FAMILY-CENTERED OUT-OF-HOME CARE MANUAL REVISION, PROCEDURE SECTION 1, CHAPTER 3

FAMILY-CENTERED SERVICES MANUAL REVISION, PROCEDURE C-3

HISTORY OF TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) created a federal block grant to fund state programs providing Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF).  In Missouri, the program of ongoing cash assistance funded by this Act is known as Temporary Assistance. The goals of the program are to provide assistance to needy families so that children may be cared for in their own homes or in the homes of relatives, to end the dependency of needy parents on government benefits by promoting job preparation, work and marriage; to prevent out of wedlock births; and to encourage the formation and maintenance of two parent families.

Eligible families receive a monthly cash payment based on their income and family size, for a period of time not to exceed 60 months total in a lifetime. At this time there are a projected 1,865 families that may reach the 60 month limit in July 2002.  Twenty percent (20%) of the total caseload will be eligible for a hardship extension, based on special needs or circumstances. Income Maintenance (IM) is currently developing criteria to assess ongoing eligibility for these families. 

FAMILY SUPPORT TEAMS (FST)

A Family Support Team (FST) is a gathering of family members, friends, community specialists and other interested people who join together to strengthen a family and provide a protection and care plan for their children.  Family conferencing evolves from the way that families form a natural helping system to meet needs and solve problems.  A FST is often the forum in which the child and family team comes together to help the family craft, implement or change the families treatment plan.  This plan will be documented on the Evaluation and Case Plan (CS-1), the Family Plan For Change (CS-16 b), the Self-Sufficiency PACT form (IM-300) in the IM program, or the attached Family Support Team Plan to Meet the Family Goals form (CS-FST for Intact Families pilot). 

The following are five basic components central to the FST process:

• engagement of the family;
• the assessment process;
• developing and implementing the family plan for change;
• tracking progress and responding to new concerns; and
• sustaining change.

FAMILY SUPPORT TEAMS TO HELP FAMILIES ACHIEVE SELF-SUFFICIENCY

The utilization of the FST process, by IM staff, is a powerful tool for enabling and empowering intact families as they move towards greater self-sufficiency.  Self-sufficiency needs also present significant challenges for Children's Service (CS) workers who are providing on-going treatment services to families with open FCS cases.  It is estimated that 5.6 % of the families reaching their lifetime limit also have open FCS cases.  Therefore a percentage of FST's will need to be co-facilitated by both a CS and an IM worker. It is critical that workers in both areas be trained in the FST process and that we utilize a collaborative approach to serving these families.  For families that are reaching their lifetime limit and who have open FCS cases, the CS worker will be responsible for contacting the IM worker to begin the planning process for the FST. 

After sharing pertinent assessment information, the CS and IM worker will jointly determine how to prepare the family for the team meeting, work with the family to set up the meeting, and provide the necessary facilitation, support and follow up.  If either the IM or CS worker think collaboration around a shared family would be beneficial prior to the time they are flagged by the system for a FST, they may begin the process by contacting their counterpart.  For families reaching their lifetime limit, that do not have open FCS cases, IM staff will be responsible for reviewing each case with a team approach much like FST meetings, and facilitating an FST meeting when appropriate to do so.

Copies of the documentation of FST meetings conducted with these families, such as the CS-1, CS-16b, IM-300, or CS-FST for Intact Families pilot form, should be mailed to Kathryn Sapp, CS Unit Manager, Central Office, P.O. Box 88, Jefferson City, Missouri, 65103 for tracking purposes.

FAMILY-CENTERED SERVICES (FCS) CONSULTANT CONTRACTS

FCS Consultant Contracts existing in each judicial circuit will be awarded by January 2002.  Family-Centered Services consultants will be trained in the FST process and utilized for training and technical assistance for frontline IM and CS workers.  FCS Consultants may be used to model facilitation skills by taking the lead in facilitating FST meetings and discussing the process with staff members.

MEETING THE CHALLENGE

In July 2002, a first wave of families will reach the Temporary Assistance lifetime limit.  Other families will then continue to reach their limit at regular intervals, thereafter.  It will be critical at the Area/County level to develop a system of scheduling to ensure that all families that have this need are being served.  A monthly list of families, who have open FCS cases and are due to reach their Temporary Assistance lifetime limit in July, 2002, will be provided to each county where the families reside.  Subsequent lists will follow monthly, eight months prior to the families reaching their lifetime limit.  The list will aid county offices in identifying and scheduling the families in need of this service, six months prior to reaching their lifetime limit.

• Review this memorandum with all Children's Services staff and Income Maintenance staff.

• Children's Services staff will replace Chapter C-3 in the Family-Centered Services Manual and Section 1, Chapter 3 in the Family-Centered Out-Of-Home Care Manual. 

• Income Maintenance staff will review Children's Services Policy as described above. 

• All comments and recommendations regarding this subject should be cleared through normal supervisory channels.