Write an essay of 750-1,000 words, discussing the child welfare system in the United States today; include the following:

1. Identify the various divisions of the child welfare system.
2. Describe the social workers role within each division.
3. Analyze the relationship between these divisions.

Be sure to cite at least three relevant scholarly sources in support of your content.

Use only sources found at the GCU Library or those provided in Topic Materials.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

The Child Welfare System

Introduction

In Canada, the legal obligation to protect children is enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Child welfare services are provided by various levels of government, including provincial ministries of health and social services, municipal governments, aboriginal governments and agencies. In many cases, parents may be required to access these services when they have a child who is at risk of harm or abuse.

Children and Youth

Children and Youth in Foster Care

Children and Youth in Out of Home Care

Children and Youth in Residential Placement

Foster parents are legally mandated to provide a safe home environment for the children they care for. Foster parents must meet certain requirements before being approved by Health Canada as foster parents. The court will order your child into the care of a private individual or group if there is no other suitable placement available, such as with relatives or friends who can provide them with appropriate support systems. The goal of your child’s placement should be to keep them safe while providing them with the best possible support system possible so they can grow up healthy, happy and successful members of society!

Family Permanence

Family permanence is the goal of the child welfare system. The goal of family permanence is to ensure that children remain with their birth parents and other caregivers, including foster parents, relatives or adoptive families.

The role of child welfare agencies in achieving family permanence can be broken down into two main areas:

• Providing services for families who do not have stable living conditions (e.g., shelter) or who are at risk for leaving their current placement because they lack resources needed to keep them safe from physical abuse (e.g., food). These services include: case management support; financial assistance; education/career-related training programs; children’s health care services such as immunizations and screenings for diseases like TB or HIV/AIDS

Family Outcomes

Family outcomes are the results of family involvement in the child welfare system. They are often divided into three categories:

• Child safety. This includes whether or not children were safe from harm, abuse and neglect at home or in foster care.

• Child permanence. A child’s ability to remain with their parents as well as their relationship with them throughout childhood (and possibly adulthood).

• Family stability/well-being is defined as how stable or well functioning a family unit is relative to other families within an area; while it can also include factors such as poverty status, educational attainment levels and other factors that affect people’s ability to maintain relationships with each other over time

Family Engagement

Family engagement is an important part of the child welfare system, as it can help kids stay in their own homes and return home. It also enables families to learn new skills and behaviors that will help them heal from trauma.

Family engagement is a process of working with foster parents, kinship caregivers and other members of a child’s extended family (such as grandparents) in order for those individuals to become involved with the child’s life in some way or another. These relationships serve as pathways for children who may have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect because they give them opportunities for stability during this transitional time period when they’re transitioning out of institutional care into permanent placement with another family member such as an adoptive parent or relative who has agreed upon custody rights over them

Financial Implications of the Child Welfare System

The child welfare system is expensive. It costs taxpayers an average of $15,000 per year to care for each child in foster care. That’s more than double the cost associated with providing foster parents with food, shelter and clothing; it’s also more than twice as much as what it costs to educate them at a public school or university.

The reason for these high costs is that there are many more children in need of help today than there were 20 years ago—and those kids are spending longer periods on the street before they’re reunited with their families.

Takeaway:

The child welfare system is a complex system, but it has a positive impact on children and families.

Conclusion

The child welfare system can be an incredibly complex and challenging process. It’s important to remember that, while there are many ways that families can experience challenges within this system, they also have the opportunity to learn from these experiences and grow into stronger adults as a result of them.