Engaging and involving fathers and other paternal family members is a crucial component of family engagement. However, fathers and paternal family members have been historically overlooked by child welfare agencies and are less likely to be engaged in case planning compared with mothers. Child welfare agencies should focus on creating greater opportunities to partner with them throughout their involvement with the child welfare system so they can better maintain connections with their children and help establish permanency through reunification. The following resources address the engagement of fathers and paternal family members.

Encouraging Attendance and Engagement in Parenting Programs: Developing a Smartphone Application With Fathers, for Fathers
Balu, Lee, & Steimle (2018)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation
Describes the development of a smartphone app for fathers to help boost participation and address the challenges they face with parenting program attendance.

Engaging and Supporting Native Fathers (PDF - 336 KB)
Capacity Building Center for Tribes (2022)
Provides links to selected articles and resources that focus on engaging and supporting Native fathers.

Engaging Fathers
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Head Start Bureau
Provides information and resources to enhance father engagement efforts, including wall posters to create father-friendly environments and a webinar on supporting fathers with the help of communities.

Engaging Fathers and Paternal Relatives: A Continuous Quality Improvement Approach in the Child Welfare System, 2017 - 2023
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation
Presents information about a project to improve strategies and interventions to better engage fathers in the child welfare system. 

Father Engagement and Father Involvement Toolkit
The California Social Work Education Center
Provides a fatherhood engagement toolkit for communities and local organizations that includes engagement and communication tools, assessments, trainings, policies and procedures, and evaluation tools.

The Father Factor: How to Effectively Serve Dads Involved in Child Welfare
Brown (2017)
National Fatherhood Initiative 
Provides resources to help agencies increase the involvement of young fathers in the lives of their children, particularly when these fathers are involved in the child welfare system. The resources touch on topics such as protective factors, coparenting, intimate partner violence, and more.

A Father's Impact on Child Development
Children's Bureau, Inc. (2018)
Examines the specific impacts of father engagement on childhood development and lists 10 important facts related to fatherhood and children. The resource also describes the negative effects of father absence.

How Can Fathers and Other Constituent Leaders Inform Family First and Other System Change Efforts?
Casey Family Programs (2019)
Describes the importance of involving parents, especially fathers, in designing the child welfare system. 

How to Effectively Serve Dads Involved in Child Welfare
Brown (2017)
National Fatherhood Initiative®
Provides resources to help agencies increase the involvement of young fathers in the lives of their children, particularly when these fathers are involved in the child welfare system. The resources touch on topics such as protective factors, coparenting, intimate partner violence, and more.

Resources for Serving Young Fathers (PDF - 1,584 KB)
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, Office of Adolescent Health (2016)
Provides a comprehensive approach for working with young fathers. The toolkit includes a factsheet describing the benefits of positive involvement with children, an assessment and checklist to help make programs more young-father friendly, a workbook with interactive activities to explore fathers' unique challenges and potential, and tips and strategies to recruit and retain young fathers.

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Fathers and Continuous Learning Project

Fathers are important for children’s development and are essential in promoting child safety, permanency, and well-being. Engaging fathers and paternal relatives is a crucial component of family engagement, and the Fathers and Continuous Learning (FCL) project helps to bridge the gap between what we know about the importance of fathers and child welfare practices that may contribute to low levels of father and paternal relative engagement. In partnership with the Office of Family Assistance and the Children’s Bureau, the FCL project shares continuous quality improvement approaches, strategies, and interventions that can increase fathers’ engagement with child welfare.

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