30 Days to Family®
30 Days to Family® is a short-term intervention that aims to place children with a caregiver from their family within 30 days, ensure these caregivers have support available, and engage as many family members as possible to help the child and caregiver. 30 Days to Family is typically implemented by child welfare agencies, but any agency involved with child welfare can implement the program including foster care case management agencies and non-profits. Typically, a child’s case manager contacts a 30 Days to Family Supervisor to confirm an opening in the program and the Supervisor then assigns that case to one of their 30 Days to Family Specialists. The Specialist then implements (1) an intensive family search and engagement process and (2) family support interventions.
Upon referral, Specialists conduct an intensive family search and engagement process designed to identify family members who could serve as a caregiver for the child or support the child and the caregiver with whom they are placed. This search begins with the Specialist trying to contact all adult family members by the end of the first week and mapping out four generations of the child’s family (up to the child’s great grandparents). Specialists also attend court hearings and child welfare meetings to make initial connections with family members, support the family, and learn about the child’s needs. Depending on the child’s age, the Specialist may also meet with the child to learn their perspective on their family and to identify potential caregivers and supports. Specialists then talk with each family member to explain the program and the child’s situation, explore different ways they could support the child, and identify other family members to contact. Finally, Specialists complete background checks, home visits, and safety assessments for all family members who are interested in becoming the child’s caregiver.
After the child is placed with the caregiver, Specialists provide family support interventions designed to assess the needs of the child and family, help the caregiver identify family supports available to them, and connect caregivers to community resources. Specialists create a detailed “Roadmap to Family” plan for each caregiver that details the support system for the child and caregiver and review the plan with the caregiver at the time the placement is made. The “Roadmap to Family” plan typically includes both community resources for the child’s needs (e.g., food assistance programs, mental health services) and family members who can provide support through transportation, childcare, financial assistance, or emotional support.
30 Days to Family® is rated as a well-supported practice because at least two studies with non-overlapping samples carried out in usual care or practice settings achieved a rating of moderate or high on design and execution and demonstrated favorable effects in a target outcome domain. At least one of the studies demonstrated a sustained favorable effect of at least 12 months beyond the end of treatment on at least one target outcome.
Date Research Evidence Last Reviewed: Mar 2024
Sources
The following sources informed the program or service description, target population, and program or service delivery and implementation information: the program or service manual, the program or service developer’s website, the California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare, and the studies reviewed.
This information does not necessarily represent the views of the program or service developers. For more information on how this program or service was reviewed, visit the Review Process page or download the Handbook.
Target Population
30 Days to Family is designed to serve families with children ages 0–17 who are involved in the child welfare system and are being placed out-of-home.
Dosage
Specialists handle two cases at a time and aim to contact all of the child’s adult family members within one week. Specialists conduct visits to each potential caregiver’s home for an average of 3 hours per visit. The program aims to place children with a family member within 30 days and to identify two backup placement options from the family. Following placement, Specialists will follow up with the child’s case manager or caregiver via phone or email at 2 weeks and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months.
Location/Delivery Setting
Recommended Locations/Delivery Settings
Specialists typically deliver 30 Days to Family in a child welfare agency and in the homes of potential caregivers.
Location/Delivery Settings Observed in the Research
- Home
- County Child Welfare Offices
Education, Certifications and Training
Specialists must have a bachelor’s degree in social services or a related field. Specialists must also have at least one year of experience in child welfare, although three years of experience is preferred. Specialists should also have experience in caregiver training and assessment, as well as experience working with interdisciplinary teams. Although Specialists are not required to participate in a formal training, 30 Days to Family does provide on-site technical assistance for new Specialists within 48–72 hours of their first case and weekly phone consultations with a Supervisor for the first 2–9 months.
Supervisors must have a bachelor’s degree in social services or a related field, and at least three years of experience in child welfare. Supervisors should also have experience in resource parent training and assessment, and as well as experience working with interdisciplinary teams.
Agencies implementing 30 Days to Family must first participate in a 3-day training to learn about the program model and best practices for implementation. Agencies are also expected to establish connections with community resources to support families. This may include strengthening pre-existing relationships with service providers in the government and community and formalizing new public-private partnerships in letters of agreement. Additionally, all implementing agencies must agree to quarterly site visits from 30 Days to Family to support mutual learning and ensure the program is being implemented with fidelity.
Program or Service Documentation
Book/Manual/Available documentation used for review
The Institute for Child Welfare Innovation. (2020). 30 Days to Family® replication manual.
Available languages
30 Days to Family materials are available in English.
Other supporting materials
30 Days to Family® Logic Model
For More Information
Website: https://forchildwelfare.org/30-days-to-family/
Phone: (314) 367-8373
Email: patrick@forchildwelfare.org
Note: The details on Dosage; Location; Education, Certifications, and Training; Other Supporting Materials; and For More Information sections above are provided to website users for informational purposes only. This information is not exhaustive and may be subject to change.
| Results of Search and Review | Number of Studies Identified and Reviewed for 30 Days to Family® |
|---|---|
| Identified in Search | 2 |
| Eligible for Review | 2 |
| Rated High | 0 |
| Rated Moderate | 2 |
| Rated Low | 0 |
| Reviewed Only for Risk of Harm | 0 |
| Outcome | Effect Size
 and Implied Percentile Effect
|
N of Studies (Findings) | N of Participants | Summary of Findings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Child permanency: Least restrictive placement |
0.41
15 |
2 (18) | 1259 |
Favorable:
17 No Effect: 1 Unfavorable: 0 |
Note: For the effect sizes and implied percentile effects reported in the table, a positive number favors the intervention group and a negative number favors the comparison group.
| Outcome | Effect Size
and Implied Percentile Effect
|
N of Studies (Findings) | N of Participants | Summary of Findings |
Months after treatment when outcome measured
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Child permanency: Least restrictive placement |
0.41
15 |
2 (18) | 1259 |
Favorable:
17 No Effect: 1 Unfavorable: 0 |
- |
| Study 15127 - 30 Days to Family vs. Services As Usual (Atkinson, 2019) | |||||
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.15
6 |
- | 540 | - | 0 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.38
*
14 |
- | 540 | - | 1 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.54
*
20 |
- | 540 | - | 2 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.57
*
21 |
- | 540 | - | 3 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.49
*
18 |
- | 540 | - | 7 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.50
*
19 |
- | 540 | - | 11 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.44
*
16 |
- | 540 | - | 17 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.45
*
17 |
- | 540 | - | 23 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.47
*
18 |
- | 540 | - | 29 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.48
*
18 |
- | 540 | - | 35 |
| Study 15128 - 30 Days to Family vs. Services As Usual (Atkinson, 2023) | |||||
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.53
*
20 |
- | 719 | - | 0 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.28
*
10 |
- | 719 | - | 1 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.29
*
11 |
- | 719 | - | 2 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.26
*
10 |
- | 719 | - | 3 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.28
*
10 |
- | 719 | - | 7 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.27
*
10 |
- | 719 | - | 11 |
| Placed With Kin (Cumulative Findings) |
0.27
*
10 |
- | 719 | - | 17 |
| Ever Placed in Congregate Care Setting During Foster Care Placement |
0.67
*
24 |
- | 719 | - | 17 |
*p <.05
Note: For the effect sizes and implied percentile effects reported in the table, a positive number favors the intervention group and a negative number favors the comparison group. Effect sizes and implied percentile effects were calculated by the Prevention Services Clearinghouse as described in the Handbook of Standards and Procedures, Section 5.10.4 and may not align with effect sizes reported in individual publications.
Only publications with eligible contrasts that met design and execution standards are included in the individual study findings table.
Full citations for the studies shown in the table are available in the "Studies Reviewed" section.
The participant characteristics display is an initial version. We encourage those interested in providing feedback to send suggestions to preventionservices@abtassoc.com.
The table below displays locations, the year, and participant demographics for studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution and that reported the information. Participant characteristics for studies with more than one intervention versus comparison group pair that received moderate or high ratings are shown separately in the table. Please note, the information presented here uses terminology directly from the study documents, when available. Studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution that did not include relevant participant demographic information would not be represented in this table.
For more information on how Clearinghouse reviewers record the information in the table, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings.
| Characteristics of the Participants in the Studies with Moderate or High Ratings | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Study Location
|
Study Year
|
Age or Grade-level
|
Race, Ethnicity, Nationality
|
Gender
|
Populations of Interest*
|
Household Socioeconomic Status
|
| Study 15127 - 30 Days to Family vs. Services As Usual | ||||||
| Characteristics of the Children and Youth | ||||||
| Missouri, USA | 2011 | Average age: 6 years; 36% age 0-2 years, 15% age 3-5 years, 21% age 6-10 years, 16% age 11-14 years, 11% age 15+ years |
68% Black/African American 27% White 5% Unable to Determine 0.2% Asian |
51% Male 49% Female |
100% Children placed in foster care; Reason for removal: 42% Neglect, 26% Physical abuse, 11% Sexual abuse; 25% Disability present - any identified; 9% Disability present - emotional |
-- |
| Study 15128 - 30 Days to Family vs. Services As Usual | ||||||
| Characteristics of the Children and Youth | ||||||
| Ohio, USA | -- | Average age: 6.0 years; 32% age 0-2 years, 20% age 3-5 years, 23% age 6-10 years, 16% age 11-14 years, 8% age 15+ years |
51% White 35% Black/African American 13% Multi-race 1% Unable to Determine 0% Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0% Asian 0% American Indian/Alaskan Native |
53% Male 47% Female |
100% in foster care; Reason for removal: 34% Neglect, 15% Physical abuse, 6% Sexual abuse; Average prior removals: 1.1 removals; 24% Disability present - any identified, 13% Disability present - emotional/mental health, 12% Disability present - health/prenatal/birth |
-- |
“--” indicates information not reported in the study.
* The information about disabilities is based on initial coding. For more information on how the Clearinghouse recorded disability information for the initial release, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings. The Clearinghouse is currently seeking consultation from experts, including those with lived experience, and input from the public to enhance and improve the display.
Note: Citations for the documents associated with each 5-digit study number shown in the table can be found in the “Studies Reviewed” section below. Study settings and participant demographics are recorded for all studies that received moderate or high ratings on design and execution and that reported the information. Studies that did not report any information about setting or participant demographics are not displayed. For more information on how participant characteristics are recorded, please see our Resource Guide on Study Participant Characteristics and Settings.
Studies Rated Moderate
Study 15127Atkinson, A. J. (2019). 30 Days to Family: Confirming theoretical and actual outcomes. Child Welfare, 97(4), 97-129. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48623652
Atkinson, A. J. (2023). A comparison of child welfare outcomes and cost savings achieved in diverse implementation contexts with 30 Days to Family intervention. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 17(2), 305-332. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2022.2026271
This study was conducted in a usual care or practice setting (Handbook Section 6.2.2)Study 15128
Atkinson, A. J. (2023). A comparison of child welfare outcomes and cost savings achieved in diverse implementation contexts with 30 Days to Family intervention. Journal of Public Child Welfare, 17(2), 305-332. https://doi.org/10.1080/15548732.2022.2026271
This study was conducted in a usual care or practice setting (Handbook Section 6.2.2)