2004 and February 2005 to examine front-line practices related to nonresident fathers. Interviewers achieved…
