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Family First Prevention Services Act Supports Kinship Caregivers

Information originally released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Currently, 2.7 million young people in foster care are being raised by relatives. The Family First Prevention Services Act ensures that young people growing up in the child welfare system are able to grow up in safe, stable and secure environments that support their long-term well-being. The Annie E. Casey Foundation is helping kinship caregivers by providing a range of resources to help them better respond to the needs of their children.

Studies show that young people do best in families and healthy relationships are key to their development and long-term stability. The Family First Prevention Services Act emphasizes reducing group care and better supporting young people and their families by aiming to:

  • Help families whose children or teens are at risk of removal stay together whenever safely possible;
  • Ensure that young people in foster care live with family, not in group placements; and
  • Improve access to high-quality residential treatment.

This allows child welfare systems to use Title IV-E funds on prevention services for “candidates of foster care,” which allows more young people to stay with their parents or relatives.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation offers webinars discussing background information on trends in kinship care, why relatives are the preferred placement for children and the differences in caregivers between non-relative and kinship placements.

The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of A Second Chance, Inc.

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