Caregiver FAQs

The Kinship Guardianship Assistance Payment Program (PUB 372)  provides information on the permanency option for children in long-term foster care placements with relative caregivers who have become the child’s legal guardian. When determining permanent placement, the county placing agency gives preferential consideration to relatives and concurrent homes – that is, homes that provide foster care and are willing to provide a permanent home for the child if reunification fails. For those hearings that resource parents do not have a statutory right to attend, you are encouraged to communicate the status of the foster child to the social worker, social worker’s supervisor, and the child’s attorney. The foster parent is a valued member of the foster child’s team and the county placing agency should promote and support an inclusive and team approach to decision making regarding the children in their care. At the time of placement, caregivers should always verify with the social worker or social worker’s supervisor what Payment is available for the foster child and when the payments will start.

Current Foster Parents

Kinship/Relative Placement – The home of a relative or family friend where a child is placed to live when parents are unable to provide for the child’s safety. If no one can be found, the court can give temporary legal custody to CPS, who then places the children in foster care (learn more). Giving a Child a Permanent Home – Choices for Relatives (PUB 344) – this pamphlet will explain some of the major differences among adoption, guardianship, and foster care and the choices a relative has when the relative child cannot return to live safely with his or her parent. Ask the assigned social worker, social worker’s supervisor, or child’s attorney to communicate this information to you as soon as possible after the court date. As part of the team supporting the foster child in your care, the county placing agency should make every effort to give you advance notice of meetings and conferences scheduled regarding the foster child in your care.

DFPS Agency

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Your child’s needs are the most important consideration in deciding where he or she will live while in CPS care. After working with you for five months, your caseworker must make a decision about what recommendation to make to the court in order to resolve the legal case. You and your caseworker should begin by talking about why your child is in state care. The caseworker makes sure your child gets good care and tries to help you work out your problems so your child can return home. The case worker is your main point of contact when your child is in CPS care.

• No child in the managing conservatorship of CPS may be deprived of basic necessities or be subjected to cruel, harsh, unusual, or unnecessary punishment.
• Ask the assigned social worker, social worker’s supervisor, or child’s attorney to communicate this information to you as soon as possible after the court date.
• The court makes the final decision about a child’s custody within 12 months, unless the judge grants a one-time extension of up to six-extra months.
• DCFS strives to reunite children with their birth families, and nearly half of all foster children are reunified with their families within 12 months.
• If the allegation is unfounded or inconclusive, the county may continue to place children in the caregiver’s home.

This will be discussed at the CPS Permanency Conference that you will be invited to attend during the fifth month that your child is in foster care. You, your caseworker, and the foster parents may be able to set up a schedule so you can visit regularly to talk about your child. A Family Group Conference is a meeting where families join with relatives, friends, the community, and CPS to develop a plan to ensure children are cared for and protected from future harm. If a judge decides that a child needs to be removed, the child may go into foster care. The law, developed through a partnership between Illinois DCFS and the ACLU of Illinois, took effect July 1, giving Illinois the ability to create separate standards for relatives to be certified to care for related children and youth in DCFS care. DCFS strives to reunite children with their birth families, and nearly half of all foster children are reunified with their families within 12 months.

If the child’s needs would be best met by re-placement in your home, the county placing agency has the discretion to do this. The county placing agency is responsible for identifying the permanent placement option and placing the child in that home as early as possible in the dependency process. There are times when a foster family and a foster child are not a good “fit” despite everyone’s best efforts. Prior to or at the time of placement, you have a Right To receive child information about difficult and problematic behaviors, including behaviors that may pose a risk to your family, unless a court says otherwise. The list should be submitted in writing to the county, and, if possible, the child’s attorney and/or the juvenile court, and request that placement and adoption assessment or home studies be done on the households listed.

What payment can the caregiver receive for the first months of placement when the child is in the home prior to licensure, approval, or certification? Who do I call if I have not received the financial stipend for the foster child in my care? What recourse do I have as a caregiver when my foster care license is “on hold” or has been suspended or revoked? non gamstop casinos UK If the allegation is unfounded or inconclusive, the county may continue to place children in the caregiver’s home.