{"id":31854,"date":"2020-12-18T17:27:09","date_gmt":"2020-12-18T17:27:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/caseyfamilyv2.wpengine.com\/new-hampshire-covid-resource-guide-2\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T16:14:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T16:14:33","slug":"guia-de-recursos-sobre-el-covid-de-new-hampshire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casey.org\/es\/new-hampshire-covid-resource-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"\u00bfC\u00f3mo cre\u00f3 y distribuy\u00f3 New Hampshire una gu\u00eda de recursos para apoyar el bienestar de los ni\u00f1os y las familias?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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By Scott Kleiman, Managing Director, Jess Lanney, Assistant Director, and Grace Palmer, Government Innovation Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab*<\/p>\n\n\n

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To engage community members in proactively supporting children and families during the COVID-19 emergency, New Hampshire’s Division of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) developed and released a “Supporting Child and Family Wellbeing” resource guide. This strategy brief describes why and how the guide was developed, how it has been distributed, and plans for sustaining these tools as part of regular agency operations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Why the guide was needed<\/h2>\n \n \n \n

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Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early spring 2020, reports of suspected child abuse and neglect across the country plummeted at the same time that children and parents faced increased stressors. In New Hampshire, DCYF saw a 40% reduction in the number of child abuse and neglect reports it was receiving relative to the two years prior. The state’s data also showed that the sources and nature of reports were changing, with the most substantial drop in calls from schools and healthcare professionals, and an increase by nearly half in the portion of allegations citing lack of supervision.1<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n

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Pandemic-related school and business closures, along with isolation from friends and family, have been linked to increased unemployment and financial instability, substance use, mental-health challenges, and instances of domestic violence – issues that often are risk factors for child abuse and neglect.2<\/sup><\/a>,<\/sup>3<\/sup><\/a> After New Hampshire’s stay-at-home order was issued, many community members (including school administrators, teachers, and social workers) had fewer opportunities to interact with families. In addition, professionals working with families across a range of services reported widespread confusion about what resources were still available and how to help families access them during the pandemic.<\/p>\n

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New Hampshire’s “Supporting Child and Family Wellbeing” resource guide<\/a> was developed to encourage community members who regularly interact with children and families, such as teachers, neighbors, or child care providers, to check in on families and help them access needed supports. The simple yet detailed two-page guide provides sample questions for professionals and community members to ask both parents and children to help determine resource or support needs. It also contains lists and links to access concrete services, including financial assistance, food and nutrition resources, crisis support, and housing programs. (A copy of the state’s original resource guide can be found in the appendix of the PDF version of this brief.)<\/p>\n

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By creating and distributing a simple, holistic resource guide to inform both professionals and community members about different ways to help families during the pandemic, DCYF sought to proactively support child and family well-being to both prevent child abuse and neglect and, in the case of legitimate child safety concerns, intervene most effectively.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \n \n \n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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How the guide was created<\/h2>\n \n \n \n

DCYF had three main priorities in creating the resource guide: 1) produce it as quickly as possible, as families already were navigating the effects of COVID-19; 2) offer helpful and accessible guidance and resources to support a wide range of community members and their needs; and 3) articulate a supportive message that encouraged families to reach out for help, rather than a surveillance-based message that might cause vulnerable families to avoid interactions with potential reporters.<\/p>\n

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To accomplish this and create the guide, DCYF:<\/p>\n