Description
A foster family is a single person, a couple or a family that takes one or more children or teenagers in difficulty into their home. The foster family provides the child with living conditions that promote a parent-child relationship in a family-like environment.
The adults in the substitute family provide the children with an environment to live and grow in that is:
- Calming
- Safe
- Stable
- Caring
- Stimulating
These adults contribute to the physical, mental and emotional well-being and development of these children by knowing how to care for them, listen to them, support and love them. With these winning conditions, every child can thrive and develop their potential.
A foster family can take in one to nine children who are placed with the family by a public institution.
Children placed with a foster family
Children or teenagers placed in a foster family are children between the age of 0 to 17 years old who may have, for example:
- Family problems
- Behavioural disorders
- A physical disability, an intellectual deficiency or an autism spectrum disorder.
Sometimes, parents recognize that they are having difficulty meeting their child’s needs and agree to place them in another family’s care. Sometimes, a social worker recommends to the court that a child should be removed from his family environment and placed in another family’s care.
All children or teenagers who are placed with a foster family are followed by a psychosocial support worker from a public institution.
Placement with a foster family may be temporary or permanent depending on the child’s needs.
