Early Childhood Impact Fund: Safe Babies

Project Description

Safe Babies is an initiative implemented by First3Years, which works to promote secure attachments for infants and toddlers in foster care with positive collaboration between birth and foster parents and supporting reunification staff and stakeholders at every level of the foster care system.

Their initiatives include working directly with birth families and foster families to strengthen relationships and facilitating broader systemic changes for a developmentally informed child welfare system so all children receive the level of care necessary to thrive. Safe Babies supports children, birth and foster families, early childhood professionals, stakeholders, and child welfare staff across Houston and Harris County. Their work is linked to COVID-19 as one of many solutions to support birth and foster families that may be affected by parental stressors due to school closures, high rates of unemployment, rising food costs, and lack of quality child care in their communities.

PRIMARY PARTNERSHIPS

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

  • Implementing Baby Day in April across three different cities in Texas
  • Training and support child care staff, judicial staff and other roles in child welfare with current research on child development and infant/toddler mental health 

TARGET IMPACT

Target Goals:

  • Kinship/foster parent participation in early visitation
  • Development of a coparenting relationship
  • Tiered transition planning between birth parents, foster/kinship parents, lawyers, ad-items, child advocates, and other parties
  • Early childhood intervention

WEBSITE LINK

USE OF EVIDENCE & PROGRAM EVALUATIONS

The Safe Babies program promotes nurturing, responsive relationships utilizing research and developmentally informed practices. First3Years contracts with The University of Texas at Austin’s Texas Institute for Child and Family Wellbeing to conduct the program evaluation for their Safe Babies initiative, operating across Tarrant, Dallas, and Harris Counties. The evaluation found that a major strength of the program is in providing support for coparenting between birth parents and caregivers.

The RAND Policy Research Corporation will be evaluating the Early Childhood Impact Fund investments, including Safe Babies

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