CINS/FINS

For more information visit www.floridanetwork.org

Families In Need of Services (FINS): A family that has a child for whom there is no pending investigation of abuse, neglect, or abandonment or no court ordered supervision by the Department of Juvenile Justice or the Department of Children and Family Services for an adjudication of dependency or delinquency. The child must also have been referred to a contracted agency of the Department of Juvenile Justice for:

» Running away or threatening to run away from parents or legal guardian or custodian; and/or
»Disobeying the reasonable and lawful demands of parents or legal guardian or custodian and being beyond their control; and/or
» Truancy from school or other school related problems.
» Lockouts/Homeless youth
A family in need of services is defined in Florida Statute Chapter 984.03 (27) and is not an adjudicated status.

Child In Need of Services (CINS): This is an adjudication status for a child for whom there is no pending investigation into an allegation or suspicion of abuse, neglect, or abandonment; no pending referral alleging the child is delinquent; or no current supervision by the Department of Juvenile Justice or the Department of Children and Family Services for an adjudication of dependency or delinquency. The court must also find the child:

» To have persistently run away from the child’s parents or legal custodians despite reasonable efforts of the child, the parents or legal custodians, and appropriate agencies to remedy the conditions contributing to the behavior; and/or,
» To be habitually truant from school, while subject to compulsory school attendance, despite reasonable efforts to remedy the situation pursuant to and through voluntary participation by the child’s parents or legal custodians and by the child in family counseling services, and treatment offered; and/or,
» To have persistently disobeyed the reasonable and lawful demands of the child’s parents or legal custodian, and to be beyond their control despite efforts by the child’s parents or legal custodians, and appropriate agencies to remedy the conditions contributing to the behavior.
»Lockouts/Homeless youth

Family in need of Services will have access to a continuum of services. Youth, under the age of 18, who meet the Children in Need of Services criteria are eligible for judicial intervention following an attempt to engage and serve the youth and their family within the FINS continuum.

Program Services

Shelter
A CINS/FINS shelter is a short-term, primarily voluntary, service providing crisis intervention, shelter, food, clothing, case management and counseling. CINS/FINS Shelter services are available 24 hours a day, and every day of the year.

CINS/FINS shelter services should be seen as a last resort and not a first service choice. Shelter services are designed to enhance public safety, as well as to offer personal safety for all youth and families eligible for CINS/FINS services.

The Process
Admission and discharge procedures in cases of voluntary placement are established by agencies. Short-term shelter should be considered when:
a. The legal guardian or responsible adult, is not available or is unwilling to take immediate custody of the child;
b. There is need for a “cooling off” period or respite care, with agreed upon conditions for the child’s return home;
c. A youth meets the intake and admission criteria for the shelter,
The involuntary placement of a child in shelter shall be in compliance with current Florida Statute, governing shelter petitions.

CINS/FINS shelter services should not be confused with Emergency Shelter services for children taken into protective custody by the Department of Children and Families based on allegations of abuse, abandonment, neglect or exploitation.

Youth are limited to a 35-day maximum shelter stay. Shelter stays may be extended with supervisor approval with justification documented in the youth’s case record.

Non-Residential Counseling Services
Counseling services are designed to provide the family with the intervention necessary to stabilize in event of crisis, keep families intact, minimize out-of-home placement, provide aftercare services for youth returning home from shelter services and prevent the involvement of families in the juvenile justice and dependency systems (see DJJ CINS/FINS QA standards). To maximize the ability to target youth most at risk, each CINS/FINS agency shall subcontract a portion of their non-residential dollars to target distressed neighborhoods and communities. A plan will be due to the Florida Network by July 1 of each year for approval by the Florida Network and the Department that must include the CINS/FINS agency’s anticipated procurement and selection process, the agency that will receive the subcontract, the rational for the selection of the subcontracting agency, the dollar amount the provider will subcontract, the number of youth to be served and the implementation, start-up and service dates.

Case/Service Plan
Case Management Services
Adjudication Services
CINS Petition Process
Staff Secure Services
Physically Secure Services
Case Termination

The Programmatic Objectives of the CINS/FINS Service Continuum

1. Provide a continuum of core services that has increasing levels of intensity and participation by youth and families. These core services include prevention outreach, centralized intake, screening and assessment, counseling services, shelter services, and CINS adjudication services.
2. Form and enhance local partnerships to develop a community-wide service delivery system.
3. Enhance family support networks and other interpersonal assets of youth.
4. Service to Department of Juvenile Justice targeted neighborhoods and youth with identified critical risk factors.

For more information visit www.floridanetwork.org

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Page reviewed on: June 15, 2009