1. Kinship Care Services Melissa Deletetsky Standards Development & Performance Measurement September 2006

2. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Kinship Care Services (KC) Purpose Statement Kinship Care Services maintain the family system as the primary source of care and preserve the continuity of care, culture, relationships, and environment essential for child safety and well-being.

3. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Kinship Care vs. Foster Care Reflects a trend in the field to separate the two services Areas of significant variation –Home study requirements –Redefining family roles (KC 7.01) Areas with very little variation –Services for the child –Services for the parent

4. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Informal vs. Formal Kinship Care Informal Kinship Care Services provide information and support to families that have made private arrangements for a child to live with kin temporarily while his/her parents are unable to care for the child. Typically no open child protective case See informal kinship care requirements

5. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved What is an Indicator of a Strong KC Program? Extensive Support for Kinship Care Givers Have less access to child welfare services and support Tend to be older and less educated, have more health and financial concerns, typically single KC 12: Caregiver Support

6. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Core Concept Highlights Service Delivery Integration: –G8, Intake Assessment and Service Planning –G9, Service Delivery Screening (KC 1), Assessment (KC 2), Service Planning and Monitoring (KC 3), Service Philosophy (KC 5), Case Closing (KC 14), and Aftercare and Follow-up (KC 15)

7. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Core Concepts cont. Permanency (KC 4, KC 7) Specialized Therapeutic services (KC 11) Support for child, parent, and caregiver (KC8, KC 9, KC12) Child Safety and well-being (KC 6, KC 10, KC13) Personnel (KC 16)

8. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Fundamental Practice Standards Essential to practice Must be implemented to achieve accreditation Life and Safety, Health and Welfare, Client Rights See Accreditation Guidelines for more information

9. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Standards Implementation Evidence of Implementation Pre-site –Procedures: intake, assessment, service planning, home study, permanency, placement, visitation, healthcare, and worker visits On-site –Interviews –Informational materials –Data on placement trends

10. October 14© Council on Accreditation 2005 All Rights Reserved Thank you! Council on Accreditation 120 Wall Street, 11 th Floor New York, NY 10005 866-262-8088 www.coanet.org mdeletetsky@coanet.org acohen@coanet.org