Foster Care
Foster Homes are temporary alternative family settings for children who cannot currently remain with their parents in safety.
Foster-Adoption Homes are approved foster homes, which intend to adopt. Parents are trained in both programs and are committed to working with a child all the way to permanency, whether the child returns to birth family or ultimately is adopted. Only children who have a high probability of becoming permanent wards of the government are considered for this program.
Kinship Care homes are placements that support children in the Care of Children and Youth Services to live with a relative or person with whom they have a safe and significant relationship.
The Foster Care Program is based on the belief that a family and community is the most beneficial and desirable environment for raising a child. Being a foster family means acting as an extension of the foster child's family, and providing the child with appropriate family and parental role models. The supportive atmosphere of a foster home assists a child in developing healthy self-esteem and offers a positive model on which a child can pattern values and behaviours.
The goal of foster care is to return the child to his/her own family as soon as possible. Where this is not feasible, alternate permanent life plans for the child are made. These can include placement with a relative, private guardianship, or adoption. This process is called permanency planning.
In order to become an approved Foster Home, or Foster-Adoption Home, there are certain eligibility criteria that must be met. Eligibility criteria are the qualifications that are required in order for parents to be accepted into the program. Families that have stability in their lives and have a genuine love and concern for children make the most suitable foster and adoptive applicants.
Further information can be obtained by contacting the Foster/Adoption Recruitment Co-ordinator for Central Alberta Child and Families Services at (403) 341-8642.
All our children placed in foster care or adoption are referred to as Special Needs Children and require special consideration for adoption or foster care matching, because they are usually an older child, part of a sibling group, may have emotional scarring, may have a physical and/or mental disability, or may be of a racial or cultural minority, or are at risk of having a problem develop later on in their live due to parental history.
Support of foster and adoptive families is an important factor in maintaining healthy families. Many forms of support are available in both programs. Training is one such support.
Training is of paramount importance in preparing foster and adoptive families to effectively parent the children in care. All mandatory training is free.
Financial compensation is paid to foster parents for caring for foster children. The amount varies depending on the age of the child and the skill and experience of the foster parents. There are two forms of financial assistance available to foster families. Adoptive families may qualify for financial support also.
