BUSSW Researchers Address Child Care Gap for Children Involved in Protective Services
Children 5 years old and younger who have been involved with child protective services (CPS) are not enrolled in early care and education (ECE) programs as often as other children their age. This gap in accessing quality care may be due to barriers within child protective services and child care subsidies. A new study by researchers at BU School of Social Work examines these issues by interviewing focus groups with 84 child care providers in Massachusetts who offer subsidized care to CPS-involved children.
The study seeks to understand their experiences and what child care providers need to better support this underserved group. Their findings revealed three types of issues to address:
- Individual factors: providers find fulfillment in helping children in protective services and feel their experience and knowledge are valuable, but they also recognize the unique needs these children have.
- Child and family challenges: kids may experience difficult circumstances that can manifest as behavioral difficulties, families can be hard to engage, and inconsistent attendance due to transportation issues creates disruptions.
- Community and policy challenges: providers say that they need more funding, better training in trauma-informed care and behavioral management, clearer communication about children’s needs, and more flexibility in subsidy policies to make care more accessible.
The study offers recommendations for policymakers, child care providers, and future research to improve support for CPS-involved children, including steps to:
- Offer more trauma-informed training to all child care providers
- Simplify and improve subsidy access so children can get consistent care
- Increase payments to providers who serve CPS-involved children to reflect the added work and expertise needed
- Better connect child care providers with CPS workers and mental health providers
Making the system more equitable and supportive for CPS-involved children can reduce stress on families and help young children thrive.
“Experiences of Child Care Providers Serving Subsidy-receiving Children Involved in the Child Protective Services System: Implications for Equitable Access” is by Profs. Yoonsook Ha, Postdoctoral Researcher Julie Nicholson, and Research Scientist Kate Giapponi Schneider, and Profs. Mary Collins and Pamela Joshi.