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Effective: 4/16/2025

C1.2 Family and Community Wellbeing Through Primary Prevention

Legal Authority

Introduction

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The goal of primary prevention is to ensure family and community well-being. Effective systems of primary prevention result in well-resourced communities, and families can easily access the support they need. This significantly reduces incidents of maltreatment, reports to child protective services (CPS), and the need to rely upon child protection interventions.  Primary prevention efforts, programs, and resources benefit all families and are readily available to families in a thriving community. These are not just formal services, but often resources that are taken for granted if available. Examples might include access to pediatric care, high-quality child care, transportation, parent support groups (including informal ones like moms’ groups on social media), public libraries, educational and employment opportunities for parents, and faith-based organizations. Other examples of primary prevention include public awareness campaigns about positive parenting, home visiting programs for new parents (e.g., Health Access Nurturing Development Services (HANDS)), and other public health services. Efforts to ensure communities have these resources available to all families are the first opportunity to ensure child and family well-being and prevent the likelihood of maltreatment.  

Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention (CBCAP) grants are federal funding provided to states to support primary prevention efforts through public-private partnerships that support community-based family-strengthening services. The funding aims to support and strengthen families in their communities to prevent the need for child welfare intervention. In Kentucky, CBCAP funds support Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky (PCAK) activities​, including increasing collaboration and uniting voices around prevention through a robust partner network, awareness events and campaigns, parent engagement, education, and support services. These funds also support community Collaborations for Children (CCC), in-home services, parent engagement meetings, and regional networks of community partners and parents. It is important to note that CBCAP funding is intended to strengthen families and prevent the need for CPS involvement. These resources may not be used for programs for families currently involved with CPS.  

The Primary Prevention Branch of the Division of Prevention and Community Wellbeing (DPCW) is responsible for agency activities related to primary prevention and programming funded by the CBCAP grant. Primary Prevention Branch work also includes collaboration with community partners in grant-funded or other opportunities to support primary prevention efforts at the community level.  


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Practice Guidance

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  • A full continuum of child welfare services must include primary prevention efforts in local communities to ensure families are strengthened and supported. Strong and supported families are much less likely to require CPS interventions. Child welfare agencies are mandated to support three (3) goals: safety, permanency, and well-being. While primary prevention efforts support all three (3), investment in primary prevention represents a significant focus on well-being. An increased focus on well-being reduces the need for resources for safety and permanency as fewer children experience maltreatment and enter care.   
  • Both DPCW and local office staff participate in primary prevention activities.  


Procedure

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DPCW Staff: 
  1. Assess the need for primary prevention resources across the state;
  2. Plan and collaborate with community partners and those with lived experience to implement and maintain a continuum of prevention programming that is responsive to the needs of families and promotes family strengthening;
  3. In accordance with the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), utilize CBCAP and other available funding to collaborate with community partners. The goal is to develop, operate, expand, and enhance community-based and prevention-focused programs and activities aimed at strengthening and supporting families. These initiatives should be designed to prevent child abuse and neglect, ensuring they are accessible, effective, culturally appropriate, and built upon existing strengths.
    1. Offer assistance to families; 
    2. Provide early, comprehensive support for parents; 
    3. Promote the development of parenting skills, especially in young parents and parents with very young children; 
    4. Increase family stability; 
    5. Improve family access to other formal and informal resources and opportunities for assistance available within communities, including access to such resources and opportunities for unaccompanied homeless youth; 
    6. Support the additional needs of families with children with disabilities through respite care and other services; 
    7. Demonstrate a commitment to involving parents in the planning and program implementation, including involvement of parents of children with disabilities, parents who are individuals with disabilities, racial and ethnic minorities, and members of other underrepresented or underserved groups; and 
    8. Provide referrals to early health and developmental services;
  4. Provide technical assistance to staff and community partners on CBCAP and primary prevention programs and resources.
The SSW:  
  1. Participates in primary prevention activities in their regions whenever possible.  This may include Child Abuse Prevention Month activities, regional prevention collaboratives, early childhood regional collaboratives, CCC, Regional Interagency Councils (RIAC), or other community-based initiatives;
  2. Refers families to family-strengthening programs in local communities;
  3. Communicates needs and gaps in services to DPCW so that these may be considered for future planning;


Documents

Revisions