Some gaps remain in Child Welfare Placement Service oversight

Some gaps remain in Child Welfare Placement Service oversight

Published on April 17, 2025

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DENVER - Denver Human Services has made progress in managing child welfare placement services since a 2023 audit, though several risks are still unresolved. That's according to a new follow-up audit report from Denver Auditor Timothy M. O'Brien, CPA.

One of the department's key improvements centers on more support for staff who assist kinship caregivers, who are the relatives or close family friends caring for a child.

"I'm pleased to see Denver Human Services follow through on our recommendations to improve processes to help kinship caregivers, who play an important role in a child's life," Auditor O'Brien said. "When the city can support kinship caregivers, it sets children up for success."

The 2023 audit identified risks related to inadequate staff training and guidance, challenges in retaining caseworkers, and weak controls over the agency's imprest fund, which provides urgent financial support to families.

Denver Human Services agreed to implement all seven of our recommendations, but the new follow-up report found not all issues were fully addressed.

• Two recommendations were fully implemented, including the development of a formal training plan for certifying kinship caregivers and removal of outdated kinship certification guidance from its internal shared drive.
• Four recommendations were only partially implemented, with lingering gaps in staff retention strategies, and secure access procedures.
• One recommendation remains unaddressed, involving obtaining clarity on what fiscal rule requirements apply to the imprest fund so that critical fiscal safeguards can be established.

Among the improvements, the Child Welfare Division launched a comprehensive training policy, which included all the elements of our audit recommendations. The policy addressed our concerns about a lack of training staff on kinship caregiver certification. After this was implemented, new state legislation later reduced certification requirements. In response, the department adjusted its work to provide more kinship caregiver support.

Since the original audit, the department also twice updated its foster care certification procedures, which outline the required steps for certification of both kinship and non-kinship providers and identifies the staff responsible for each certification step. Additionally, reviewing and updating file storage practices has reduced the risk of errors in the certification process.

"Denver Human Services has taken the right steps to help ease the burden kinship caregivers face when seeking valuable resources to support children," Auditor O'Brien said.

Separately, the division introduced a staff retention plan but failed to document how strategies were evaluated, which best practices were used, or who was responsible for future updates. These gaps could undermine efforts to reduce turnover and ensure continuity of care.

Additional concerns still exist from our original audit regarding storage devices. Incomplete authorization forms and potentially inaccurate[EO1] rosters for secure storage devices remain and could potentially allow unauthorized access to sensitive financial resources.

Meanwhile, despite preparing draft procedures and a new software system, Denver Human Services has yet to finalize oversight measures for its imprest fund or submit a required fiscal rule waiver to the Department of Finance - leaving the agency at risk for noncompliance and misuse of funds.

"Lingering financial risks may impact the families and children we serve," said Auditor O'Brien. "I hope Denver Human Services continues its progress and addresses these outstanding issues."

AUDITOR TIMOTHY O'BRIEN, CPA
Denver Auditor

Denver Auditor's Office

201 W. Colfax Ave. #705 Denver, CO 80202
Email: auditor@denvergov.org
Call: 720-913-5000
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