Resources in this section will help child welfare professionals locate and work with kinship caregivers. This section will also assist them in understanding kinship family relationships and how to engage and support kinship families.
- Resources about recruiting and retaining kinship caregivers
- Examples of kinship recruitment strategies
- Examples of kinship caregiver support services
Resources about recruiting and retaining kinship caregivers
Engaging Kinship Caregivers With Joseph Crumbley [Videos]
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2017)
Presents a five-part video training series, Engaging Kinship Caregivers: Managing Risk Factors in Kinship Care, led by Joseph Crumbley, family therapist, trainer, and consultant. The resource also includes a link to the video series discussion guide to help program directors, supervisors, and child welfare trainers lead group sessions on the series.
Families Found Faster
Connect Our Kids
Points professionals to technology, including free software, to help identify and connect with extended family to support child stability and create broader networks for those in foster care.
Foster and Kinship Parent Recruitment and Support Best Practice Inventory (PDF - 1,679 KB)
Redlich Horwitz Foundation (2017)
Discusses evidence from the field on key steps needed to locate, recruit, and retain kinship foster parents. The best practices reviewed include the following: identifying and engaging kinship caregivers; recruiting excellent foster parents; developing a customer service mentality with prospective foster caregivers; streamlining the licensing process; using trauma-informed training curricula; providing ongoing support to caregivers; and creating community networks of support.
Recruiting and Supporting Kinship Foster Families
Bissell (2017)
American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law
Discusses how to support and recruit kinship caregivers and reviews what kinship families need to help children thrive. The resource discusses family finding, kinship training, support networks, engaging kinship parents, and how to improve recruitment and retention of these families.
Revitalizing Recruitment: Practical Strategies for Finding and Keeping Foster, Adoptive, and Kinship Homes (PDF - 10,107 KB)
New York State Office of Children and Family Services (2015)
Helps professionals navigate the challenges of finding foster and adoptive families who are equipped to meet the needs of children and youth entering foster care.
Using Kinship Navigators to Assess the Needs of Kinship Caregivers
Sutphin (2015)
GrandFamilies: The Contemporary Journal of Research, Practice and Policy, 2(1)
Discusses the resources needed to effectively support kin caregivers. Using the Family Needs Scale, the article details a kinship navigator program designed to address the service needs of kinship caregivers.
Examples of kinship recruitment strategies
Diligent Search (PDF - 177 KB)
Indiana Department of Child Services (2019)
Describes Indiana's diligent search policy for conducting a search for relative caregivers of children in foster care.
Diligent Search Resources
Florida's Center for Child Welfare (2017)
Provides forms and information for conducting a diligent search for relative caregivers of children in foster care in Florida.
Examples of kinship caregiver support services
Episode 11: Supporting Kinship Caregivers Part 1
Child Welfare Information Gateway (2017)
Presents a two-part podcast for child welfare professionals showcasing successful examples of kinship navigator programs that connect kinship families with available support services. Also see Part 2.
Kinship Care
Fairhill Partners (2019)
Provides services—including peer-to-peer support groups, monthly adult and teen workshops, children's activities, summer and holiday camps, adult support groups, and more—to grandparents raising grandchildren in Cuyahoga County, OH. The program also offers teen leadership and entrepreneurial activities as well as housing possibilities for kinship families.
Kinship Care
Maryland Department of Human Resources (2019)
Provides kinship adoptive parents in Maryland with links to support groups in the State as well as links to services for families formed through kinship adoption.
Kinship Care Services
Washington State Department of Social and Health Services
Provides lists of services in Washington State, including a list of support groups and resource persons for grandparents and relatives raising children.
Kinship Care Support Group
Official Site of the County of Fairfax, VA (2019)
Lists support groups in Fairfax County, VA, for grandparents and other kinship care relatives raising minor children whose parents are unable to care for them. Groups are led by social workers from the Fairfax County Department of Family Services. Free child care assistance is provided while the caregiver participates in the support group.
Support Matters: Lessons from the Field on Services for Adoptive, Foster and Kinship Care Families (PDF - 1,454 KB)
AdoptUSKids (2015)
Discusses the importance of effectively evaluating the needs of foster and kinship caregivers and partnering with community-based organizations.
| Series Title | Bulletins for Professionals |
| Author(s) | Child Welfare Information Gateway |
| Availability | View Download (PDF - 355KB) Order (Free) |
| Year Published | 2018 |