There's been a flurry of fixes to the child-welfare system since Phoenix Sinclair's death. They come under the umbrella of Changes for Children, and they come with a hefty $42-million price tag.

But what's really changed in the child-welfare system since March 2006?

Child safety

GET ready for next year's child-welfare catch phrase: Differential response.

That's social work-speak for programs and specialized staff that gently weasel their way into troubled families and prevent abuse and neglect before it happens. The goal is to keep families together rather than sending kids to foster homes.

It represents a fundamental shift in the way child welfare is done, and it will mean another 50 or 60 new front-line workers will be hired, say provincial officials.

Two agencies are testing differential response, also known as family enhancement or family support. One agency is testing a new made-in-Manitoba risk-assessment tool that has prevention built into it. It works for families whose risk levels might not trigger foster placement but could benefit from counselling, regular visits from social workers and perhaps some fetal-alcohol services.