For nearly 30 years, Washington, D.C.’s Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA) has teamed with neighborhood partners in a unique collaboration to support families where they live through the Healthy Families/Thriving Communities Collaborative. This network includes five neighborhood collaboratives, each based in specific wards of the city and focused on the particular needs of that community and its residents.1 While community-based organizations exist in neighborhoods across the country, the longstanding, intentional partnership across multiple organizations and, in particular, with the child protection agency, sets this network apart. This partnership provides the foundation for a population-based approach to child welfare, in which stakeholders committed to a shared vision of child and family well-being come together to support all families in reaching their full potential.
Read the full brief here.