Children, Youth and Families
DHS Initiatives and Accomplishments
Each year, DHS chooses several Strategic Initiatives: bold, transformative efforts designed to improve the effectiveness of human services for everyone. During 2024, DHS and its partners made significant progress by focusing on a set of Initiatives and in 2024 (see Accomplishments Report). And in 2025, it is working on 12 new Strategic Initiatives (see 2025 Strategic Initiatives Report).
Intimate Partner Violence Reform Initiative: Report on progress
The Intimate Partner Violence Reform Initiative was created in May 2022 to coordinate policy and system-level work across agencies in Allegheny County to improve a complex and fragmented system for […]
Cash Assistance for Allegheny Young Adults: Impacts and Implications
This report presents a mixed-methods approach to evaluating the impact of DHS cash assistance program, including longitudinal surveying, a quasi-experimental analysis of administrative data, and semi-structured interviews with cash recipients.
Child Fatality/Near Fatality Ingestion Analysis
This report covers child fatalities and near fatalities in Allegheny County with a focus on drug ingestions, an increasing cause of these here and nationwide. The report discusses some of the county’s strategies to address this issue.
Evaluation Findings on the Use of Predictive Risk Models in Child Welfare
This report reviews the research evidence on algorithms in child welfare, specifically focusing on the causal impacts of the AFST and comparable predictive risk models (PRMs).
Community Need Index
Updated with 2022 data. The Allegheny County Need Index was developed to identify areas of the County that have greater relative need. This report and related materials explore census tracts in need and recent trends.
Supports for Parents with Students Who Have an IEP
Recently, DHS announced it was eliminating some Education Specialists Position. Read a summary of that decision and click here to find some resources if you need assistance.
DHS 2023 Accomplishments
This report highlights the 2023 DHS accomplishments that stood out. There are many, many other achievements. We chose the ones that made the biggest difference.
DHS Annual Plans and Budgets
In its responsibility for administering publicly-funded human services, Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS) plans for the allocation of more than $1B in areas that span behavioral health, children […]
Hello Baby Prevention Model and Program Supports Parents of New Babies
New information added September 2023. Hello Baby is designed for parents of new babies in Allegheny County to strengthen families and improve children’s outcomes. The approach is supported by a predictive risk model that uses integrated data to identify the highest need families.
Children of Incarcerated Parents
Allegheny County sought to update a 2008 analysis examining the demographics and needs of children who have had a parent incarcerated at the Allegheny County Jail. There are other children […]
Child Fatalities and Near-Fatalities
What are Child Fatalities and Near-Fatalities? The County is required by state law to review each death or near-death of a child and use the information to improve practice and […]
Older Youth Pandemic Relief
What is this report about ? From June to October of 2021, Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS) provided a cash assistance program for transition-aged youth called Older Youth […]
Racial Disproportionality in Child Welfare: Interactive Dashboard
Data available from 2017 to present. Updated annually.
Child Welfare Out-of-Home Placements: Interactive Dashboard
Provides filterable data on out-of-home placements in Allegheny County from 2010 through 2021. Updates occur annually.