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When organizing protective services an agency should begin by assessing the mandated responsibilities and then by determining how the agency as a whole can accomplish the tasks.
A. Intake
Each agency shall have specific written procedures for receiving CPS reports and for providing supervisory decision making 24 hours a day. The DSS is responsible for receiving reports of suspected child abuse, neglect, or dependency and evaluating these reports to determine if the reported information meets the statutory guidelines for child maltreatment. The Intake worker is also responsible for asking questions that will help the supervisors determine the urgency of the response time, the presence of other children in the home, and information that will help the line worker to prepare for the CPS assessment. In addition, the agency has an opportunity to educate reporters regarding State statutes, agency guidelines, the roles and responsibilities of child protective services, and other community agencies that may be of assistance.
The average caseload size for child welfare intake shall be no greater than one worker per 100 CPS referrals a month.
Further discussion of the intake process is discussed in Chapter VIII, Section1407 of the Family Services Manual.
B. CPS Assessment
The purpose of the CPS assessment is to gather sufficient information to determine if:
Work schedules of staff shall be sufficiently flexible to meet client needs. Intervention during this stage sets the tone for all future work with the children and their families. Assessing the family’s strengths and needs on a comprehensive basis helps to tailor services to their needs and is consistent with the System of Care principle for individualized strengths-based care. During the CPS assessment, the agency must not only determine whether child abuse, neglect, or dependency occurred and the risk of maltreatment that may occur in the future, but it must also actively involve the parents in the process. Use of the structured decision making tools ensures that all the necessary information is obtained to determine if the family needs services. The decision making process also exemplifies the System of Care principle of child and family involvement by engaging the family in the CPS In-Home Services process. County Departments of Social Services are required to complete the comprehensive structured decision making tools. Further discussion of the steps taken and the tools completed in a CPS assessment are discussed in Chapter VIII, Section 1408 of the Family Services Manual.
C. CPS In-Home Services
Social workers, families and the family’s supports together determine the strategies to be used to change the conditions and behaviors that resulted in child abuse and neglect. Maintaining consistency with System of Care principles, the primary goal of the CPS In-Home Services process is to engage family members to reduce or eliminate the risk of maltreatment as well as to agree on what the family, their support system, the social worker, and other service providers will do to achieve needed changes. When the court is involved in a particular case, the court may order the parent or caretaker to participate in services or to complete certain actions on behalf of the child (N.C.G.S. § 7B-904). If the child cannot be maintained safely in the home or voluntarily placed safely with relatives or other kin while services are continued, then the agency should seek removal of custody through the juvenile court.
A further discussion of CPS In-Home Services and the tools completed are contained in Chapter VIII, Section 1412 of the Family Services Manual.
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For questions or clarification on any of the policy contained in these manuals, please contact your local county office.
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