Voluntary safety plans

Voluntary safety plans

Voluntary safety plans are widely used to rescue children from abuse and neglect. But they spark mixed feelings considering their efficacy. The system has helped give children better lives in foster care. The foster parents take on the full responsibility of raising the child. However, the safety plans can be wrongfully used by Child Protective Services to violate parents’ constitutional rights by taking away their children. Better criteria should be put in place to gauge the level of the threat affecting the child.

In some cases, bias might influence the application of safety plans, which negatively affects the care they get. The criteria set the goals and targets for every family in bringing up the children, which places a good foundation in the curbing of child abuse and neglect. Safety plans are written agreements between the family and Child Protective Services. But, it acts as a solution in the short term while addressing concerns regarding the safety of children. The plan is not legally binding but rather a voluntary agreement.

The race, socio-economic status, and culture of the family can affect the outcomes of the safety plan negotiations. The three factors are fundamental attributes of personal identity. Thus, people use them to consider their perception at hand. If the Child Protective Services official is not welcome to diversity, the negotiation might be influenced by bias. For instance, if the officer considers a certain race violent, they will be biased to take away the child. The same applies to the culture and economic status of the family. It is paramount for CPS to make parents from a low-income family in case of a report to comply with the set rules as they acquire access to services that are subsidized by the government. It depends on the CPS officials’ inter-cultural skills.

All the risk factors assessed in determining the threat of child abuse matter in the investigation. Thus, they should all be considered necessary in the process, which makes sorting out the 3 most essential factors difficult. But, the concise list below holds the three elements I believe the key in the investigation of a report.

• The characteristics of the caretaker consist of the capacity to offer quality emotional and physical care for the kid. Criminal behavior history and drug abuse, cooperation with the agency, and the overall desire to protect the child are factors that must be considered.
• Environmental factors such as living conditions like safety, sanitation, availability of utilities, and basic needs talk a lot about the situation. Kids deserve to be provided with all they need for their overall well-being. These factors determine the quality of life enjoyed by the kids.
• Nature of the maltreatment is the fourth fundamental risk factor. CPS should look into the form, severity, kind, and occurrence of the abuse. It can in the way of deprivation of basic needs, physical assault, sexual abuse, threats, or economic exploitation. These risk factors are the basics to understanding the danger and providing suitable care interventions.