This article by Amanda Marino, Attorney at Law is sponsored by Martin Pringle Adoption Professionals.
Sometimes foster care hits close to home. When a child enters the foster care system, relative placement is a priority. This is often referred to as a Kinship Placement. Being a close friend or someone that the child has close emotional ties with can also be considered a form of Kinship Placement. This is often referred to as Non-related Kinship Placement.
Have you had a loved one or family friend that has children in the child welfare system? Wondering how you can help?
Here are 3 important things to remember:
- Early Involvement
- Communication
- Boundaries
Many agencies are short on foster homes and need placements. The Child Welfare System strives to keep families together and relatives connected. This means the agencies will look to family first for placements. As a family member, you have an opportunity to provide a loving home to a child the parents and children know and trust.
Once a child is placed in the Child Welfare System, the agency will begin looking for family immediately. If you are aware of the situation, it is important to get involved EARLY in the process and make it known that you are an option for placement and want to be considered. This will usually involve a walk-through of your home and a background check on all individuals in the home above the age of 14. Many family members find it is harder to get involved later in the process, as children may develop bonds with their foster home and don’t want to disrupt a child and move them one or more times. In an effort to create the least amount of trauma for the child, working directly with the agency’s kinship department can help reduce disruptions and transitions for the child.
It is important to COMMUNICATE often with the case team.
If you are still seeking placement, it is beneficial to ensure the case team is completing tasks needed for a relative placement and also allows them to express any concerns that need to be addressed for placement in your home.
Once a child is placed in your home, keep in mind the following:
- It is imperative that you are available for the case team to make contact and communicate with you as needed.
- A case team worker will be making an in-home visit at least once a month.
- You must communicate the needs of the child to the case team so that referrals can be made and the needs of the children placed in your home are met.
- It is important to communicate to the case team how the child is handling placement in your home, transitions and behavior after visits, and general well-being.
- You must communicate about medical, vision, dental, and mental health appointments and any progress being made. The case team will relay information to the court and those involved in the child’s case.
- You should also communicate to the court through a foster home report. This gives you an opportunity to tell the judge, attorneys, and case team how things are going with the child and in your home.
Family is family, but sometimes Kinship Placements can place a strain on familial relationships. This is why BOUNDARIES are so important.
As much as we love our siblings, children, cousins – we must put the best interest of the children first. The difficulty here is that the biological parents may be doing a great job and you want to allow more contact or allow some more communication, but the agency has to be involved and the agency determines what is best regarding any contact. Courts may remove a child from a relative placement if they are not following the guidelines.
Boundaries and having the agency as a go-between can also help with any strain between family members. Even close families suffer stress from Child in Need of Care cases. The ultimate goal is reintegration with smaller milestone goals along the way. Compliance with the agency and healthy boundaries helps to achieve those goals. Many times, family issues or placement issues can delay reintegration when it affects the outcomes and goals.
Providing a loving home for a child in need is an important part of foster care placement. Being family brings more comfort to the parents and children involved. Keep in mind the 3 important factors for kinship placement – EARLY contact with the agency and case team, COMMUNICATION with the court and case team, and maintain BOUNDARIES to ensure better outcomes and a stable placement.
Amanda Marino has committed her entire legal career working toward ensuring positive outcomes for the children, always focusing on the child’s best interest. Prior to joining Martin Pringle’s Adoption team, Amanda spent 15 years in the District Attorney’s Office with 12 years representing the State of Kansas in Child in Need of Care (CINC) matters. In that role, Amanda had the unique opportunity to build relationships with families who adopted through the foster care system which ultimately inspired her to grow her law practice in the adoption and surrogacy arena. Amanda’s love for children extends far beyond her legal career. In her spare time, you will find Amanda coaching basketball and softball, as well as serving as Den Leader for two girl dens in Cub Scout Pack 515. Amanda received her undergraduate degree from Oklahoma City University and completed her law degree at the University of Kansas School of Law. Amanda is admitted to practice in Kansas and focuses her career on adoption, surrogacy law & family law.
