Federal legislation provides funding for State grants to provide services that will prevent the unnecessary separation of children from their families, improve their quality of care, and ensure permanency for children by reuniting them with their parents, through adoption, or via another permanent living arrangement. Federal programs related to family support include the Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) program, the Family Preservation and Family Support Services Act of 1993, the Promoting Safe and Stable Families provisions of the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, and the Safe and Stable Families Amendments of 2001.
The following resources provide a broad overview of policies addressing family support services and program approaches to providing such services to families.
Building Comprehensive State Systems for Vulnerable Babies: A Resource for State Leaders (PDF - 250 KB)
Center for Law and Social Policy (2011)
Provides a tool that helps State leaders strategize and create or improve early childhood systems to meet the needs of vulnerable babies and toddlers, their families, and pregnant women.
Center for Family Economic Success (CFES)
Annie E. Casey Foundation
Offers information to practitioners, researchers, policymakers, and the general public on CFES' three-pronged approach to alleviating poverty, which incorporates strategies for workforce development, family economic support, and community investment.
Creating Community Responsibility for Child Protection: Possibilities and Challenges (PDF - 188 KB)
Daro & Dodge (2009)
The Future of Children, 19(2)
Examines five different community prevention efforts aiming to enhance community capacity by expanding formal and informal resources and establishing a normative cultural context capable of fostering collective responsibility for positive child development. Includes a summary for each program that addresses both the theory of change and the empirical evidence concerning its efficacy.
Developing a Parent-to-Parent Support Network (PDF - 302 KB)
North American Council on Adoptable Children (2009)
Includes information on six peer support network models and particularly highlights the successes of the Minnesota Adoption Support and Preservation parent support network. The manual also provides steps to creating a similar program in your area.
Family Strengthening Policy Center
National Collaboration for Families
Produces research and materials to advance neighborhood-based, family-centered practices, programs, and policies.
Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration
Facilitates collaboration and partnership at the Federal, State, and community levels to improve health and development outcomes for at-risk children through evidence-based home visiting programs. The program's website includes resources and information about grants, grantees, home visiting models, and technical assistance.
Parent Leadership and Involvement
FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention
Presents resources on effectively involving parents in program development and supporting parent leadership.
Parent Training Programs: Insight for Practitioners
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2009)
Examines the components of effective parent training programs and provides guidance in making evidence-based program decisions to improve parenting skills and prevent child maltreatment.
Rewarding the Work of Individuals: A Counterintuitive Approach to Reducing Poverty and Strengthening Families (PDF - 157 KB)
Berlin (2007)
The Future of Children, 17(2)
Discusses the interconnectedness of falling wages and single parenthood. This article proposes a strategy that would use the Federal Earned Income Tax Credit to supplement the earnings of all low-wage workers age 21 to 54 who work full time, regardless of whether they have children or whether they marry.
Supporting Evidence-Based Home Visiting
FRIENDS National Resource Center for Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention
Describes the efforts of 17 federally funded grantees implementing evidence-based home visiting programs in their communities. The website includes information on home visiting models, cross-site evaluation results, and more.
Supporting Healthy Marriage Toolkit: Resources for Program Operators From the Supporting Healthy Marriage Demonstration and Evaluation (PDF - 2,427 KB)
MDRC (2011)
Offers professionals a resource guide to developing and implementing community-based programs that provide relationship education to married parents.
Tracking Services for Infants, Toddlers, and Their Families: A Look at Federal Early Childhood Programs and the Roles of State and Local Governments (PDF - 136 KB)
ZERO TO THREE Policy Center (2007)
Summarizes the primary Federal programs currently focused on very young children and the roles of Federal, State, and local governments in those programs. The program categories are: child care and early childhood education, child welfare, health and mental health, poverty, and professional development.
ZERO TO THREE Home Visiting Community Planning Tool (PDF - 716 KB)
ZERO TO THREE (2011)
Guides communities through the process of creating new or expanding existing home visiting services. The tool helps communities use data to identify their strengths, needs, and gaps in current home visiting services; choose an evidence-based program model; and align work at the local level with State efforts.