4430. Courtesy Supervision

Original Date: February 15, 1998

Revised Date: July 1, 2024

Sunset Review Date: July 31, 2028

Approved by: Natalie Green, Assistant Secretary of Child Welfare

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance to child welfare (CW) employees on courtesy supervision cases for children and youth in the placement and care authority of the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF).

Scope

This policy applies to CW employees.

Laws

RCW 74.13.031 Duties of department-Child welfare services-Children’s services advisory committee

Policy

Primary caseworkers:
1. May request courtesy supervision from a caseworker in another office through their supervisor and regional gatekeeper when children or youth are placed or moved outside of their office coverage area.
2. Must:
  1. Maintain primary assignment for cases with courtesy supervision.
  2. Notify the courtesy supervision worker if there is reason to know children are or may be Indian children.
Regional gatekeepers must:
1. Request courtesy supervision from regional gatekeepers in another region when they receive courtesy supervision requests from supervisors in their region.
2. Assign courtesy supervision cases to supervisors in their region when they receive completed courtesy supervision requests from regional gatekeepers in another region.
Primary and courtesy supervision caseworkers must:
1. Work together at the lowest level possible to resolve concerns related to the safety, well-being, or permanency of children or youth on courtesy supervision.
2. Follow the Indian Child Welfare Active Efforts and Tribal Collaboration policy if there is reason to believe children are or may be Indian children.

Regional administrators (RAs) of the sending offices will make the final determination, in consultation with the RAs of the receiving offices, when there are differing opinions or unresolved issues related to courtesy supervision cases.

Procedures

Requesting Courtesy Supervision
1. Primary caseworkers requesting courtesy supervision must complete and send the Courtesy Supervision Referral DCYF 10-459 form to their supervisor for approval, within 72 hours of children or youth have moved or will be moving outside their office coverage area.
2. Supervisors receiving courtesy supervision referral requests must review and verify that the information on the Courtesy Supervision Referral DCYF 10-459 form and in FamLink is complete, within 72 hours from receipt. If the information is:
  1. Incomplete, they must notify the primary caseworker to complete and make any necessary corrections and resend the Courtesy Supervision Referral DCYF 10-459 form.
  2. Complete, they must email the approved Courtesy Supervision Referral DCYF 10-459 form to their regional gatekeeper.
3. Regional gatekeepers receiving courtesy supervision referral requests from supervisors must review and verify that the information on the forms and in FamLink is complete, within 72 hours from receipt. If the information is:
  1. Incomplete, they must notify the primary caseworker and the supervisor to complete and make any necessary corrections and resend the Courtesy Supervision Referral DCYF 10-459 form.
  2. Complete, they must send the completed Courtesy Supervision Referral DCYF 10-459 form to the receiving regional gatekeeper.
4. Receiving regional gatekeepers receiving courtesy supervision referral requests from sending regional gatekeepers must complete the following, within 72 hours from receipt:
  1. Review the Courtesy Supervision Referral DCYF 10-459 form.
  2. Assign cases to supervisors for courtesy supervision in FamLink.
5. Courtesy supervision supervisors must assign courtesy supervision cases to caseworkers in FamLink, within 72 hours of case assignment from the receiving regional gatekeeper.
Courtesy Supervision
Once courtesy supervision cases have been assigned:
1. Courtesy supervision caseworkers must assist the primary caseworker with the child or youth’s placement, when requested by the primary caseworker. This includes:
  1. Completing the Home Inspection Checklist (Kinship) DCYF 10-453 form for unlicensed caregivers, documenting the inspection in a case note, and uploading the form in FamLink.
  2. Identifying and verifying individuals living in the home or on the premises and completing the following when there are additional members:
    1. Assessing for safety threats.
    2. Notifying the Licensing Division licensor, for licensed homes, per the Placing with and Supporting Unlicensed Relatives and Suitable Persons policy.
    3. Completing background checks, per the Background Check policy.
  3. Completing and obtaining caregiver’s signatures on the Placement Agreement DCYF 15-281 form and uploading the form in FamLink.
2. Courtesy supervision caseworkers must:
  1. Conduct:
    1. Health and safety visits with children or youth, per the Health and Safety Visits with Children and Youth and Monthly Visits with Parents and Caregivers policy.
    2. Monthly visits with caregivers, per the Health and Safety Visits with Children and Youth and Monthly Visits with Parents and Caregivers policy.
    3. Document visits in a case note in FamLink, per the Documentation policy.
  2. Follow:
    1. The relevant policy and contact the primary caseworker to discuss placement alternatives, for the following situations:
      1. Present Danger policy, if children or youth are determined to be in present danger.
      2. Placement Moves policy, if children or youth must be moved from placement.
      3. DCYF Administrative 2.01 Mandated Reporting Requirements policy, if there is reasonable cause to believe a crime has been committed against a child or youth.
      4. Intake Process and Response policy, if there are new allegations of abuse or neglect.
    2. Collaborate with the primary caseworker on case planning and decision making.
  3. Notify the primary caseworker, if any referrals were made or if there is a need for services for the child or youth or caregiver.
  4. Attend shared planning meetings (SPMs) and family team decision making meetings (FTDMs), including those in group care or behavior rehabilitation services, unless otherwise arranged with the primary caseworker.
  5. When a placement is at risk of disruption or a placement move is planned, notify the primary caseworker to schedule a FTDM.
3. Courtesy supervision supervisors must only review health and safety visit requirements with courtesy supervision caseworkers for cases open 30 calendar days or more during the monthly clinical supervision case reviews.
Case Support from Sending Office
After a courtesy supervision case has been assigned:
1. Primary caseworkers must:
  1. Maintain primary assignment of the case and continue to conduct primary assignment case duties, including but not limited to:
    1. Referrals.
    2. Decision making.
    3. Reviewing current month health and safety visit documentation.
    4. Court reports.
    5. Case plans.
    6. Payment authorizations.
    7. SPMs, per the Shared Planning Meetings policy.
    8. FTDMs, per the Family Team Decision Making Meetings policy.
  2. Verify the following information is in FamLink and up-to-date:
    1. Placement, within 72 hours of a placement move, per the Placement Moves policy.
    2. Legal Page, including the most current court order.
    3. Health and Mental Health Pages.
    4. Child Health and Education Tracking (CHET), per the CHET policy
    5. Child Information and Placement Referral DCYF 15-300 form is signed by the current caregiver or verified by email receipt, per the Notification of Court Hearings, Providing Reports to Court, and Information Sharing with Out-of-Home Caregivers policy.
    6. Placement Agreement DCYF 15-281 form, per the Out-of-Home Placements policy.
    7. Home Study or Reassessment Application DCYF 10-354 form is located in the provider file, per the Completing Home Studies policy.
    8. Information for completed background checks for all household members age 16 and older, per the Background Checks policy.
    9. Extended Foster Care Participation Agreement DCYF 10-432, if applicable, per the Extended Foster Care (EFC) Program policy.
    10. Voluntary Placement Agreement DCYF 15-431 form, if applicable, per the Voluntary Placement Agreement policy.
    11. Independent Living Services information, if applicable, per the Transitioning Youth for Successful Adulthood policy.
  3. Notify the courtesy supervision caseworker and their supervisor of:
    1. Upcoming non-emergent placement moves.
    2. Emergent placement moves, within 24 hours of the move.
  4. Coordinate with the courtesy supervision caseworkers, if assistance is needed for the child or youth’s placement move.
  5. Initiate appropriate service referrals, when notified of an identified service need for the child or youth.
  6. Update the courtesy supervision caseworker about:
    1. Any progress or changes in the case plan.
    2. Court dates.
  7. Invite courtesy supervision caseworkers to all:
    1. SPMs.
    2. FTDMs.
2. Supervisors from the sending office must conduct monthly clinical supervision case reviews with primary caseworkers on courtesy supervision cases.