About foster care
Foster care is a loving, nurturing and supportive environment for children when they cannot remain in their home or with family members. Foster parents work with Children’s Aid staff as part of a team to develop a plan for each child in care. The ideal plan is usually to reunite a child with their family. When this is not possible, the plan may include adoption or long-term foster care. Foster parents provide stability and a caring home that encourages a child's growth and development.
Foster parents provide a temporary home for children who are in the care of Children's Aid. Children may need foster care for just a few days, a week, several months or possibly years. While the legal responsibility for the child remains with the agency, foster parents play an important role in the child's daily life.
For more information about becoming a foster parent, contact your local Children's Aid.
Who are foster children
Children come into foster care for protection from abuse or neglect. Most often, they have been hurt by abuse, violence or neglect and need a stable, loving home and a caring family.
Each foster child is unique and there is no such thing as a typical foster child. Children come into care because there is a conflict within their family, or the capacity to take care of them simply isn’t there.
Foster children range in age from infancy to 18 years of age and come from diverse cultural, religious and family backgrounds. Many foster children are teenagers; some are brothers and sisters; and some have physical, emotional and mental challenges. Whatever their individual circumstance, each foster child is going through a troubled period in his family life and needs the care offered by foster parents.
For more information about becoming a foster parent, contact your local Children's Aid.
Who are foster parents
Foster parents are generous and giving members of our communities, who step in to bridge the gap for children so they can stay in a family-based environment. Foster parents work closely with Children’s Aid to provide temporary care to children for a few days, weeks, months or possibly years. They also prepare children for reunification with their biological families, adoption or long-term foster care. Children’s Aid provides training and education, ongoing assistance and financial supports to foster families to aid them in caring for children and youth.
Foster parents come from all walks of life and a diversity of cultures, religion and lifestyle. One thing they all share is a genuine interest in children and a sense of community responsibility.
For more information about becoming a foster parent, contact your local Children's Aid.
How do I foster
If you are interested in becoming a foster parent, we will help you through every step and make the process as seamless as possible for you. Simply contact your local Children’s Aid for more information.
is a program that enables several agencies to work together to promote a strong and unified message across several regions about the need for safe homes for children. Homes for Kids is committed to recruiting highly supportive and compassionate families to provide exemplary care to children who, for many reasons, are not able to live with their biological families. It is also a program committed to recruiting families that are as diverse as the children and youth who make up our communities.
is a collaborative recruitment and retention program among twelve child welfare agencies in Eastern Ontario, and provides people in those communities with the resources they need to get started. "Winning Kids" are children and youth who share the same hopes, dreams and aspirations as their peers. Despite significant challenges they can move forward and have winning lives.
Both Homes for Kids and Winning Kids believe that every child has the right to grow and develop in a family environment within one’s own community. While the types of foster homes required may vary from region to region, every community across Ontario is in need of foster families. Some agencies may have a high need for infant homes; others may need homes for school age children or sibling groups, and almost all communities need foster families to care for teens.
A number of supports are available to foster parents, including a 24 hour on-call worker, a family worker assigned to the foster family to help meet their needs, a child in care worker for every child who is in care, foster parent support groups that meet regularly, and the Foster Parent Association affiliated with each agency.
Foster parents receive a daily rate or per diem for each child in their care. The money received by foster parents is non-taxable. It is considered reimbursement for expenses incurred and foster parents do not claim it as income. Foster parents are also reimbursed for expenses such as the foster child’s clothing and school supplies. All medical and dental expenses are covered as well.
For more information about becoming a foster parent, contact your local Children's Aid.
