Families Receiving Community-Based Family Support Are Less Likely to Need Similar Help in the Future
Merritt Island, FL – January 26, 2026 – Prevention over intervention – that’s been the preference of the federal and many state governments since the bipartisan passage of the Family First Prevention Services Budget Act of 2018. Since then, there’s been intensified focus on having evidence-based data to evaluate the programs and services assisting children and families.
Thanks to the National Center for Innovation & Excellence (NCFIE), a Florida nonprofit dedicated to strengthening families nationally, a big step forward has been made in providing evidence-based data supporting the benefits of wraparound, community-based care for families experiencing a crisis. The NCFIE recently completed a study, in partnerships with the University of South Florida, that evaluated the success of High-Fidelity Wraparound using the C.A.R.E.S. Model.
“The findings indicated that there’s broad evidence that family-centered, wraparound approaches improve safety outcomes and support family resilience,” says Kathryn Parker, NCFIE executive director. “What we found is that those who received services are less likely to need them in the future. What we’ve also learned is that it’s people who most influence outcomes, or the caring and empathetic professionals who work with these families.”
The study looked at two control groups who received services, one numbering 240 parents/caregivers and analyzed from Jan 2018 – June 2020, and the other 175 parents/caregivers between July 2020 and December 2022. The participants all received C.A.R.E.S. services (short for Coordination, Advocacy, Resources, Education and Support), a family-centered, strength-based, and community-driven training model designed to reduce involvement in the child-welfare system. The study findings overwhelmingly indicated that people who participated in the C.A.R.E.S. Model were less likely to return to the previous life struggles, while those who didn’t receive the model were likely to have ongoing struggles in the future.
The NCFIE utilizes the C.A.R.E.S. Model with high-fidelity, tailored and comprehensive wraparound training for families. CA.R.E.S. was first implemented by the NCFIE’s parent organization, Family Partnerships of Central Florida (FPOCF), in 2009. FPOCF is the lead community-based care agency for Brevard, Osceola, Seminole and Orange Counties, providing fostering, adoption and independent living services for aged-out foster youth.
“The study is further validation that these training methodologies work, with clear ties to how important it is to have skilled child-welfare professionals assisting families as they heal and overcome setbacks,” said Phil Scarpelli, president and CEO of FPOCF, who’s a 30-year veteran of the child-welfare field. “This type of wraparound training is not only more effective long-term for families and communities but way more cost efficient. It better enables us to assist families ‘upstream’ before a crisis begins.”
It’s estimated that the C.A.R.E.S. Model delivers intensive in-home services at an average cost of approximately $900 per child per month, significantly lower than the $8,400 average monthly cost of court-ordered out-of-home care for one child.
“The data is conclusive and compelling,” adds Parker. “We’d like to see more communities across the country adopt these practices and achieve generational change.” To date, the NCFIE has provided services in New Jersey, Kentucky, Montana, South Dakota, Alaska, and San Diego County, California.
The complete study is available for download here.
