Child & Family Connections

About Us

Child and Family Connections (CFC) serves families with children under the age of 3 with suspected developmental delays. CFC provides a system point of entry into the Illinois Early Intervention System. CFC provides service coordination of early intervention services including evaluations, connecting eligible families to therapies, community resources and transition.
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Tip for Parents

The program encourages parents to talk with their child's doctor at every visit about the milestones their child has reached, and what to expect next.  They can also ask the doctor to conduct a five-minute screening that will help assess whether the child should receive any type of early intervention.

Who Can Receive Services

Children who are residents of Lake County, under the age of 3, and have met criteria for eligibility, the most common being a 30% delay in development or documentation of an automatically eligible medical diagnosis that may cause developmental delays.

Early Intervention is open and accepting referrals during COVID-19.

Services are being provided through:

  • Telephone consultation
  • Live video visit
  • Limited face-to-face visits
  • Hybrid approach

Anyone can make a referral. Please call (847) 377-8931 for English or (847) 377-8932 for Spanish. Click the infographic to learn more.

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Early Intervention Clearinghouse

Important Information from the Early Intervention Clearinghouse.

Additional Information

CFC links families to EI services and teaches families how to play with their children in order to help them learn and increase essential skills in the following areas of development:

  • Physical: how your baby moves and explores
  • Cognitive: how your baby learns
  • Communication: how your baby lets you know what he/she needs
  • Social/Emotional: how your baby engages with you and shows feelings
  • Adaptive: how your baby uses new skills

Some CFC services available through the Health Department are provided to families at no cost, regardless of income, including:

  • Audiological services
  • Development of Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSP)
  • Eligibility evaluations
  • Monitoring of ongoing development for eligible children
  • Parent liaison services
  • Providing additional resource information to families
  • Service coordination (similar to case management)

The family-centered EI services are coordinated, culturally sensitive, comprehensive and effective in assisting families to help their children reach their fullest potential. CFC staff ensures that families are aware of their EI rights and choices for services.

Click here to watch our 2 Minute Program Video

Family Times: Early Intervention Newsletter