Improving Child Welfare: Safety Revisions The Division of Safety and Permanence (DSP) continues to deliver updates on and improvements to child welfare practice through the Improving Child Welfare package. Improving Child Welfare is a collection of efforts aimed at better supporting families and the child welfare workforce by streamlining the work and centering family engagement. Safety Revisions is one of four projects within the Improving Child Welfare package. The Safety Revisions work has a primary goal: Revising the safety decision-making process so it is easier for families to understand and for Child Protective Services (CPS) professionals to implement. The Safety Revisions project is currently focusing on highlighting and supporting two important elements of CPS practice: parental protective capacities and collaborating with tribes. There will be small changes to the safety plan template (SAAP) in eWiSACWIS in February 2025 to help support these crucial practices. Parental protective capacities (PPCs) are key to child safety and determining whether or how CPS needs to intervene. Small documentation changes will also be coming to eWiSACWIS in February 2025 that help center PPCs at different decision points in the safety assessment, analysis and planning process. When a child has Native American heritage, it is both important and required to identify any potential tribal affiliation, make diligent efforts to confirm the child’s Indian status and collaborate with the Indian child’s tribe/s. Mirroring recent changes to the IA template, there will be space to document information about tribal engagement efforts in the SAAP.
