Understand what causes dark data to exist in child welfare and why it is so significant to each life you and your agency cares for as you support their hope for a brighter future.

1. WHAT IS
DARK DATA?
Find out why
child welfare agencies that
regularly make extremely difficult decisions
need to surface “dark data”—critical, but hidden information—to
make informed, confident decisions and reduce trauma to kids.
Dark data: Information collected from numerous sources over a
long period of time that becomes hidden or virtually impossible
to retrieve when making decisions to protect children and
strengthen families.
SO, WHAT
DOES THAT
REALLY MEAN?
You have thousands of
pictures on your phone. Know
where to find each one?
Who’s in them? What’s in the
background? This is how easy
it is for data to get buried.
THINK ABOUT IT THIS WAY:
LET’S LOOK
CLOSER THROUGH A
CHILD WELFARE LENS:
How about the report buried
in 232 pages of medical information?
Would you be able to find the one line of text saying a child
with severe mental health issues that just came into your care has
previously spent time in a behavioral health hospital that could
provide past insight?
Would you be able to find one sentence
hiding on one page of a lengthy court document that mentions
who would be willing and able to raise or care for a child your
agency needs to place? If it was one of 432 documents related
to the case, would you even know where to start?
The more you know,
the more informed
decision you can make.
That’s where dark data
makes a difference.
WHY DOES
DARK DATA EXIST?
The digital age has dramatically increased the volume of
information, which is coming at social workers faster
than they can manage.
The average caseload
is between 24 and 31
cases.ii
Due to the sheer volume,
breadth, and complexity
of a case file, it can take
a child welfare worker
upwards of 12 hours to
review the history of just
one case.iii
A typical child welfare case file
contains over 1,000 documents, or
approximately 4,000-5,000 pages
of information.i
In some jurisdictions,
worker turnover is as high
as 90 percent per year…v
- Child Welfare Information Gateway
As a result, an
estimated 80% of case content
is considered dark data and cannot
be utilized by an agency when
making critical decisions.
Turnover compounds
the problem, often causing
workers to recollect
information that
already exists.
80% OF CASE CONTENT
Behavioral Health Records
Court Records
Drug Screens
Emails
Law Enforcement Reports
Medical Records
School Records
Social Media
Photos
Physical Health Records
WHY IS
ACCESSING
DARK DATA
CRITICAL?
SHINING LIGHT
ON DARK DATA
IN CHILD WELFARE
If an agency can capture, process, and analyze dark
data in real time, many things can happen:
BUILD TRUST:
Spare families from repeating information and re-living
traumatic experiences
REDUCE TRAUMA TO KIDS:
Make the best decision for a child at every step
MINIMIZE DELAYS:
Quickly understand case themes or topics of concern
in order to apply critical thinking to major decisions
MAKE CONFIDENT DECISIONS:
Use intimate, detailed knowledge about the case,
family, and child to support major decisions
“Her mother explained that
she was admitted to Belmore
Tress Behavioral Health
Hospital for excessive
sedation a couple of years ago.”
“This GAL also spoke with Rita Smith, maternal
grandmother to JE.A., Ju.A. and J.C. during
this visit. Rita Smith stated that she has a
friend living out of state, named Jess Johnson,
who is able and willing to care for the children
in case things don't work out in her home.”
Download our eBook
for answers to more
common questions
around dark data in
child welfare:
teamnorthwoods.com/
darkdata
Sources
i. Jacob Meetze, Intake Investigator, Beaufort County Department of Social Services
ii. Interviews with child welfare workers
iii. “If You’re Right for the Job, It’s the Best Job in the World,” National Association of
Social Workers, June 2004 at p. 15.
iv. “Worker Turnover,” Child Welfare Information Gateway, https://www.childwelfare.
gov/topics/management/workforce/retention/workforce-retention/turnover/
teamnorthwoods.com
DARK DATA
Found on page 12 of 232
Found in document 121 of 432, page 9 of 56