A woman and child smiling.

Child and Family Teams (CFT) and Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS)

A CFT and CANS Resource Hub for Human Services Professionals

Built in a collaborative effort between UC Davis Human Services and the California Department of Social Services, this page serves as an access point to technical assistance, training, consultation and guidance for the implementation, practice and continuous quality improvement for Child and Family Teams (CFT) and Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS).

CFT and CANS 101: Getting Started

  • What is/are CFTs and the CANS?
  • As part of California's Integrated Core Practice Model (ICPM), the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS) serves as the functional assessment tool to be used with the Child and Family Team (CFT) process to guide case planning, level of care and services decisions, placement decisions, and to monitor quality improvement initiatives and outcomes of services. CFTs bring together loved ones and experts to support the child in reaching their potential and are dedicated to helping the family thrive. Regular, facilitated CFT meetings are a requirement and a best practice. When professionals and team members intentionally and empathetically collaborate and partner with family members throughout their involvement in the system, healing occurs, and safety, permanency, and physical and mental well-being of children and families is supported.
  • CANS course list and descriptions

  • There are three distinct trainings for the CANS tool that focus on CANS overview, case planning, preparation for certification in the CANS tool, and supervisor training.

    The CANS: Supporting Collaborative Assessment and Action Planning (previously Module A) is a one-day training workshop for child welfare social workers, mental health plan clinicians, juvenile probation staff, Child and Family Team facilitators, and supervisors who will be using the CANS and do not need to be certified in the tool. This module includes instruction and practice in the use of the CANS in practice, including case/treatment planning. This module does not include explicit instruction on completing the tool and does not provide CANS certification preparation. Pre-requisite: None. 

    The CANS: Overview and Preparation for Certification, (previously Module B), is a two-day training workshop for child welfare social workers, mental health plan clinicians who will be completing and using the CANS, and for child welfare supervisors who oversee case planning. This module includes instruction and practice on completing the CANS and using it in case or treatment planning. Preparation for the CANS certification test process is provided. This is the only module that prepares individuals for CANS certification. Pre-requisite: None

    CANS in Supervision: Coaching Staff towards Practice Integration (previously Module C) is a one-day training module for supervisors to support child welfare social workers, mental health plan clinicians, juvenile probation staff, and CFT facilitators in their use of the CANS in child welfare and mental health practice. Pre-requisite: The CANS: Supporting Collaborative Assessment and Action Planning, previously module A or The CANS: Overview and Preparation for Certification, previously Module B.

    To browse for CANS training currently open for enrollment, please access the Upcoming Training section of the site to browse through your regional training academy (RTA).

  • CANS certification requirements
  • Per ACL 21-27, any individual responsible for completing the CANS must be CANS certified.

    Child Welfare Supervisors who oversee case planning must be CANS certified.

    Certification and re-certification occur through the Praed Foundation – A Non Profit Organization website following classroom training.
  • Selecting the appropriate CANS training for your role
  • CourseIntended Audience
    Module A: The CANS: Overview and Case PlanningOne-day workshop appropriate for individuals who will be informing or discussing the CANS.
    Module B: The CANS: Overview, Case Planning and Preparation for CertificationTwo-day workshop required for social workers or others who will be completing the CANS, child welfare supervisors who oversee case planning, and CFT facilitators.
    Module C: The CANS and SupervisionOne-day workshop required for child welfare supervisors who will be supporting staff who use the CANS in case planning. Supervisors who will not oversee case planning may take Module A, while supervisors who oversee the use of CANS in case planning must take Module B.
    Module D: The CANS: Review and PlanningOne-day workshop for individuals who attended “Using the CANS in the California Integrated Core Practice Model” (former one-day CANS overview course offered from October 2018-November 2019) as a refresher of core concepts and additional instruction on use of CANS in case planning.

    There are several CANS courses offered, and each class has a different target audience. Supervisors are the only individuals who will attend more than one of the CANS courses; they must take either Module A or B, depending on their role, as a prerequisite to Module C.

    To browse for CANS training currently open for enrollment, please access the Upcoming Training section of the site to browse through your regional training academy (RTA).

  • Child and Family Teams (CFT) course list and descriptions
  • There are four distinct CFT trainings that are designed to support quality CFT practice and are geared towards different roles in the CFT process.

    Child and Family Team (CFT) Meetings: Facilitation Training is an intensive 4-day training designed to provide participants with basic meeting facilitation knowledge and skills. Trainees will have opportunities for hands-on facilitation practice throughout the training and will be equipped to facilitate child and family team meetings across the intervention continuum that address safety, permanency, and well-being. This training is designed for meeting facilitators and supervisors or lead staff in the CFT meeting process and is required per ACL 18-23 for facilitators including contracted facilitators, non-case-carrying social workers, or case-carry social workers who facilitate CFT meetings. Pre-requisite: None.

    Integrating the CANS into CFT Meetings and Case Planning is an advanced-level course that provides a framework and structured approach for integrating the CANS into CFT meetings and case plans for children, youth and families involved in the child welfare system. The class will address preparing the family, discussing the CANS in the CFT meeting, how to “implicitly” rate CANS items based on needs and strengths discussed, and how to review draft CANS ratings with CFT members during meetings. In addition, participants will learn how to translate the needs of children, youth and families into target needs to be addressed in the case plan and how to build behaviorally-based case plan objectives based on CANS target needs and strengths that can support planning. Pre-requisite: Prior foundational CFT and CANS training. 

    Effective CFT Meetings (formerly CFT: Role of the Social Worker) provides participants with basic teaming and meeting knowledge and skills with a focus on the social worker’s role and responsibilities in the CFT meeting (Before, During and After). This training is strongly recommended for social workers, supervisors and case carrying staff who participate in Child and Family Team meetings. Pre-requisite: None. 

    Child and Family Teaming (CFT) Overview is a half-day training designed to orient participants to the Child and Family Team (CFT) meeting process. This training is for individuals who may participate in CFT meetings or need to know basic information about CFT meetings due to intersecting with child welfare, juvenile probation and/or behavioral health systems who are not meeting facilitators or case carrying social workers. Pre-requisite: None.

    To browse for CFT training currently open for enrollment, please access the Upcoming Training section of the site to browse through your regional training academy (RTA).

Learn More and Explore

Training and Technical Assistance

Upcoming Trainings

Enroll in an upcoming CANS/CFT training through your regional training academy (RTA):

Free Technical Assistance

Implementation

Implementation Resources

Videos

The following are part of an Informational video series that showcases the purpose and importance of CFTs and CANS as essential elements of practice. These videos are intended to be utilized as an engagement tool and shared system wide as a way to inform and educate those with little to no knowledge about the CFT and CANS processes.

CFTs for Child Welfare Workers

CANS within the CFT Process

Dr. John Lyons on CANS

CFT Engagement and Informational Videos

Meetings and Collaboratives

CFT CANS Statewide Forum

The CFT CANS Statewide Forum meeting is an open forum facilitated by the UC Davis Northern Academy in partnership with the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) that meets quarterly to convene stakeholders from across the state to share information and engage stakeholders in discussions that support the evolution of policy and practice. CDSS recommends that each county and contracted agency send a representative to the meetings to hear what is shared and to contribute their wisdom and practice experiences with CFTs and CANS. 

This quarterly meeting occurs from 9:30am-12pm on the third Tuesday of every third month.

For immediate access to the latest CFT CANS Statewide Forum information, please join our distribution list.

CFT Statewide Steering Committee

The CFT CANS Statewide Steering Committee is a small, closed group comprised of key statewide implementation partners from system of care organizations and persons with lived experience that meets quarterly to guide statewide goals and priorities. The Steering Committee develops and guides topic-specific workgroups that are charged with the development of specific deliverables and proactively solicits information and feedback from organizations and communities represented and not represented on the Steering Committee to inform goal and priority-setting. For more information, contact cftcans@ucdavis.edu 

Learning Collaborative Resources and Information

The Northern Academy at UC Davis Human Services coordinates and facilitates quarterly virtual CFT and CANS Learning Collaboratives. The topic for the collaboratives is determined by attendees and has included topics such as engaging fathers in the CFT process, integrating the CANS into CFT meetings, and engaging youth and Nonminor Dependents in the teaming and assessment process. 

Provide Feedback

Let's grow together.

Your feedback fuels the continuous quality improvement of CANS and CFT practice. The following resources give you an opportunity to help grow our practice and improve our ability to positively influence outcomes.

CFT Meeting Survey

This is intended for use after attending a CFT Meeting.

CFT Meeting Observation Tool (Survey Version)

Coming soon!

Contact us

Additional Resources

CFT and CANS News

New and Improved CFT and CANS Website Goes Live

Puzzle piece images of people, emphasizing linkages and togetherness.

Welcome to the new and improved CFT and CANS website! This is where we'll direct you to the latest information and updates related to CFT and CANS practice. If you have some information to share or would like to provide feedback, we'd love to hear from you! Please contact us.

 

 

CFT Survey and CFT/CANS Implementation Support Structure Charter Now Available

A screenshot of the CFT survey

 

Additional Resources

This section provides quick access to state resources and guidelines, courses, publications, tips, tools and practice briefs related to the Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS) tool, and Child and Family Teaming (CFT) practice in child welfare.

In addition to the resources below, we can also provide free CANS and CFT technical assistance through our CDSS contract. To learn more or to request assistance today, please submit this form.

Thanks for visiting!

This page was built by the Northern Academy at UC Davis Human Services with the generous guidance and support of the California Department of Social Services.