Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families joins more than 35 state, county, and tribal child-serving agencies in sharing information about best practices and protective factors to help families become more resilient as part of an effort to prevent abuse and neglect.
In our current system child welfare agencies often meet families after a report of harm has already occurred. DCYF and other agencies in the National Partnership for Child Safety (NPCS) are trying to invest upstream, so families have greater access to resources and protective factors like knowledge of child development and parental resilience, keeping them safe, thriving and out of the child welfare system.
Every April, the nation recognizes National Child Abuse Prevention Month, an initiative rooted in communities like those in Washington State working together to serve children and their families in impactful ways that can help to lessen child abuse and maltreatment.
To learn more about DCYF prevention services and upstream efforts, visit https://www.dcyf.wa.gov/services/child-development-supports/sfwa.
As members of the NPCS, DCYF has a shared goal of strengthening families, promoting innovations and a public health response to reducing and preventing child maltreatment and fatalities. NPCS was formed in 2018 as a quality improvement collaborative working across jurisdictions to reduce child maltreatment fatalities through the application of safety science and shared data.