A Survey of State Child Welfare Policies and Initiatives

Part of the Resource Collection: Child Welfare and Early Childhood: Cross-Systems Collaboration to Improve Outcomes for Young Children and Their Families Report

By: Zero to Three January 1, 2019

Get Resource

To understand the policies and services already in place for infants and toddlers in care and at risk of entering care, as well as where the child welfare field can leverage opportunities, Child Trends fielded the 2019 Survey of Child Welfare Agency Policies and Practices for Infants and Toddlers in, or who are Candidates for, Foster Care. The survey, supported by ZERO TO THREE and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), aimed to understand the current array of policies and practices intended to serve this population, and how this array may have shifted since the initial fielding of the survey in 2013.

Explore More

Moving Away from Family Separation: Cross-Systems Strategies to Support Young Children at Risk of Child Welfare Involvement

Report March 12, 2026

Between October 2024 and April 2025, the BUILD Initiative hosted a six-part webinar series, offered through BUILD’s Prenatal-to-Three Capacity Building Hub. This report provides key learnings and highlights from the webinar series.

Community Births – A Solution to Maternity Care Deserts

Archived Webinar March 3, 2026

According to the March of Dimes 2024 report, "Nowhere to Go: Maternity Care Deserts Across the United States," 1,104 counties, or about 35% of the nation’s 3,142 counties, are designated as Maternity Care Deserts.

Evidence for Expanded Access to Head Start and Early Head Start

Blog February 27, 2026

Head Start and Early Head Start have been proven effective for supporting young children’s development, and their parents, for many years. But did you know that Head Start and Early Head Start can reduce child maltreatment and child welfare system involvement?