NCCWE Toolkits

• Youth Permanency Toolkit
  This web-based toolkit from the National Center for Child Welfare Excellence (NCCWE) provides a historical perspective on youth permanency as well as current definitions. This toolkit also provides information on the adolescent brain. Based on a review of the literature and current practice, the toolkit is organized into five core components. The toolkit discusses each core component and provides related resources and policy examples. The toolkit also includes an organizational self study which child welfare agencies can use to review their policies and practices and identify technical assistance and training needs.
  
  

• Working with Siblings in Foster Care Toolkit
  This new web-based toolkit from the National Center for Child Welfare Excellence (NCCWE) provides an overview of what we know about sibling relationships for children and youth in foster care; shares children/youth’s views of siblings, as well as legal and policy definitions of siblings; and discusses how siblings are addressed in the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 and Child and Family Service Reviews. Based on a review of the literature and current practice, the toolkit is organized into ten dynamic practice components. The toolkit discusses each practice component and provides related resources and policy examples. The toolkit also includes an organizational self study, which child welfare agencies can use to review their policies and practices and identify technical assistance and training needs.
  
  
  
• Guardianship: A Web-based Primer
  Guardianship is an extremely important area of child welfare policy and practice, and is huge in scope. Rather than attempting to address all guardianship issues in this document, in this new online resource, NCCWE strategically presents an overview of the salient issues. It is intended as an online tool for programs, states and tribes where promising practices, programs and resources are made available. For this primer, NCCWE thoroughly reviewed provisions in the legislation that address guardianship. Our goal is to provide the field with information on the components that support guardianship. This primer provides a broad array of resources from research, state policies, procedures and practice and includes an organizational self-study guide.
  
  
  
• Kinship Care and the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008: A Web-based Toolkit
  This NCCWE web-based toolkit discusses the critical kinship care practices addressed in the Fostering Connections Act: notice to relatives, foster care licensing standards, placement with siblings, and family connections grants. The toolkit provides information and links to resources on each of these topics. The toolkit is accompanied by an organizational self study on kinship care, which can be used to review kinship care policies and practices through the lens of the Fostering Connections Act.
  
  
  
• Placement Stability: A Web-based Practice Toolkit
  This online toolkit provides information on the three core components that support placement stability practice: Individualized assessment and placement services for children and youth; Recruitment, assessment, selection, and support of caregivers; and, Placement stability policies and practices for child welfare organizations. The toolkit includes a broad array of resources from research, state policies, procedures and practices, and curricula, as well as an organizational self study guide.
  
  
  
• Concurrent Planning: A Web-based Practice Toolkit
  This toolkit was funded through a cooperative agreement between the Hunter College School of Social Work in New York and the Children’s Bureau to the National Center for Child Welfare Excellence (NCCWE).This toolkit is intended as an online tool for states and tribes where promising practices, programs and resources are made available. Since this publication is a web-based toolkit NCCWE plans to regularly update it as new programs, practices, publications and policies that focus on concurrent planning become available. It can provide an opportunity to connect with colleagues and share program successes and challenges. In putting together this toolkit, we reviewed current research and documentation on concurrent planning. Our goal is to provide the field with information on the nine components necessary for successful concurrent planning practice. We provide a broad array of resources from research, peer reviewed articles, state policies, procedures and practices, tip sheets, curricula and an organizational self study guide.
  
  
• Family Engagement: A Web-based Practice Toolkit
  This toolkit was funded through a cooperative agreement between the Hunter College School of Social Work in New York and the Children’s Bureau to the National Center for Child Welfare Excellence. This toolkit is intended as an online tool for programs, states and tribes where promising practices, programs and resources are made available. It can provide an opportunity to connect with colleagues and share program successes and challenges.  For this toolkit, we have chosen a few examples and recognize that they are by no means the only programs using some of these principles and practices. Our goal is to continuously update this on-line toolkit to reflect current practices and resources in the field and recognize programs and practices.