Children, youth, and families are key stakeholders in evaluating the effectiveness of child welfare agencies, including the assessment phase of the Child and Family Services Review (CFSR) process and the development, implementation, and evaluation of State Program Improvement Plans (PIPs). The following resources provide guidance for ensuring that families play an important role in the CFSR process and other systematic reviews.
Emerging From Out of the Shadows?: Service User and Carer Involvement in Systematic Reviews
Braye & Preston-Shoot
Evidence and Policy: A Journal of Research, Debate and Practice, 1(2), 2005
View Abstract
Reviews barriers to stakeholder participation in systematic reviews, describes components of effective involvement, and suggests quality standards for such involvement.
Families Gaining Their Seat at the Table: Family Engagement Strategies in the First Round of Child and Family Services Reviews and Program Improvement Plans (PDF - 1,370 KB)
Munson & Freundlich (2008)
Provides an overview of States' use of family engagement strategies as identified in the first round of the Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs) and Program Improvement Plans (PIPs).
Involving Families in the CFSR Process [Teleconference]
National Child Welfare Resource Center for Organizational Improvement (2007)
Focuses on efforts to engage families in the process of assessing an agency's performance and in planning and implementing program improvements. Includes a discussion about promising practices with States who have involved families in the Child and Family Services Review process.
Stakeholder Involvement in Child Welfare (PDF - 125 KB)
National Child Welfare Resource Center for Organizational Improvement
Child Welfare Matters, Fall 2005
Emphasizes the need for stakeholder involvement to improve outcomes in child welfare, outlines reasons for engaging with stakeholders, identifies key stakeholders, and delineates stages of collaboration.