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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Attachment, dependency, and attachment-related behaviors in foster children: A closer look at the nature of the foster child–caregiver relationship

Melanie Tamara Kungl, Sandra Gabler, Ina Bovenschen, Katrin Lang, Janin Zimmermann, Gottfried Spangler - Developmental Child Welfare, 06 May 2019

This study investigates the nature of newly formed relationships between children and their foster carers.

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Children and youth in out-of-home care: What can predict an initial change in placement?

Merav Jedwab, Yanfeng Xu, Daniel Keyser, Terry V. Shaw - Child Abuse & Neglect, 04 May 2019

The objectives of this study were: (a) to measure the time-to-initial placement change in different types of settings, including non-relative foster homes, kinship care, residential treatment centers (RTC), group homes and other types of settings; and (b) to identify predictors of the initial placement change.

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The Costs and Potential Savings of Supportive Housing for Child Welfare–Involved Families

Josh Leopold & Amanda Gold - Urban Institute, 01 May 2019

This study evaluated the effectiveness of the US Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families funded Partnerships to Demonstrate the Effectiveness of Supportive Housing for Families in the Child Welfare System, a five-year, $25 million demonstration that provided supportive housing to families in the child welfare system, in five sites. This report summarizes the results of the cost study, which estimates the costs of the housing and services offered in the demonstration and any savings, or additional costs, resulting from the demonstration’s effects on families’ use of homeless programs and child welfare services.

Does Supportive Housing Keep Families Together? Supportive Housing for Child Welfare Families Research Partnership

Michael Pergamit, Mary Cunningham, Devlin Hanson, Alexandra Stanczyk - The Urban Institute, 01 May 2019

This report provides findings from the Urban Institute's impact analysis of a program that provided supportive housing to families in the child welfare system in the US.

Overrepresentation and disparity of Black children reported under the child protection system: The need for effective cross-system collaborations

Alicia Boatswain-Kyte - Université de Montréal, 01 May 2019

This three-paper dissertation examines the overrepresentation of Black children reported to child protection services in Canada.

Care and protection of tamariki Māori in the family court system

Tania Williams, Jacinta Ruru, Horiana Irwin-Easthope, Khylee Quince, Heather Gifford - te Arotahi Series Paper, 01 May 2019

This paper urges the government and nation of New Zealand to give effect to long-standing Kaupapa Māori models for developing the new required evaluation measures aimed at reducing the disparities for Māori children and young persons who come to the attention of Oranga Tamariki Ministry for Children.

A guide to looked after children statistics in England: May 2019

UK Department for Education, 01 May 2019

This document provides a guide to looked after children statistics published by the UK Department for Education.

All Children Belong with Families

Dr. Ruthie-Marie Beckwith - TASH, Inc., 30 Apr 2019

This presentation was given at Disability Rights International and the European Network on Independent Living's webinar on the right of all children to a family by Dr. Ruthie-Marie Beckwith.

Innovative Approaches to Improving Outcomes for Children Involved with Child Welfare: Youth Mentoring

Heather Taussig and Lindsey Weiler - Re-Visioning Public Health Approaches for Protecting Children , 27 Apr 2019

This chapter from Re-Visioning Public Health Approaches for Protecting Children argues that mentoring for children in foster care in the US should be considered as one potential strategy for the prevention of adverse outcomes among this vulnerable population.

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Building Research Capacity in Child Welfare in Canada: Advantages and Challenges in Working with Administrative Data

Nico Trocmé, Tonino Esposito, Barbara Fallon, Martin Chabot, Ashleigh Delaye - Re-Visioning Public Health Approaches for Protecting Children, 27 Apr 2019

The purpose of this chapter from the book Re-Visioning Public Health Approaches for Protecting Children is to document and discuss the conceptual, methodological, ethical, and infrastructure related issues that arise in supporting the research needs of child welfare organizations in Canada in order to implement evidence-based practice models, while providing examples of the usefulness and challenges of using administrative child welfare data to inform policies and programs.

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