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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Keeping secrets: how children in foster care manage stigma

Diane Dansey, Danielle Shbero, Mary John - Adoption & Fostering, 18 Mar 2019

This article follows on from ‘How children in foster care engage with loyalty conflict: presenting a model of processes informing loyalty’ (Dansey, John and Shbero, 2018), published in the previous edition of this journal.

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Placement disruption in foster care: Children’s behavior, foster parent support, and parenting experiences

Sonya J. Leathers, Jill E. Spielfogel, Jennifer Geiger, James Barnett, Beth L. Vande Voort - Child Abuse & Neglect, 16 Mar 2019

The objective of this study was to identify factors associated with difficult parenting experiences and placement disruption.

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Nurturing attachments parenting program: The relationship between adopters’ parental reflective functioning and perception of their children's difficulties

J. Staines, K. Golding, J. Selwyn - Developmental Child Welfare, 13 Mar 2019

This paper draws on an evaluation of the effectiveness of the Nurturing Attachments groupwork programme provided by AdoptionPlus for adoptive families in England. The Nurturing Attachments programme, informed by Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy (Hughes, Golding & Hudson, 2015), was developed to help foster and adoptive parents strengthen their relationships with the child and support children who had experienced developmental traumas.

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Supporting LGBTQ+ Foster Teens: Development of a Relationship-Focused,Self-Guided Curriculum for Foster Families

Amy M. Salazar, Kevin P. Haggerty, Susan E. Barkan, Rachel Peterson, Madeline E. Furlong, Eunsaem Kim, Janice J. Cole, Jessica M. Colito - Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 13 Mar 2019

This study has three aims: (1) to provide an overview of a module designed to support relationship building between LGBTQ+ youth in foster care and their caregivers, (2) to describe the theater testing procedure used to assess usability of the developed module with foster caregivers and adults, and (3) to share the results of the theater test.

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Recurrence, eruptions, and a transnational turn: Three decades of strained relations between migrants to Norway and the Child Welfare Services

Anders Vassenden & Gunn Vedøy - Child & Family Social Work, 12 Mar 2019

This article explores the history of strained relations between the Norwegian Child Welfare Services (CWS) and various migrant groups.

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Maltreatment history, trauma symptoms and research reactivity among adolescents in child protection services

Randall Waechter, Dilesha Kumanayaka, Colleen Angus-Yamada, Christine Wekerle, Savanah Smith and The MAP Research Team - , 11 Mar 2019

This open access study compared self-reported impact of research participation against maltreatment history and current post-traumatic stress symptomatology among a randomly selected group of adolescents (< 18 years old) in the child protection service (CPS) system.

The revolving door of families in the child welfare system: Risk and protective factors associated with families returning

Ryan D. Davidson, Claire S. Tomlinson, Connie J. Beck, Anne M. Bowen - Children and Youth Services Review, 09 Mar 2019

This article aims to identify risk and protective factors associated with families returning to the US child welfare system within a social ecological framework, to identify gaps in the current literature, and to discuss areas for future research.

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Child maltreatment, sexual and peer victimization experiences among adolescents in residential care

Sílvia Indias, Ignacia Arruabarrena, Joaquín De Paúl - Children and Youth Services Review, 09 Mar 2019

The present study aimed to measure lifetime prevalence and frequency rates of child physical and emotional abuse, neglect, domestic violence, and several types of sexual and peer victimization among adolescents in residential care.

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Evaluating the impact of camp-based reunification on the resilience of siblings separated by foster care

Jeffrey Waid & Armeda Stevenson Wojciak - Children and Youth Services Review, 08 Mar 2019

To explore the viability of positive youth development for youth in care, this observational study investigated whether participation in a summer camp-based reunification program for siblings separated by foster care in the US and Australia called Camp To Belong influenced youth resilience, a critical protective mechanism for maltreated youth.

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‘I’m here as a social worker’: immigration status issues and safeguarding children in Private Fostering arrangements in the UK

Karen Wells - Child Abuse Review, 08 Mar 2019

This paper reports on a qualitative study that aimed to understand children’s experiences of private fostering and social work practice.

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