4.4.1 Safety Factor Identification | 4.4.2 Safety Factor Description | 4.4.3 Persons Who Were Not Assessed | 4.4.4 Mitigating Circumstances/Family Strengths | 4.4.5 Safety Decision | 4.4.6 Safety Plan | 4.4.7 Family Meeting and the Safety Plan | 4.4.8 Closing CERAP
Maltreatment is defined as the consequence of interactions between risk factors and underlying conditions that result in harm or risk of harm. It is the assessment of these factors and conditions individually and in combination that become the focus of ensuring safety.
The determination of immediate safety and future risk is initially made by the CFW and continues to be assessed by the CPSW throughout the completion of the investigation. The assessment of safety and risk follows a process that assesses the degree of potential harm to a child while identifying family strengths, resources and service needs. The CPSW conducts a safety assessment using the Child Endangerment Risk Assessment Protocol (CERAP) during the initial contact with all the alleged victims and caretakers. When used in a timely fashion, the CERAP provides workers with a mechanism to quickly assess the potential for moderate to severe harm to a child in the immediate or near future so appropriate protective actions may be taken. The protocol assists workers in their decision-making process as to whether a child is "safe" or "unsafe" by identifying immediate threats to safety and in identifying actions or measures that can be initiated through a safety plan to prevent the child's removal from his or her home.
CERAP is not unique to just one stage of the case. Informally, safety is assessed at each contact with any involved children. In addition, safety must be formally reassessed when there are changes to the family's conditions that impact the alleged victims' safety and again at closure of the investigation via the CERAP process. Thus, it is a "life of the case" protocol to help focus the worker's decision-making. The major steps that are required to apply the Protocol include an assessment and analysis of the safety factors as defined in the CERAP (CFS 1441)
Department and contracted private agency staff are required to utilize CERAP at specified time frames. For child protection purposes, the CERAP must be completed within 24 hours after the CPSW first interviews the alleged child victim(s). Also, it must be completed any other time the worker suspects or believes that a child may be unsafe, lapsing protective custody, changing an existing safety plan, to verify (on the next business day) current safety if the report was initiated by after-hours staff and at the conclusion of any investigation unless a service case is opened. All children in the home, alleged victims and non-involved children must be included. The supervisor may waive this requirement if the initial safety assessment was marked safe and no more than 30 days have elapsed since it was completed.
The CPSW must identify which of the 15 safety factors listed on the CFS 1441 relate to behaviors or conditions that may be associated with a child who is in immediate danger of moderate to severe harm by checking the "YES" box corresponding to the identified factor. ALL children in the home, whether alleged victims or not, are to be assessed by both child protection and child welfare staff.
The CPSW shall take the following actions to assess the safety of children:
When safety factors have been identified, the CPSW will record the safety factor by number and describe how the particular factor relates to specific individuals, behaviors, conditions and circumstances.
If any members of the household or others who are frequently part of the household have not been included in the assessment, list who they are, why they were not assessed, and a plan/timeframe for when the assessment of these individuals will occur. When they are assessed, if the assessment changes the status of the prior assessment, a new CERAP (CFS 1441) is to be completed. If the assessment does not change, the CPSW shall record the fact on Part B.2 of the CFS 1441 and certify by providing a date and signature in the appropriate space. The supervisor shall also sign and date the certification. The date of the certification should be entered on page 1 of the CFS 1441.
When safety factors are recorded, the CPSW will describe any mitigating circumstances and the family strengths that may serve to control the safety factors on the CERAP (Part B.3 Family Strengths/Mitigating Circumstances) and the CHILD ABUSE/NEGLECT INTERVIEW NOTES (CANTS 17-A). Sometimes the presence of a safety factor can be partially or fully controlled or eliminated by a family strength or mitigating circumstance. Therefore, consider all of the factors known about the family's strengths when making a decision regarding safety.
Even if there are no safety factors checked "YES", the CPSW must explain in Part B.1 of the CFS 1441 how he/she determined that the child is safe.
The assessment of safety is "grounded in (a) being well informed; (b) using prudence, reason and logic to analyze information; and (c) being conservatively guided to ensure child safety while being respectful of parents' rights" (Holder, 1994).
The CPSW will identify the safety decision as safe or unsafe based upon the assessment of all safety factors and any other information that is known about the case. When a decision is made that a child is "UNSAFE", a safety plan must be developed and implemented to avoid immediate danger to the child.
If the child is determined to be or there is information that suggests the child may be "UNSAFE," the worker must conduct an in-person interview with the parent(s)/caretaker immediately the same day to ensure the child's safety and develop the safety plan.
A safety plan is implemented when it is likely that a child could be moderately or severely harmed now or in the near future. The plan must be based on the safety factors identified in the assessment. It should address whether there are mitigating circumstances that would permit the child to remain at home if a protective plan is developed and implemented. If a child cannot be safety maintained in the home, removal is considered. After the safety plan has been developed, it must be implemented to ensure that all of the designated tasks are completed effectively. The plan must have a timeframe for implementation, re-assessment, and closure.
Safety plans are not to be used when the alleged child victim(s) are assessed as safe.
Some safety plans fail because they are poorly developed and the conditions of the plan are not well communicated. Effective safety plans contain the following fundamental elements:
The CPSW who is responsible for developing and implementing the plan must explain the plan to the family and, whenever the family has an active role in carrying out the plan, obtain the family's commitment to cooperate and participate in carrying out the plan. The worker shall document the family's agreement and commitment on a Child Abuse/Neglect Interview Notes (CANTS 17-A) and secure the appropriate signatures on the CFS 1441-AIn efforts to be pro-active, a concurrent safety plan shall be developed in the event the primary plan is no longer viable for all cases in which a child has been assessed as unsafe.
The safety plan is to be used to control the situation until a more stable/permanent change can take place. This step requires a written description of what will be done or what actions will be taken to protect the child(ren), who will be responsible for implementing the components of the safety plan, the anticipated timeframe of the plan, the possible ramifications should the plan fail, and how/who will monitor the safety plan.
The CPSW who initiates a safety plan is continuously responsible for implementation of the safety plan and the safety of the child(ren). If case responsibility is to be transferred to another CPSW or to a permanency worker after the safety plan is initiated, the CPSW who initiated the safety plan will remain responsible for the safety plan until the responsibility for services to children and their family is transferred to another worker. The CPSW transferring the case shall discuss the conditions of the safety plan with the receiving worker at the time of the transfer of case responsibility. The receiving worker and CPSW shall consult before either effects a change in placement of the minor while the investigation is pending unless the child is in immediate danger.
The family meeting is a forum to engage the family, and their support system in the planning and decision-making process. Its purpose is to provide consultation to the worker and supervisor, including information gathering, evaluation of progress and decision-making. While generally employed by casework staff, family meetings can be an invaluable process for the CPSW and supervisor to evaluate the strength of a safety plan, extended family support, alternate placement resources if custody becomes necessary, discuss concurrent planning and permanency options, and to clarify Departmental policy.
During the investigative stage the family meeting consists of the CPSW, supervisor (if necessary), permanency worker (if one is involved), parents, child (when age and circumstances indicate this is appropriate), extended family, service providers and any others who may be identified by the family. Prior to the meeting it may be necessary to secure a signed CFS 600-3 Consent for Release of Information from the parents to include non-Department staff in the family meeting.
The family meeting, participants, and outcomes shall be documented on the CHILD ABUSE/NEGLECT INTERVIEW NOTES (CANTS 17-A).
The CERAP is the first assessment in the life of the case. It is important that the CPSW engage the family in the process of assessing safety. The parents/legal guardian of the alleged child victim who is assessed as "unsafe" must sign the completed CFS 1441 A-CERAP and they must agree and be willing to comply with the plan. The adult responsible for carrying out the safety plan must also sign the document. The form must then be signed and dated by the CPSW after completion. Finally, the respective supervisor or designee shall review, authorize and sign the completed CERAP. (Policy Transmittal 2000.24)
At the conclusion of the formal investigation, unless a service case is opened, a closing safety assessment (CFS 1441) must be conducted on all alleged child victims. All children in the home, alleged victims and non-involved children must be included. The supervisor may waive this provision if the initial safety assessment was marked "safe" and no more than 30 days have elapsed since it was completed.
If there has been a determination that a good faith report does not exist, then the CPSW informs the alleged perpetrator/maltreator of the recommended decision, responds to any questions and informs him/her that the Department will no longer be involved. The discussion is documented on a CHILD ABUSE/NEGLECT INTERVIEW NOTES (CANTS 17-A).
4.4.1 Safety Factor Identification | 4.4.2 Safety Factor Description | 4.4.3 Persons Who Were Not Assessed | 4.4.4 Mitigating Circumstances/Family Strengths | 4.4.5 Safety Decision | 4.4.6 Safety Plan | 4.4.7 Family Meeting and the Safety Plan | 4.4.8 Closing CERAP