DEFINITION:
To work towards family reunification while, at the same time, developing an alternative permanent plan.
WHAT IS CONCURRENT PLANNING?
Concurrent Planning model was developed in
the 1980's by Lutheran Social Services of Washington and Idaho. The model was developed as an alternative to traditional child welfare practice of sequential planning. It is both philosophy and a case management
method emphasizing candor, goal setting and time limits with birth parents. It is based on the belief that foster care outcomes are determined as much by the agency's approach as by the parental situation.
Concurrent Planning provides for reunification services to birth families while simultaneously developing an alternative permanent plan for the child. PHILOSOPHY:
* Families have power to influence and change the lives of children.
* Safety of children is paramount. Children must be safe; emotionally, physically and psychologically,
in order for normal child development to occur.
* Foster care is a temporary setting, not a place for children to grow up
* Multiple and lengthy out-of-home placements are clearly detrimental to healthy child development
* Permanency Planning should begin as soon as the child enters out-of-home care.
* Efforts to reunify children with families must be fair, timely and safe.
* Permanent Resource Families need adequate training, resource and support.
GOALS:
The goals of Permanent Family Resource Center are to support the safety and well-being of children and families by:
* shortening the length of time children spend in out-of-home placements,
* reducing the number of out-of-home placements children experience and,
* encouraging long-term relationships with important people in a child's life.
PLAN:
Permanent Family Resource Center will recruit, train and support families who will care for children in their home, support a reunification plan, facilitate structured visitation and either adopt or be permanently
involved in the child's life should the child return to its family of origin. Permanent Family Resource Center will work extensively with the family of origin to develop and maintain a plan for their children's
future.
PRACTICE METHODS:
* Perform culturally respectful family and child assessments early in the process.
* Give full disclosure to all parties about the impact of foster care on children, birth parents'
rights and responsibilities, supports the agency can provide, permanency options and the
consequences on not following through with the case plan.
* Use Family Group Conferencing strategies to involve families in planning for a child's future.
* Be clear about time limits designated by law, using time limits and the crisis of placement as
motivators for change.
* Structured and frequent visitation to promote supportive relationships.
* Early search and involvement of immediate and extended family.
* Foster families serve as permanent resource to the child, whether or not the child is adopted by them.
* Case managers will use written agreements and scrupulous documentation.
* The agency will attempt to secure voluntary relinquishment of parental rights rather than the more
adversarial court termination of parental rights.
* The agency will work closely with the judicial system to assure legally sound case planning.
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