The issue of homelessness among families with children first became an area of concern in the 1980s, when this demographic began rising at a disproportionate rate in comparison to single homeless adults, and by the end of that decade comprised one-third of the national homeless population.1 Current studies now estimate that nationally, 25% of children who are homeless either have or will experience foster care, more than thirty-four times the rate of children in the U.S. generally.2 While many factors contribute to child welfare involvement, housing insecurity, a term that encompasses both housing instability and homelessness, has traditionally been one of the least studied.
This issue of insights includes the following:
• Data and studies on California's housing insecure families, and how housing challenges factor into their trajectory of child welfare involvement both at the front end with family maintenance interventions and removal decisions, as well as case planning for reunification.
• Examples of policies and programs that offer important learnings to improve outcomes for families with housing insecurity.
• Opportunities and recommendations to address the challenges of housing insecurity with the goal of improving outcomes for California’s children and families.
[For more on this report by the California Child Welfare Co-Investment Partnership, go to http://co-invest.org/wp-conten...ght_XV_FINAL_web.pdf]
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