Child Welfare Information Gateway
Skip to main content
  • U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
  • Administration for Children & Families
  • Children's Bureau
Child Welfare Information Gateway
REPORT ABUSE OR
NEGLECT
FIND HELP WITH A
PERSONAL SITUATION   

Home Topics Publications Library State Resources More Tools & Resources News & Events
REPORT ABUSE OR
NEGLECT
FIND HELP WITH A
PERSONAL SITUATION   
  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Chat
  • Free Subscriptions
  • Resources in Spanish
  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Chat
  • Resources in Spanish
  • Shopping Cart
  • Home
  • Topics
    • Family-Centered Practice
      • Philosophy and Key Elements of Family-Centered Practice
      • Family-Centered Practice Across the Service Continuum
      • Engaging Families
      • Family-Centered Casework Practice
      • Family Group Decision-Making
      • Engaging Communities to Support Families
      • Creating a Family-Centered Agency Culture
    • Child Abuse & Neglect
      • Definitions of Child Abuse & Neglect
      • Identification of Child Abuse & Neglect
      • Risk Factors That Contribute to Child Abuse and Neglect
      • People Who Engage in Child Abuse or Neglect
      • Impact of Child Abuse & Neglect
      • Child Abuse & Neglect Fatalities
    • Preventing Child Abuse & Neglect
      • National Child Abuse Prevention Month
      • Overview: Preventing Child Abuse & Neglect
      • Promoting Child & Family Well-Being
      • Public Awareness & Creating Supportive Communities
      • Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Programs
      • Developing & Sustaining Prevention Programs
      • Evidence-Based Practice for Child Abuse Prevention
      • Evaluating Prevention Programs
    • Responding to Child Abuse & Neglect
      • Introduction to Responding to Child Abuse & Neglect
      • Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect
      • Assessment in Child Protection
      • Differential Response in Child Protective Services
      • Child Protection Casework Practice
      • Responding to Child Maltreatment Near Fatalities and Fatalities
      • Trauma-Informed Practice in Child Welfare
      • Collaborative Responses to Child Abuse & Neglect
    • Supporting & Preserving Families
      • Supporting Families With Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders
      • Introduction to Family Support and Preservation
      • In-Home Services Involved With Child Protection
      • Family Support Services
      • Resources for Managers of Family Support and Preservation Services
      • Family Preservation Services
    • Out-of-Home Care
      • National Foster Care Month
      • Overview: Out-of-Home Care
      • Foster Care
      • Group and Residential Care
      • Kinship Care
      • Casework Practice in Out-of-Home Care
      • Transition to Adulthood and Independent Living
      • Placement Decisions
      • Resources for Foster Families
    • Achieving & Maintaining Permanency
      • Overview: Achieving & Maintaining Permanency
      • Reunifying Families
      • Recruiting and Retaining Resource Families
      • Permanency With Relatives and Kin
      • Guardianship
      • Permanency for Specific Youth Populations
      • Legal and Court Issues in Permanency
      • Interjurisdictional Placements
      • Working With Children, Youth, and Families in Permanency Planning
      • Working With Children, Youth, and Families After Permanency
      • Resources for Administrators and Managers About Permanency
      • Resources for Families About Permanency
    • Adoption
      • National Adoption Month
      • All-In Foster Adoption Challenge
      • Children's Bureau Adoption Call to Action
      • Adoption and Guardianship Assistance by State
      • Introduction to Adoption
      • Ethical Issues in Adoption
      • For Adopted People
      • For Adoption Program Managers & Administrators
      • For Expectant Parents Considering Adoption and Birth Parents
      • How to Adopt
      • Laws Related to Adoption
      • Parenting After Adoption
      • Preplacement Adoption Casework Practice
      • Postplacement Adoption Casework Practice
      • Search & Reunion in Adoption
    • Management & Supervision
      • Administering & Managing Child Welfare Agencies & Programs
      • Child Welfare Practice Improvement
      • Disaster Preparedness & Response
      • Ethical Practice & Client Rights
      • Evaluating Program and Practice Effectiveness
      • Funding
      • Information Systems & Data
      • Supervising Child Welfare Services
      • System Reform
      • Training
      • Workforce
    • Systemwide
      • Assessment
      • Behavioral Health & Wellness
      • Courts
      • Cultural Responsiveness
      • Diverse Populations and Communities
      • Domestic Violence
      • Human Trafficking
      • Laws & Policies
      • Service Array
      • Statistics
      • Well-Being
      • Youth
  • Publications
    • Publications Series
    • Browse by Topic
    • Browse by Title
    • índice de Títulos en Español (Spanish Title Index)
  • Library
    • Library Services
    • Library Search Help
  • State Resources
    • State Statutes
    • National Foster Care & Adoption Directory
    • State Guides & Manuals Search
    • State-Related Organizations Lists
    • Adoption and Guardianship Assistance by State
  • More Tools & Resources
    • Related Organizations
    • Learning Center
    • Resources From the Children's Bureau
      • Children's Bureau Discretionary Grants
      • The Story of the Children's Bureau
      • Children's Bureau Video Series
    • Child Welfare Information Gateway Podcast Series
    • Multimedia
      • Videos
      • Webinars
    • Family Engagement Inventory
  • News & Events
    • Free Subscriptions
    • Adoption Triad
    • Children's Bureau Express (CBX)
    • The Grantee Connection
    • New on Information Gateway
    • New From the Children's Bureau
    • Event Calendar
  • Home
  • Topics
  • Out-of-Home Care
  • Kinship Care
  • Resources for Relative and Kinship Caregivers
  • Resources for Relative and Kinship Caregivers: Establishing Permanency

Resources for Relative and Kinship Caregivers: Establishing Permanency

Kinship caregivers provide a higher likelihood of permanency for children in their care. The following resources provide information on supporting family-centered, collaborative approaches to help caregivers navigate the path toward permanency for children in their care. The resources include State and local examples.

From Data to Practice: The Impact of Placement With Family on Safety, Permanency, and Well-Being
Casey Family Programs (2018) 
Presents data on children placed with family while in care compared with children placed with nonrelatives. The findings showed children placed with family had fewer critical safety incidents; had better overall well-being, including school performance; were more likely to retain permanency; and were more likely to obtain legal permanency. 

How Can Guardianship Be Better Utilized to Promote Permanency and Well-Being?
Casey Family Programs (2021)
Provides insight on different types of guardianship arrangements, the benefits of children being with kin, and benefits of improving kin placement options for children in care. 

How Can We Ensure a Child's First Placement Is With a Family?
Casey Family Programs (2018) 
Discusses placing children in kinship care when they are removed from their families to mitigate trauma, support placement stability, and increase permanence. 

Kinship Care Is Better for Children and Families 
Epstein (2017)
American Bar Association, Center on Children and the Law
Provides an overview of kinship care and reviews its benefits, which include increased permanency for children and youth. 

Kinship Guardianship as a Permanency Option

Series Title
State Statutes
Author(s)
Child Welfare Information Gateway
Availability
View
Download (PDF - 1,710KB)
Year Published
2019
Reviews State laws and policies that allow a family member or other person with close ties to a child who has been placed in out-of-home care to become that's child's permanent guardian. Guardianship has emerged as a permanency option for a child who has been placed in out-of-home care as it creates a legal relationship between a child and caregiver that is intended to be permanent and self-sustaining and can provide a permanent family for the child without the necessity of terminating the parents' parental rights. A guardian's rights and duties, approving a guardianship home, modifying or revoking a guardianship, and kinship guardianship assistance are among the issues addressed. Summaries of relevant laws for all States and U.S. territories are included.

Kinship Involvement Linked to Better Psychological Adjustment for Youth
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children's Bureau (2017)
Children's Bureau Express, 18(6)
Provides a link to a study that found youth in foster care have fewer psychological adjustment issues and negative behaviors when extended and noncustodial family members are involved in their lives. Study results show kinship involvement can mitigate youth's externalizing behaviors.

New Research on the Characteristics, Needs of Kinship Adoptive Families
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Children's Bureau (2017)
Children's Bureau Express, 18(6)
Summarizes a literature review in a recent issue of Adoption Quarterly on the latest research on placement decisions and outcomes for children adopted by relatives. The authors note that kinship placements and adoptions have been steadily rising since the 1990s and lead to better outcomes for children in foster care.

Using Family-Finding Models to Achieve Permanency (Part 1) [Webinar]
AdoptUSKids (2021)
Highlights key concepts and strategies for conducting meaningful family-finding and engagement efforts.

(Back to Top)

State and local examples

Kinship Navigator Program
Foster Kinship (2019)
Addresses the immediate needs of relative caregivers who are working toward permanency in the State of Nevada.

Navigator Services 
Kinship Connections of Wyoming (2021)
Offers a broad range of services and supports to grandparents and other relative caregivers. 

Options for Relatives
Georgia Division of Family and Children Services
Discusses research that shows children thrive best when placed in kinship care and explains types of approvals for kinship care in Georgia.

Permanency Planning Options: Fit and Willing Relative
Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange (2021)
Examines the permanency goal of placement with a fit and willing relative, which is typically the preferred placement for children who cannot remain in their birth homes in Michigan.

Promoting Permanency for Teens: A 50 State Review of Law and Policy 
Johnson, Speiglman, Mauldon, Grimm, & Perry (2018)
National Center for Youth Law 
Explores State policies and practices on permanency and transitioning to adulthood for youth in foster care or kinship care. The report concludes with recommendations for permanency standards for States. 

(Back to Top)

Spotlight On

Kinship Guardianship as a Permanency Option
Child Welfare Information Gateway
(2019)
Children's Bureau Grantee Synthesis: Kinship Navigator Programs
Child Welfare Information Gateway
(2019)

Related Content

Permanency With Relatives and Kin

Children's Bureau - An office of the Administration for Children and Families

Child Welfare Information Gateway is a service of the

  • Children’s Bureau
  • Administration for Children and Families
  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
↑ Back to top
  • HOME
  • TOPICS
    • Family-Centered Practice
    • Child Abuse & Neglect
    • Preventing Child Abuse & Neglect
    • Responding to Child Abuse & Neglect
    • Supporting & Preserving Families
    • Out-of-Home Care
    • Achieving & Maintaining Permanency
    • Adoption
    • Management & Supervision
    • Systemwide
  • National Initiatives
    • National Adoption Month
    • National Child Abuse Prevention Month
    • National Foster Care Month
  • Publications
    • Publications Series
    • Browse by Title
    • Browse by Topic
    • Índice de Títulos en Español
  • Library
    • Search the Library
  • State Resources
    • State Statutes
    • National Foster Care & Adoption Directory
    • State Guides & Manuals
    • State Related Organizations Lists
    • Adoption Assistance by State
  • More Tools & Resources
    • Related Organizations
    • Learning Center
    • Children's Bureau Resources
    • Information Gateway Podcast
    • Multimedia
    • Family Engagement Inventory
  • NEWS AND EVENTS
    • New on Information Gateway
    • New From the Children's Bureau
    • Event Calendar
  • ABOUT US
    • How to Report Child Abuse or Neglect
    • Find Help With a Personal Situation
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Glossary
    • Search A to Z
  • Contact Us
    • 1-800-394-3366
    • info@childwelfare.gov
    • Subscribe to Free Updates
    • Chat With Us
  • Follow us on Facebook
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • Follow us on YouTube
  • POLICIES & HELPFUL LINKS
    • Disclaimer and Policies
    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility
    • FOIA requests
    • No FEAR Act data
    • Office of the Inspector General
    • Performance reports
    • Vulnerability Disclosure Policy
    • USA.gov
    • Download Acrobat Reader
  • ↑ Back to top