|
DCFS Info Memo 2005 -
12
December 7, 2005 STATE OF WISCONSIN
In response to Wisconsin's 2003 Child and Family Services Review by the federal government, the Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS) established committees to help develop policies, procedures, practices, and services to complete the twenty (20) action steps identified in Wisconsin's Program Enhancement Plan (PEP) within the next two years and the long term goals in the 5-Year Child Welfare Plan. The "Adoption Services Committee" developed the attached Continuous Permanency Planning Timeline document for staff to use as a guideline in meeting the action step for "increasing the timeliness of placing children in permanent or adoptive homes when they can no longer be safe with their parents". Staff may use the Continuous Permanency Planning Timeline document as a working tool and guide in meeting legal timelines, initiating referrals, enhancing communication, identifying concurrent planning benchmarks, and coordinating activities to ensure timely permanence for children. The document identifies the recommended roles of the county or tribal case manager, the state permanency consultant, and the adoption worker and the tasks that may be performed in each role to help reach substantial conformance with the federal performance standard for "time to adoption". The federal performance standard for this outcome requires that a minimum of 32% of adoptions of the children who leave foster care for adoption be finalized within 24 months of the child's removal from home. Consistent with federal, state, and local initiatives, key aspects of improving our performance in this outcome measure will be the early identification of children who may be in need of permanence through adoption, implementation of effective permanency planning efforts, and the timely delivery of adoption recruitment, licensing, and finalization services. Compliance with federal performance standards is, in part, directly measured from eWiSACWIS data. Therefore, it is imperative that accurate, detailed, specific, and complete documentation of elements and processes outlined in the Continuous Permanency Planning Timeline be entered into eWiSACWIS in a timely and consistent manner. Concurrent permanency planning training is being provided and will include information on the Continuous Permanency Planning Timeline.
Attachment
|