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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Foster children are at risk for developing problems in social-emotional functioning: A follow-up study at 8 years of age

Heidi Jacobsen, Hans Bugge Bergsund, Tore Wentzel-Larsen, Lars Smith, Vibeke Moe - Children and Youth Services Review, 22 Nov 2019

The first aim of this study was to investigate foster children’s social-emotional functioning (externalizing, internalizing and total problem behavior) reported by female and male caregivers, as well as by teachers, at 8 years of age, as compared with a non-foster group. The second aim was to investigate the predictive power of internalizing and externalizing behavior from age 2 and 3 years.

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Risk and Protective Factors Contributing to Homelessness among Foster Care Youth: An Analysis of the National Youth in Transition Database

Peggy Kelly - Children and Youth Services Review, 22 Nov 2019

Using data from the U.S. National Youth in Transition Database (NYTD), combined with the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis Reporting System (AFCARS), the present study provides an analysis of the risk and protective factors contributing to homelessness among a nationwide sample of foster care youth at age 21, 29% of whom had experienced homelessness.

Challenging intellectual, behavioral and educational prerequisites for interventions aimed at school aged children in foster care. A compilation of Swedish test results

Rikard Tordön, Marie Bladh, Carl Göran Svedin, Gunilla Sydsjö - Children and Youth Services Review, 22 Nov 2019

The purpose of this study was to outline prerequisites for interventions aimed at school performance for children in foster care, related to those in normal population studies.

Exploring Relational and Parental Factors for Permanency Outcomes of Children in Care

Becky F. Antle, Anita P. Barbee, Bibhuti K. Sar, Dana J. Sullivan, Kirsten Tarter - Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, 21 Nov 2019

This research examined the impact of individual and relational characteristics of foster parents on permanency outcomes for children in care.

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Dilemmas and Contradictions in Hearing Children in Care Proceedings: Conceptions of Children’s Views in an Indirect Participation Arrangement

Marie Hatlelid Føleide and Oddbjørg Skjær Ulvik - The International Journal of Children's Rights, 21 Nov 2019

The article is based on interviews with 22 children’s spokespersons in the Norwegian arrangement for indirect participation in care proceedings, and presents analyses of the spokespersons’ experiences of contradictions and dilemmas in their practices.

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Child welfare removal of infants: Exploring policies and principles for decision-making in Nordic countries

Anne-Dorthe Hestbæk, Ingrid Höjer, Tarja Pösö, Marit Skivenes - Children and Youth Services Review, 20 Nov 2019

This descriptive policy analysis examines the position of infants’ rights in the family service orientated child welfare systems of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden when being placed in out-of-home care.

Implementation of System-Wide Change in Child Welfare and Behavioral Health: The Role of Capacity, Collaboration, and Readiness for Change

Andrew M. Winters, Crystal Collins-Camargo, Becky F. Antle, A. Nathan Verbist - Children and Youth Services Review, 20 Nov 2019

Children who enter out-of-home care are at risk for trauma and behavioral problems, however the child welfare and behavioral health systems do not effectively communicate to provide evidenced-based treatment. This case study describes a project that addressed these concerns.

Addressing poor educational outcomes among children with out-of-home care experience: Studies on impact, pathways, and interventions

Hilma Forsman - Department of Social Work, Stockholm University, 13 Nov 2019

The thesis consists of four interrelated empirical studies that address different aspects of poor educational outcomes among children with out-of-home care (OHC) experience by means of analyses of longitudinal survey and register data, and evaluations of two interventions aimed at improving their basic academic skills.

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Unintentional child injury in child welfare placements

Jesse J. Helton & Nancy L. Weaver - Child Abuse & Neglect, 11 Nov 2019

The purpose of this study was to examine factors related to unintentional child injury requiring medical attention, including child welfare placement type, child behavioral problems, caregiver characteristics, and neighborhood factors.

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The Educational Progress of Children in Out of Home Care in the UK

Julian Gardiner, Chrissy Bolton, Alastair G. Sutcliffe, Edward Melhuish - Education in Out-of-Home Care, 09 Nov 2019

This chapter from the book Education in Out-of-Home Care presents findings from a study of the educational progress of Out of Home Care (OHC) children in England.

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