Policy & Practice | Spring 2026

PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS FOR CHILD WELFARE 5 WAYS STATES CAN ENSURE EVERY CHILD HAS A HOME

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cross the country, child welfare systems are entering a pivotal moment. Recent

federal initiatives, including the Administration for Children and Families’ A Home for Every Child and new federal performance dashboards, signal a shift away from compliance driven oversight toward outcomes that reflect children’s lived experiences. At the center of this shift is a simple but powerful question: Does every child have a safe, well-matched home?¹ One way this question is increasingly understood is through the relationship between the children who need place ment and the number of family-based homes available to serve them. When the children entering care outnumber licensed homes, systems often rely on temporary or congregate settings. This imbalance, called the homes-to children ratio, offers a practical lens for understanding system capacity. While states set policy direction and performance expectations, counties and local agencies carry out that work on the ground. Workforce shortages and placement capacity challenges have exacerbated this imbalance. Aligning policy, practice, and data at the state level helps local agencies strengthen capacity and ensure every child can grow up in a family setting. This article outlines five practical ways states can lead that align ment using prevention, kinship care, data, permanency, and modernized technology.

BY AMY DRAPCHO

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Spring 2026 Policy & Practice