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Age Group

Child age is organized by the following intervals and derived from a child’s date of birth as captured in the CWS/CMS variable birth_dt:

  1. < 1 yr*
  2. 1-2 yrs
  3. 3-5 yrs
  4. 6-10 yrs
  5. 11-15 yrs
  6. 16-17 yrs
  7. 18-20 yrs OR 18-21 yrs**
The calculation of age is based on a date appropriate for the particular report. For example, the ‘Entries to Foster Care’ report calculates the age of children and youth on the day they enter foster care. ‘Exits from Foster Care’, on the other hand, calculates age at exit.

When Age Group is not selected as a row or column dimension, users may filter reports to include children of specific ages (e.g., only 3 year olds) or to create a different age category than those shown above (e.g., a group of 2-6 year olds). This is done by checking those age boxes for which report data are to be included.

* In some reports, this category is separated into infants with ages of less than one month (‘<1 mo’) and others less than one year old (i.e., ‘1-11 mo’).

** The available age range varies by report.
  • The Child and Family Services Review, round 3 (CFSR3) reports, for example, are restricted to children and youth less than 18 years old. The age groupings and available age filters reflect these ranges.
  • In some reports, ‘18-21 yrs’ is separated into ‘18 + 60 days’, ‘18 + > 60 days’, and ‘19-21 yrs’:
    • 18 + 60 days: Youth who are in the first 60 days of their 18th year
    • 18 + > 60 days: Other 18-year-old youth (i.e., older than 18 plus 60 days)
    • 19 to 21 year olds.
    These categories are intended to support analysis of the effects of the implementation of Assembly Bill 12 (AB12). AB12 allows youth to voluntarily remain in or reenter foster care. Youth exiting as part of the ‘18 + 60 days’ group are more likely to have experienced a conventional exit; those in the ‘18 + > 60 days’ and ‘19-21 yrs’ group are more likely to have made use of the AB12 changes.
  • In Transition-Age Youth Research & Evaluation Hub (TAY-Hub) reports, the age range is limited to youth in care age 18-20 or 18-21 years. In these cases, rather than presenting grouped ages, the ages 18, 19, 20, and 21 (if applicable), are presented as separate rows or columns. This approach is intended to allow a focus on older youth and to provide a detailed stratification by age.