ASFA TRAINING PROJECT PHONE POLL FOR COURT IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS

Pennsylvania

1. How would you rate the child welfare agency staff in terms of their understanding of ASFA requirements? Please rate the understanding on a scale from 1 to 5 with 1 being 'poor' and 5 being 'comprehensive'.

a. Why did you give them that rating?

NOTE: John responded from the perspective of Philadelphia, not the state as a whole.

There has been a significant amount of training on the ASFA requirements for staff at all levels. Also, state Department of Public Welfare has issued several bulletins covering various aspects of ASFA.

2. Based on the court's experience to date, what skills do you think child welfare supervisors and workers need to have to implement ASFA?

NOTE: In Philadelphia the Children and Youth agency is the Department of Human Services (DHS).

a. Supervisors?

Supervisors must be very conscious of the ASFA timelines; they must regularly review every case of children in care to assure that the time lines are adhered to.

They must know how to assist their staff to testify in court regarding permanency planning.

They must help their staff have a clear understanding of safety---how to describe safe living conditions and how to testify that a child is safe.

b. Workers?

Workers must be very conscious of the ASFA timelines; they must regularly review every case of children in care to assure that the time lines are adhered to.

They must know how to testify in court regarding permanency planning.

They must have a clear understanding of safety---how to describe safe living conditions and how to testify that a child is safe.

3. As part of your state's ASFA implementation, have the court and the child welfare agency undertaken or changed any day to day joint activities?
Yes No
If yes, please describe

The Court Improvement Project has had a Model Court Project in Philadelphia going for 2 years. Previously, instead of the case social worker, the DHS Court Representative often appeared in court to represent the department. Now, in every Model Court case and in more and more in other dependency court cases, the social worker is expected to be in court prepared to testify on the safety of the child's placement.

The Model Court developed a Court Order form that contains all of the ASFA issues. The form, which helps assure accountability, documents judicial determinations, is signed by the judge and is distributed to all the involved parties, such as parents, social workers, attorneys and CASA workers. All the dependency courts now use this Court Order form.

a. Has communication changed? Yes No
If yes, please describe

One of the Court Improvement Project subcommittees is an interagency working team. While this group existed before ASFA was passed and the regulations finalized, the team has dealt with ASFA issues.

b. Are you getting the information you need regarding cases from the agency?
Yes No
If no, please describe.
Between the written report prepared by the department's Court Representative and the fact that the social workers are appearing in court more often to testify on the child's living situation, we are getting sufficient information. We are considering a modification to the written report to assure that reasonable efforts are addressed at every hearing.

The Court and Child Welfare automated data systems now exchange information so that the Court knows key facts such as the case number, the date that services were accepted and the date that children went into placement and the agency knows up to date information on hearings from the Court's records.

4. How do you handle training on ASFA for court personnel?
a. Please describe the training.

There was federal and regional joint training on ASFA and additional training to help prepare for the Title IV-E reviews. Philadelphia developed a single, all-purpose ASFA Court Order and trained every interested party on it last fall.

b. Who does the training?
The Court Improvement Project Committee produced and then trained on the revised Court Order.

c. Is the training just on ASFA or is it incorporated into other training that you provide?
Generally it is broader than ASFA.

d. Have you done any training with or for the child welfare agency?
Yes No
If yes, please describe.
When we trained the Court Clerks on the Court Order, the Court Representatives were there.

e. Have you done any training with or for the agency attorneys?
Yes No
If yes, please describe.
Through the Model Courts Project we trained private attorneys on the 'best practices' used by the Model Court.

5. What has worked best for you in terms of working with the child welfare agency as it implements the ASFA requirements?

The Court Improvement Project Committee has a special sub-committee that deals with interagency issues. Members of that sub-committee include, child welfare staff, the Court, parent advocates and child advocates. This group discusses implementation issues and promotes a responsive, coordinated implementation.

6. What do you view as barriers to your work with the agency as it implements the requirements of ASFA?

Federal law and PA laws are not clear on what a permanency hearing is. PA law lumps review and permanency hearings together so after the first hearing, all hearings are, in effect, permanency hearings.

Also the timelines for TPR are too short. It is artificial to think that after 15 to 22 months you can make an informed decision in every case. This timeline should be reviewed.

7. Is there anything else that you want to tell us regarding the best way to implement the requirements of ASFA?

The Court Orders must specifically mention that reasonable efforts were taken for the child and family. If, due to a clerical error or oversight, the reasonable efforts discussion is not noted on the Court Order, the jurisdiction could lose many dollars. This is a special problem in large cities.

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