(FEI) Family Finding-Revised involves engaging, locating, and actively including family/kin/community in the support, planning and service delivery for the family. FF revised is an ongoing process to create a lifelong support network for the child and family.  The revised model combines a holistic approach emphasizing well-being and healing the whole child.

It incorporates requirements of Pennsylvania’s family finding legislation (Act 118 of 2022), Juvenile Court Procedural Rule 1149,  Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) | VitalSigns | CDC, Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child Resilience Work, and components of Kevin Campbell's Family Finding Model.

FEI counties are required to provide a Family Finding Report to the Court for each child at every hearing. This report details the child welfare agency’s efforts to locate and engage family/kin/community, how supports plan to be involved in the child’s life, a Child Connections Circle, and the Child’s Activity Calendar outlining the child’s activities. This is the roadmap to resiliency.

Crisis Response Family Meeting gathers family, kin, and community together within 24-72 hours to mitigate the emergent event that is occurring within the family (immediately to within 24 hours of the emergent event) or a Rapid Response Family Meeting (within 72 hours of the emergent event). The goal is to address the immediate concern leading to the need to remove the child from their home. This inclusive family approach is designed to give the family a voice and actively involve the family in decision-making.

Crisis/ Rapid Response Family Meetings are not safety plans. A safety plan requires due process. If you have questions about safety planning in your county, you should talk to your CYS administrator.  How counties handle safety planning differs from county to county. For more information, please review the CRRFM vs. Safety Plan

CRRFM Overview one page handout.

There is a clear link between high-quality legal representation and positive child welfare outcomes.  For judges to make the best possible decisions about families, it is critically important that the judge receive the most accurate and complete information possible from all parties.* IM-17-02 | The Administration for Children and Families (hhs.gov)

The Family Engagement Initiative Enhanced Legal Representation component is grounded in PA State Roundtable’s approved Standards of Practice for Parent Attorneys, Guardian Ad Litem & Legal Counsel practicing in Pennsylvania's Child Dependency System.  While all standards of practice are essential, the FEI focuses on three primary standards and one additional standard taken out of the  American Bar Association Standards of Practice for Lawyers Representing Child Welfare Agencies. 

Each FEI County identifies at least two of the four standards to help support enhanced legal practices. The selected standards are included and monitored in the county’s FEI Implementation Plan.