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
      • Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Programs
      • Public Awareness & Creating Supportive Communities
      • 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
      • Children's Bureau Adoption Call to Action
      • All-In Foster Adoption Challenge
      • 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
      • Postplacement Adoption Casework Practice
      • Preplacement 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 Search Help
    • Library Services
  • 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
  • Achieving & Maintaining Permanency
  • Reunifying Families
  • Reunification and Visits With Parents Who Are Incarcerated

Reunification and Visits With Parents Who Are Incarcerated

Parents who are incarcerated face a unique set of challenges because they must work within and across both the child welfare and corrections systems. They may experience difficulties in meeting case plan requirements such as regular visiting with their children or completing court-mandated services within the timeframe established by child welfare and Federal regulations such as the Adoption and Safe Families Act. The following resources provide strategies and best practices for promoting reunification and supporting visits between incarcerated parents and their children, including State and local examples.

  Case planning and reunification

 

Child Welfare Practice With Families Affected by Parental Incarceration.

Series Title
Bulletins for Professionals
Author(s)
Child Welfare Information Gateway
Availability
View
Download (PDF - 399KB)
Order (Free)
Year Published
2021
Provides an overview of the intersection of child welfare and parental incarceration; highlights practices to facilitate parent-child visits during incarceration, include parents in case planning, and work toward reunification; and points to resources to help caseworkers in their practice with these children and families.

Engaging Incarcerated Parents
Adoptive and Foster Family Coalition New York
Provides four recommendations for child welfare professionals working to engage incarcerated parents in casework, including allowing space for questions and understanding the family context beyond the incarceration experience.

Supporting Fathers and Families Impacted by Incarceration [Webinar]
National Responsible Father Clearinghouse (2017)
Offers tips on how fatherhood programs can work to improve outcomes for incarcerated fathers and their children and families and provides examples of programs that are helping fathers as they return to their communities after incarceration. The website includes links to webinar slides, a transcript, and additional related files.

When a Parent Is Incarcerated: A Primer for Social Workers
Annie E. Casey Foundation (2011)
Provides recommendations for partnering with the criminal justice system to engage incarcerated parents to connect with their children and maintain their parental responsibilities.

  Visitation

General Visiting Information
Federal Bureau of Prisons
Provides information about the rules and procedures associated with setting up and conducting visits in Federal correctional facilities.

Guide for Incarcerated Parents Who Have Children in the Child Welfare System
Youth.gov
Helps parents involved in the criminal justice system understand the child welfare system, maintain connections with their children, and understand steps required for reunification.

Helping Incarcerated Parents Plan for Visits From Children
National Responsible Fatherhood Clearing House (2018)
Provides recommendations, including checking dress code policies prior to visits and providing a warning in advance of the end of visits, that can help incarcerated parents maintain their connection with their children.

Parent-Child Visiting Practices in Prisons and Jails: A Synthesis of Research and Practice (PDF - 563 KB)
Cramer, Goff, Peterson, & Sandstrom (2017)
Urban Institute
Describes what is known about parent-child visiting practices in prisons and jails and identifies best practices according to recent literature and subject-matter experts. The report also offers recommendations to advance research and practice in this area.

Supporting Communication for Families Impacted by Incarceration

National Child Abuse and Neglect Technical Assistance and Strategic Dissemination Center. Rutgers University--Camden. National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated. & United States. Children's Bureau. (2019)

View Abstract

Provides concrete tips for supporting effective visits and communication between an incarcerated parent and their child.

Visiting a Parent in Prison [Video]
Sesame Street in Communities
Presents a video that can be used by caregivers and professionals to explain to children what visiting an incarcerated parent may be like, including any rules that may apply and changes to the parent’s appearance.

  State and local examples

Addressing the Needs of Incarcerated Mothers and Their Children in Illinois (PDF - 9,343 KB)
Dworsky, Fedock, Schlecht, Malcome, Murray, & Hazel (2020)
Chapel Hill at the University of Chicago
Describes the results of a project conducted to inform the development and implementation of policies and practices that address the needs of incarcerated mothers in Illinois and reduce the impact of incarceration on their children.

Practice Guidelines: Engaging Incarcerated Parents in Reunification Cases (PDF - 59 KB)
State of Arizona Department of Child Safety (2017)
Offers practice guidelines to help child welfare staff engage incarcerated parents in reunification efforts, including encouraging parent-child contact, learning about the family’s history and protective capacity, maintaining frequent contact, preparing children and their caregivers for visitation, and more. 

Task Force on Children of Incarcerated Parents: Final Report and Recommendations (PDF - 989 KB)
State of Illinois Office of the Lieutenant Governor (2020)
Presents information about policies, procedures, and training that can support the well-being of children and youth who have parents in prison. Recommendations include developing a central hub to improve interagency collaboration, establishing visitation as a right, and developing consistent policies and procedures.

Video Visitation
Assisting Families of Inmates
Describes a Virginia-based program that provides improved access to consistent visitation for incarcerated parents and their children via video visitation.

What Works in Reentry Clearinghouse
Council of State Governments (2021)
Summarizes the evidence base supporting commonly provided services designed to facilitate reentry after incarceration. Using resources to stabilize adults upon reentry can help them work toward their child welfare case plans.

(Back to Top)

Spotlight On

Children of Incarcerated Parents

Youth.gov

National Resource Center on Children and Families of the Incarcerated

Related Content

Supporting Children and Families Affected by Parental Incarceration

Legal Issues Related to Permanency

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