For years, the Child and Family Services Review has been a core way states assess safety, permanency and well-being in their child welfare systems. The review is intended to highlight strengths, identify areas for improvement and guide systemwide change.

In practice, the process often requires extensive documentation across multiple systems, which for some agencies makes it harder to focus on the priorities that will drive lasting improvement.

A new, optional federal pilot is testing a different approach. Instead of asking states to address every identified area at once, the pilot allows participating states to focus on specific priority outcomes and track progress using data.

Focusing improvement where it matters most

Under the traditional CFSR framework, states develop Program Improvement Plans that can involve dozens of measures and significant administrative effort.

The pilot offers some flexibility in how states structure improvement efforts. Participating states may concentrate on specific priorities, better align data with practice and reduce duplicative reporting. The goal is to give states more time to focus on implementation and continuous quality improvement.

The shift reflects a growing recognition that improvement is more effective when systems concentrate on a manageable number of goals rather than spreading resources across competing demands.

Aligning accountability with outcomes

The pilot also reflects broader efforts to better align accountability with outcomes for children and families. By emphasizing clearer measures of progress, timely data and sustained learning, the approach is intended to support improvement beyond review cycles.

Participation is voluntary. States that opt in agree to specific data-sharing expectations to support learning and evaluation. The work aligns with efforts to improve the availability of homes for children in care, helping states focus improvement efforts on outcomes that matter most.

Why this matters for Youth Villages and our partners

Youth Villages works alongside states and local agencies to support outcome-focused improvement, including strengthening continuous quality improvement, using data to guide practice and implementing evidence-based approaches at scale. That work closely mirrors the intent of the pilot, which emphasizes focus, learning and sustained progress rather than compliance alone.

For state agencies and their partners, the pilot represents a potential shift in how improvement efforts are organized and measured. Rather than preparing primarily for periodic reviews, systems are encouraged to sustain attention on outcomes and learning over time.

As states consider whether to participate, the pilot offers an opportunity to test whether a more focused, outcome-driven approach can better support lasting improvement for children and families.

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