NCWDDP

What You'll Do

Many governmental legislative and policy requirements must be implemented and adhered to in child welfare services. Recognizing applicable government codes, regulations, and legislation that apply to child welfare, as well as evaluating and generating legislative implementation strategies will guide your implementation of policies, ACL/ACINS, reports, and audits. Module 6: Policy & Compliance is a great place to start learning!

What You'll Learn

This module will be broken up into two segments. The first segment, Policy, will orient you to federal, state, and local policy and legislative requirements of child welfare services delivery. From creating or amending federally funded child welfare programs passed by Congress and/or the President like the Federal Child Welfare Services Program (Title IV), to state-enacted statutes, like the Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC), even on to Local/County administration, you’ll become deeply immersed in all things Child Welfare Policy.

In the second segment, Compliance, you’ll learn how to access information about state implementation requirements and how the Federal and State governments assess county compliance. For example, the California Department of Social Services issue All County Letters (ACLs) when the department is setting or clarifying a requirement.

All County Information Notices (ACIN) are issued to provide information that is not creating a requirement for counties but providing general guidance or best practice information. Along with our state government, the Federal Government’s Children’s Bureau conduct Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs) to help states identify strengths and areas needing improvement within their agencies and programs.

How to Prepare

In preparation for your Module 6 Learning Experience, here are some resources to review:

"How the Child Welfare System Works"

"A Timeline of Child Welfare Legislation"

"California Child Welfare Indicators Project"

"National Council on Crime and Delinquency"

Some Things to Think About

As you begin to consider what you’ll learn or reinforce as part of Module 6, consider the following:

"Do you feel that you possess a good knowledge of child welfare policy and legislation?"

"What is it like to know that as a child welfare representative that you are also an arm of the court?"

"Have you ever been part of an intensive review process, such as a CSFR?"

"How will you help your staff not feel defensive and instead help them to welcome review feedback?"