Collecting and analyzing data to measure and verify the effectiveness of services helps organizations make informed policy and practice decisions toward improving outcomes for children and families. The following resources help agencies understand how to work with data to strengthen Child and Family Services Review outcomes.
CSFR Round 3 Statewide Data Indicator Series
Capacity Building Center for States (2017)
Provides information and data on the Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs) indicator, placement stability, providing information for use in quality improvement activities and CFSR trainings to help States better understand data.
- Maltreatment in Foster Care (PDF - 271 KB)
- Recurrence of Maltreatment (PDF - 297 KB)
- Placement Stability (PDF - 230 KB)
- Re-entry to Foster Care (PDF - 229 KB)
- Permanency in 12 Months for Children in Care 24 Months or More (PDF - 220 KB)
- Permanency in 12 Months for Children in Care 12 to 23 Months (PDF - 156 KB)
- Permanency in 12 Months for Children Entering Foster Care (PDF - 174 KB)
A Data-Driven Approach to Service Array Guide (PDF - 530 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2019)
Provides support to administrative leaders in States and other jurisdictions in using data to assess and improve their service array. This guide offers step-by-step guidance and tools to help child welfare agency staff build capacity to work collaboratively across systems to use data to ensure the availability, accessibility, and effectiveness of services to meet the needs of children and families being served.
Data Sharing for Courts and Child Welfare Agencies
Children's Bureau (2018)
Children's Bureau Express, 19(8)
Presents a toolkit to help guide courts and child welfare agencies in their creation of data exchanges between their information systems. The toolkit helps child welfare and court professionals understand the benefits and challenges of data sharing and provides examples of successful systems to learn best practices.
Guide to Data-Driven Decision Making
James Bell Associates (2018)
Explains data-driven decision-making, a process for deciding on a course of action using data as a basis. Examples in the guide include State, local, and nonprofit child-serving organizations funded through the Children's Bureau.
Inventory of Innovations: Data and Child Welfare (PDF - 838 KB)
Capacity Building Center for States (2018)
Presents new approaches to using data applications in the context of child welfare to increase efficiency of information gathering, expand the amount of useful data, and allow agencies to develop a better understanding of the children and families they serve. The brief also addresses considerations for developing and implementing innovative data applications in child welfare.
Inventory of Innovations: Software and Technology
Capacity Building Center for States (2018)
Discusses new software and technologies used in child welfare that allows systems to provide better, more integrated services and cut costs for States and jurisdictions. The brief also explores the impact of the new technologies on the child welfare field.
Look Before You Leap: How a Data Plan Can Help You Dig Deeper Into Your Agency's Needs
Capacity Building Center for States (2018)
Children's Bureau Express, 19(6)
Explains how child welfare agencies can create a comprehensive data plan developed in collaboration with stakeholders to guide data collection and analysis. The components of a comprehensive data plan are listed and links to additional resources are provided.
Service Array Data Inventory Sample Worksheet
Capacity Building Center for States (2019)
Contains examples of questions specific to different service or program areas to help guide the service array assessment process. The worksheet is meant to be used in conjunction with A Data- Driven Approach to Service Array Guide.
Strategies to Promote Research Use in Child Welfare
Children's Bureau (2018)
Children's Bureau Express, 19(4)
Presents information on how agency leaders can better utilize data to inform policy and program design and offers research utilization strategies across several domains to help researchers and organizations develop approaches to inform their decisions.
Using CSFR Data to Inform Program Change
Children's Bureau (2014)
Children's Bureau Express, 15(6)
Explores how States use data from the Child and Family Services Reviews to measure policy effectiveness and consider program changes to improve educational stability.