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Housing Stability Is Child Welfare Prevention: How San Francisco’s Family Resource Centers Fit into the Picture

August 2026

A new national report and webinar,“Housing as a Foundational Element of Family Well‑Being,” from Chapin Hall, the Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH), and Casey Family Programs, underscores what many family support programs have seen for years: housing instability and family homelessness are key drivers of child welfare involvement. We are encouraged to see national researchers and system leaders naming housing stability and family homelessness prevention work as necessary child welfare prevention supports, because it reflects what Family Resource Centers experience every day with families in San Francisco.

What This Research Shows

Material hardship and housing stress increase risk for child welfare involvement. The report “Housing as a Foundational Element of Family Well‑Being” shows that:

  • Housing hardship and instability are among the most reliable predictors of child welfare contact, and inadequate housing contributes to the risk of entering foster care for a significant share of children in CPS investigations.
  • At every income level, households with children are more likely to experience evictions than households with no children.
  • Children under age 5 make up 12% of those who receive an eviction filing, representing the largest age group.
    Together, these findings show that housing stability is not just a “basic need,” it is a core child welfare prevention strategy. Homelessness and housing instability not only destabilize caregivers; they create

Together, these findings show that housing stability is not just a “basic need,” it is a core child welfare prevention strategy. Homelessness and housing instability not only destabilize caregivers; they create adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) for the children that can affect their health, safety, and development for years.

What We Hear from Family Resource Centers in San Francisco Matches This Research

These national findings on housing stress and child welfare risk are reflected in what we see in San Francisco. The most recent demographic survey of the children, youth, and caregivers served by our forty‑five Family Services Alliance member organizations shows that the share of families with secure housing dropped from 60% in 2024 to about 40% in 2025, meaning the number of housing‑insecure families being supported by our organizations more than doubled in a single year.

At the same time, preliminary 2026 point‑in‑time data show a 15% rise in family homelessness in San Francisco, with most unsheltered families living in vehicles. Taken together with national research on housing stress and child maltreatment, these local trends suggest that FRCs are working with families under increasing housing‑related pressure, pressure that is closely linked to child welfare risk, caregiver stress, and adverse childhood experiences.
FRC staff describe a growing need for:

  • Clear, consistently accessible pathways into the homelessness response system for the diverse parent populations they support.
  • More non-congregant shelter options for parents, longer housing subsidies, and more affordable permanent housing within San Francisco.
  • Training and collaboration that help align FRC housing navigation work with the work of existing housing and shelter providers within the homeless response system,

San Francisco’s FRCs were not originally designed as formal housing access points, but they have become places where families bring a wide range of housing stability concerns. Strengthening connections between FRCs and the existing housing and homelessness response system can help ensure families receive coordinated support rather than feeling they are moving between separate systems.

San Francisco’s Family Homelessness Addendum Recognizes Family Resource Center’s Role as Family Homelessness Prevention Spaces

San Francisco’s new 2026 Family Addendum to Home by the Bay recognizes San Francisco Family Resource Centers for the important role they play and should play in preventing family homelessness, helping find shelter, and ensuring housing stability. We are glad to see FRCs explicitly called out in a strategic City document as part of the family homelessness response and prevention vision. The Addendum acknowledges that integration between FRCs and the broader homelessness response system has been limited and identifies strengthening this partnership as a key priority to improve access for families. It outlines opportunities for deeper collaboration between FRCs and the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing (HSH). Towards that end, HSH has recently joined the Department of Early Childhood (DEC) as a joint funder of the Family Resource Center Initiative (FRCI) to support this work.

From the perspective of the Family Services Alliance, this is an important recognition: FRCs are being seen not only as family parenting support hubs, but as integral to family homelessness prevention, and family homelessness prevention is integral to the Community Pathway, which prevents child welfare system involvement.

In Summary

Family Resource Centers are trusted, neighborhood‑based, holistic, and culturally embedded organizations focused on reducing stress, strengthening protective factors, and helping families navigate complex systems so they can stay stable and avoid child welfare system involvement. Thus, we are glad to see SF FRCs recognized in a way that affirms national research on FRCs as a crucial element in preventing family homelessness and child welfare involvement.

The Family Services Alliance will continue housing‑focused prevention work with our member organizations and City partners, especially as we implement the Family Homelessness Addendum. Together, we will strengthen the role of FRCs in SF family homelessness prevention so more families achieve housing stability and children grow up safe and supported.

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