Family Stabilization
Few things are more important to a child’s development than stability. For children in the foster care system, who have been abused, abandoned, or neglected, stability can be hard to come by.
How does Voices for Children ensure that children in the foster care system have the best chance at living a safe, stable life?
VFC ensures stability for children in foster care by expanding and strengthening kinship care. Kinship care is care provided by a family member or friend who opens up their home to care for a child who would otherwise be placed in a foster home. By strengthening kinship care placements, we can improve outcomes for children in foster care.
Here’s what we do:
- VFC funds an intake coordinator that visits kinship homes in the first thirty days of a child entering foster care to assess the family’s needs and secure connection to resources and services. This intake coordinator is sponsored by the Ellen & Ronald Block Family Foundation Inc. and the Batchelor Foundation.
- Provides financial support for housing, utilities, clothing, food, furniture, and other expenses to help stabilize kinship care families.
Why is kinship care so important?
- Studies show that, compared to children in nonrelative care, children in kinship homes experience increased stability and decreased likelihood of disruption.
- Kinship caregivers are more likely to provide a permanent home.
- Children in kinship care have better behavioral and mental health outcomes.
- Kinship care helps children preserve their cultural identity and relationship to the community.
