Title IV-B Child and Family Services Plan
2005-2009
Public Comment Period
Options: Download Plan and Matrix | Download Final Report | Submit Comments
The Bureau for Children and Families of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) is posting the FY 2005-2009 Child and Family Services Plan and the Final Report for the FY 2000-2004 Child and Family Services Plan on the internet for review and comment. After the comments are received and the Plan and/or Report are revised they will be sent to the United States Department of Health and Human Services.
The submission of the Report and the Plan are requirements for receiving funds appropriated under title IV-B subparts 1 and 2 , section 106 of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) , the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program and the Education and Training Vouchers program.
Background to the Development of the 2005-2009 Child and Family Services Plan
The Child and Family Services Planning process began in 1994. This process predates the Child and Family Services Review (CFSR) which is a standardized review of each states child welfare programs. The CFSR determines whether or not a state is in substantial conformity with the national outcomes for safety, permanency and well being. If a state is not in substantial conformity then it must develop a Program Improvement Plan (PIP) describing the actions it will take to achieve conformity.
The results of the CSFR for West Virginia revealed that the DHHR was not in conformity with the outcomes. Beginning in 2003 and continuing today the Bureau for Children and Families has been implementing a Program Improvement Plan.
The results of the Child and Family Services Review process directly affect the development of the Child and Family Services Plan. The instructions from the Children’s Bureau which oversees both the CFSR and the CFSP describe the interrelationship between these two processes as follows: " The Children’s Bureau would like to reiterate that the two processes used to identify needs and assure the safety, permanency and well being of children, the Child and Family Services Review and subsequent Program Improvement Plan and the CSFP must be coordinated for purposes of improving the overall child welfare system of the state. According to CFR 45 1355.35(f) the elements of the program improvement plan must be incorporated into the goals and objectives of the CFSP".
Accordingly, the Child and Family Services Plan for 2005-2009 was developed to incorporate and support the initiatives contained in the Department’s Program Improvement Plan. It is the belief of the Bureau staff that the development of a unified planning process provides the greatest opportunity to use available but limited funding to assure the safety, permanency and well-being of children served through the child welfare programs of this state.
This is a major change from the previous planning process and the Plan for 2005-2009 provides a description of the evolution of the planning process and the rationale for the future use of Title IV-B funds.
Printing
If you decide to print the Final Report and/or the Plan each document is approximately 30-40 pages long.
Comments
The deadline for the submission of comments is June 15,2004. If you would like to make a comment about the CFSP and/or the Report or if you have questions about either document please email Michael O’Farrell at mofarrell@wvdhhr.org or you may call him at 558-6444 or you may email Christina Bertelli at cbertelli@wvdhhr.org or you may call her at 558-3290.
