Foster Care | Better Care Network

Foster Care

The term “foster care” is used in a variety of ways, and, consequently, it often causes confusion and miscommunication. In the industrialized world it is generally used to refer to formal, temporary placements made by the State with families that are trained, monitored and compensated at some level. In many developing countries, however, fostering is kinship care or other placement with a family, the objective(s) of which may include the care of the child, the child’s access to education, and/or the child’s doing some type of work for the foster family.

Such care is informal and unregulated by the State. Foster care can also be understood as formal care, typically provided by adults who are not related to the child, but may include formalized kinship care. It is usually for a limited period until the child can return home or move into a more permanent placement such as adoption.

In emergency situations, such as armed conflict, informal fostering often occurs spontaneously when a family takes in an unaccompanied child. Also, in some emergency situations, agencies have organized a quasi-formal type of foster care to ensure immediate, family-based care for unaccompanied children. Such foster care should be formally arranged by the local authority or child protection organisation and include assessing each child’s best interests; screening, training, and monitoring of caretakers; and planning for the longer term needs of each child.

Foster care can provide the advantages of family-based care within a child’s own community. In some situations, particularly spontaneous care initiated during an emergency, it can become de facto adoption in settings where State child protection services and formalization of care arrangements are very limited or do not exist.

Foster care plays an important role in a situation where a child’s own family is not providing adequately for his or her care. It can provide protection and care for the child while the family situation is improved, with the eventual aim of family reunification.

It is vital that children are provided opportunities to express their wishes and concerns regarding with whom they live and have contact. The appointment of a legal guardian is a means of ensuring their opinions are taken into account.

Foster caretakers often receive support to meet the child’s needs and prevent placement breakdown. This may include parenting guidance and access to basic services for the child. Payment for care requires thoughtful consideration and should not encourage the separation of children from their families, or the use of a child for financial gain. All placements should be regulated to ensure the standards of care protect the child and encourage her development.

This body of literature provides examples from around the world of spontaneous, informal and formal fostering. It includes guidance on standards of care and child care policy.

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Information Packet: Pregnancy Prevention for Youth in Foster Care

Caitlin Baer and Madeline Vasquez - National Center for Child Welfare Excellence, 01 May 2015

This information packet from the National Center for Child Welfare Excellence presents demographic data on pregnant youth in foster care and best practice tips for pregnancy prevention among youth in foster care in the US, as well as an overview of a model pregnancy prevention program and a list of additional resources.

Looked-after children and young people: Public Health Guideline

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) , 01 May 2015

This guideline covers how organisations, professionals and carers can work together to deliver high quality care, stable placements and nurturing relationships for looked-after children and young people in England.

Chapter 1: Towards belonging: conceptual definitions

Andrew Briggs - Towards Belonging: Negotiating New Relationships for Adopted Children and Those in Care, 30 Apr 2015

The ideas and questions raised in this chapter derive from the referrals of children in care or adopted whom the author has seen for psychotherapy.

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Chapter 4: Establishing a sense of belonging for looked after children: the journey from fear and shame to love and belonging

Jim Walker - Towards Belonging: Negotiating New Relationships for Adopted Children and Those in Care, 30 Apr 2015

This chapter explores the idea of belonging through the lens of attachment theory.

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Public Perceptions, Beliefs and Experiences of Fostering and Adoption: A National Qualitative Study in South Africa

Tamsen J Rochat, Zitha Mokomane, Joanie Mitchell, The Directorate - Children & Society , 17 Apr 2015

This qualitative research explored perceptions, beliefs, and experiences of adoption and fostering among a national sample of childless adults, biological parents, kin and non-kin fostering parents and prospective and successful adopters.

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From Foster Care to Adulthood: Success Stories

Sabrina R. Gonzalez - University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons, 17 Apr 2015

This qualitative study, conducted as part of a Doctoral dissertation, used intensive interviews to explore the trajectory of a small number of youth who have transitioned out of foster care in the US, outlining the social, economic and psychological barriers they faced while also charting the attitudes, behaviors and experiences that allowed them to successfully exit the foster care system and move toward productive adult lives.

Country Care Review: Germany

Better Care Network, 17 Apr 2015

This country care review includes the care related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Towards a theory of upbringing in foster care in Europe

Claire Cameron, Daniela Reimer & Mark Smith - European Journal of Social Work, 15 Apr 2015

This article reports on a preliminary exploration of fostering across 11 European countries, reflecting different care and education traditions.

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A Child’s right to a Family: Deinstitutionalization of Child Welfare in Russia as Ideology and Practice

Meri Kulmala, Maija Jäppinen and Jouko Nikula - XVI April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development, 08 Apr 2015

This paper, presented at the XVI April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development in Moscow on 8 April 2015, outlines a research project analyzing ongoing foster care reform in Russia in the context of the country’s new family policies.

Therapeutic Foster Care: Child Welfare

Jennifer Teska - Cinahl Information Systems, a division of EBSCO Information Services , 03 Apr 2015

In this “Quick Lesson About Therapeutic Foster Care,” the author provides a description of, and background information on, therapeutic foster care in the United States, an overview of national statistics regarding therapeutic foster care, and an overview of the risk factors and symptoms associated with children in need of therapeutic foster care.