Chapin Hall

In April 2024, APHSA partnered with Chapin Hall to host the national convening, Breaking the Link: Disrupting the Connection Between Poverty and Child Welfare Involvement. The event brought together more than 75 leaders—including federal, state, and county health and human services officials, experts with lived experience, and national partner organizations—to collaboratively identify strategies to break the link between poverty and child welfare involvement.

The Issue

There is ample evidence that economic and concrete supports (ECS) have a positive effect in reducing family risk for child welfare involvement. With this knowledge, Chapin Hall and the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) collaborated to build momentum and consensus for a community-driven, cross-sector approach to child welfare prevention that expands equitable access to ECS and promotes family stability.

The Evidence

The recommendations that emerged highlight the importance of increasing upstream prevention funding and aligning policies across sectors to address families’ economic and material needs early, before they escalate into crises.

This brief describes the convening and provides examples of innovative state and local approaches to reducing family child welfare involvement.

The Way Forward

The convening generated several recommendations to build a child and family well-being system and identified key policy options for the near term, including:

• Strengthen cross-sector collaboration across child welfare and human service programs by aligning policies and resources towards family stability and well-being
• Maximize the impact of the Family First Prevention Services Act by expanding eligible prevention services to include ECS
• Increase access to economic assistance programs with a focus on reducing barriers for families
• Revise definitions and approaches to neglect to distinguish poverty-related needs from maltreatment
• Enhance kinship care and family reunification support to keep children with their extended families and promote family preservation
• Expand legal representation models so families have access to support at first point of contact with the child welfare system
• Center lived experience by involving individuals impacted by the child welfare system in decision making to ensure policies reflect community priorities

This piece is designed for policymakers, human services leaders, and practitioners aiming to advance a family-centered approach to child welfare prevention. It provides evidence-based solutions to reduce inequities and promote family well-being at the local, state, and federal levels.

For more information on this initiative, contact Yasmin Grewal-Kök.

Explore additional research and resources on the connection between economic and concrete supports and family well-being. 

Read the brief