The Community Response and Well-Being Branch organizes secondary prevention activities to address family needs, prevent child abuse and neglect, and prevent child welfare involvement.
The Community Response and Well-Being Branch coordinates contracts, participates in community collaborations, provides consultation, develops standards or practice, and provides state program guidance to child protective service workers, community members, and contract prevention providers.
Thriving Families, Safer Children (TFSC)
TFSC is a national movement that brings together jurisdictions committed to something different. Each site has developed a project that is relevant to its local community and needs.
Site teams are working to center the work in community, establish partnerships, and build on existing assets. Through their work, the site teams plans approaches to promote family and community well-being, prevent child maltreatment, reduce family separations, and position children, youth, and families to thrive.
Kentucky was selected as a jurisdiction in 2021, and is a collaboration of statewide partners, including individuals with lived experience, rethinking child welfare by creating conditions for strong, healthy communities where families are supported, and children are free from harm.
The following priorities align with the overarching values and goals of the national movement focused on the promotion of family and community wellbeing:
- Development of a robust network of community-based prevention supports.
- Creation of formalized structures to serve families “screened out” by the Kentucky Department for Community Based Services.
- Clearly differentiating poverty and neglect.
- Development of a statewide collaborative primary/secondary prevention plan.
- Creation of a Parent Advisory Council.
Safety Net & Economic Supports
Safety Net services are initiated for former Kentucky Transitional Assistance Program (KTAP) recipients, who have total gross income at or below 200 percent of federal poverty level, when no longer eligible for KTAP benefits due to being sanctioned for three months for not participating in the Kentucky Works Program or due to benefit time limitations.
Assessment of family and home situation is completed to identify needs and referral to available resources in the community, or if needed, crisis intervention with financial assistance for basic needs such as food, clothing, fuel, utilities, housing, etc.
State and Regional Prevention Collaboratives
The statewide prevention collaborative implements a statewide primary and secondary prevention plan to support family and community wellbeing. While these efforts are both part of the larger Thriving Families, Safer Children Kentucky work, they are separate from one another. The statewide prevention collaborative also does not oversee the regional prevention collaboratives.
There is a regional prevention collaborative in each of the nine DCBS service regions. Similar to the statewide collaborative, regional collaborative develop and implement a primary and secondary prevention plan specific to their community. Regional Collaborative plans can be found at TFSCKY – Kentucky Youth Advocates or https://kyyouth.org/tfscky. Community Response
In Community Response served counties, reports to DCBS that do not meet criteria for assessment or services are referred to a community-based agency to offer supports or resources to the family. Connecting families to community-based resources and supports before maltreatment occurs prevents the trauma of maltreatment, involvement with the child welfare agency, and family separation.
The goal of Community Response is to strengthen families, prevent child abuse and neglect, and reduce future reports to DCBS. Reduction of future reports to DCBS allows child welfare staff to focus on the most critical safety issues.
Incarcerated Caregiver Program
DPCW in partnership with Gateway Children’s Services and Montgomery County Regional Jail, provide services to children and families of incarcerated individuals housed in the same 5 county area. There are approximately 120 inmates at any given point in time that could be eligible for the program.
Research indicates that the incarceration of one or both parents negatively affects a child’s Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) score, which in turn can have negative long-term effects on a child’s mental and physical health later in life. An estimated 40% of children who have been in foster care have had one or more incarcerated parents.
Children of incarcerated parents often go on to experience depression, complex trauma, low self-esteem, suicidal ideation, obesity, homelessness, and so many other negative life effects. Both front line physical health and mental health professionals play a key role in helping children get through the experience of having an incarcerated parent.
Parent Engagement Meetings
In Parent Engagement Meeting served counties, Family Resource Center Coordinators refer children ages 5-11 years of age at risk for educational neglect due to absenteeism.
Service providers scheduling a meeting with the family within 7 days of referral. At the meeting an action plan is completed to give the family the tools necessary to follow with the school’s attendance policy. The plan also includes appropriate referrals needed for the family. A follow-up call with the family is completed within 3-4 weeks of meeting date/ action plan. Additional follow-up calls and/or referrals are made for family as needed or requested.
The program is available in the following counties:
- Eastern Mountain (Leslie & Perry)
- Jefferson
- Northeastern (Boyd, Carter, Elliot, Greenup, Menifee & Lawrence)
- Northern Bluegrass (Boone, Carroll, Gallatin & Owen)
- Salt River Trail (Hardin, Henry, Spencer & Washington)
- The Lakes (Crittenden & Trigg)
- Two Rivers (Daviess, Mclean, Ohio, Union, Warren & Webster)
Community Pathways
DPCW is seeking avenues to serve families through accessing Title IV-E funded prevention services outside of traditional child welfare services. Community pathways help to promote family stability through support and services without unnecessary child welfare involvement. Services are delivered through community-based agencies and prevention providers.
Contact Information
Community Response and Well-Being Branch
Division of Prevention and Community Well-Being (DPCW)
Department for Community Based Services
Dana Fryman, MSW Expected May 2025, Community Response and Well-Being Branch Manager
Jenny Mead, MA, MAT, Social Service Specialist
Community Response
Erica Turner, BS, Social Service Specialist
Thriving Families, Safe Children, Statewide and Regional Prevention Collaboratives, Safety Net, Concrete Funds, Resource Hubs
Kristy James, BSW, MA, LSW, CTC, Social Service Specialist
Parent Engagement Meeting Program, Truancy and Educational Neglect Prevention Programs
Jennifer Woods, BS, Social Service Specialist
Community Connector Program, Pre/Post-Natal Maternal Health, Plan of Safe Care
Mailing Address
275 E Main St 3E-A
Frankfort, KY 40621
Phone:(502) 564-5333