Foster care provides children, youth, or adults with supervision and a place to live outside of their usual home setting. People are placed in foster care because they must leave their homes for their own safety or wellbeing, and they are unable to live on their own.
Children, youth, or adults in foster care live in family homes, group homes, or special institutions. In a family home, a couple or a single adult cares for one or more individuals living in their home. The couple or adult serves as the foster parents or parent of the person in care. In a group home, a staff or live-in couple cares for 6 to 12 children, youth, or adults in a single household.
Institutions have larger staffs and care for more individuals than group homes do. However, many institutions provide care in small cottages or other homelike settings. Most institutions are residential treatment centers. In such facilities, individuals receive help in dealing with their psychological and behavioral challenges or substance abuse issues.
Individuals may be placed in foster care if it is found that a parent or others in their home have abused them. Foster care is also provided for children, youth, or adults whose caregivers have abandoned or neglected them or are no longer able to care for them. Most adults who live in foster care are unable to completely care for themselves on a daily basis because of physical, mental, or emotional challenges or advanced age. Those who need more specialized care may live in a skilled nursing facility instead of receiving foster care.
Most individuals in foster care are wards (protected persons) of a court of law. The court places the person under the supervision of a public or private agency. In many cases, this is a social service agency. In the United States, usually the agency is a state government department. In Canada, it is usually a provincial or territorial government department. The agency provides or finds foster care for the child or adult and is accountable to the court for the welfare of the individual.
The agencies that run foster care programs select, train, and supervise the people who provide foster care. The provider may be a relative of the foster person. Such an arrangement is called kinship care.
People who provide foster care often need special skills to help the children or adults they care for live healthy and enjoyable lives. Professional foster care associations, social service agency workers, and others train foster care providers and help them deal with difficult situations. Most people who provide foster care as private individuals receive financial payment or reimbursement from their state, province, or territory. Most states, provinces, and territories inspect foster care institutions, group homes, and family homes. They license or approve the homes before placing individuals in their care, as well as on an ongoing basis.
Most programs try to establish a more permanent home for individuals in foster care by providing counseling, treatment, or other assistance to help their families care for them at home. If children or youth are not able to return to their birth families, they may go to live with other relatives or be adopted by their foster parents or another family.
Some adults and older adolescents in foster care attend independent living programs. These programs teach individuals in foster care skills that prepare them to care for themselves.
Foster care continues for as long as the child or adult needs support or supervision and until a permanent living arrangement has been found. Most children placed in foster care do not spend their entire childhood there.
