Foster Care

Foster Care Services
Foster care services are provided to children and families when the court has found the child to be in need of care and the parents are not able to meet the safety and care needs of the child. Most children who require foster care have been abused or neglected and have significant developmental, physical, and emotional needs, which require an array of services and care options. However, some children who are not abused or neglected may be placed in foster care for reasons such as out-of-control behavior, truancy, overwhelmed parents, and running away from home. Needs can range from placement with a relative to inpatient psychiatric care. Family foster homes are the most frequently used placement resources, but some children require more structured settings, such as group home or a residential center. Our partners in service delivery are CWCBS providers who are responsible for providing foster care services including case planning, placement, life skills and foster parent recruitment and training. SRS social workers are responsible for monitoring the safety of the children and monitoring the progress made toward permanency.
http://www.srs.ks.gov/services/Pages/FosterCare.aspx

Goals of Fostering
The goal of foster care is to give children a family life experience in a licensed home for a planned period of time. This experience should be a supplement to, not a substitute for, the birth family. One job of foster parents is to assist with reuniting the child with his or her family. If that cannot happen, another permanent plan is carried out. Foster family care means families helping families.

The Foster Children
Children who enter foster care may have experienced physical, emotional, sexual abuse or neglect, and have been removed from their home to be placed in a safe environment while family services are being conducted. Many children are learning to cope with anxiety, depression, attention deficit disorder, and other emotional and physical challenges. Children in foster care are in need of structure, consistency, behavior intervention, and a positive nurturing environment.