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How can child welfare systems support families in rural communities? (Casey Family Programs)

 

Due to significant differences between geographical areas, some traditional or evidence-based child welfare strategies developed for urban settings may be less effective in rural communities. Recognizing the unique strengths of rural communities and making creative use of both traditional and nontraditional funding is essential to provide services that not only protect children, but strengthen their families and support economic development and well-being for the community as a whole. Many rural communities already embody and can further leverage the community-level social processes known to be effective in reducing child maltreatment, including strong networks of local support.

Child welfare systems serving rural areas face several challenges:

  • Higher rates of child poverty.
  • Broader geographical spread, requiring greater travel to visit children in their homes, support family visitation, and access services.
  • Limited infrastructure, such as transportation options, housing stock, and broadband internet.
  • Fewer community-based services, including mental health and substance abuse treatment.
  • Difficulties recruiting and retaining professional staff.

These issues particularly may impact American Indian children and families, more than half of whom live in rural or small-town areas (compared to 20% of the population as a whole) and may compound their disproportionate representation in the child welfare system. American Indian families, like all rural families, also are affected by generational poverty disproportionately: American Indian children have the lowest rates of upward mobility among all sectors of the population, even if they come from families with a high income.1 However, there is evidence that culture and community can make a difference: American Indian children who live on or near a reservation show greater upward mobility than their counterparts who grow up elsewhere.

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