What is Child Foster Care?
The Child Foster Care Program provides foster homes for children who can not safely reside in their own home or in the home of a relative.
The Winnebago County Department of Human Services has a wide variety of foster care services to offer children who are unable to live in the child's parental home:
Winnebago County Department of Human Services continually recruits new foster homes to meet the needs of children and families. If you have an interest in becoming a foster parent, please call 920-236-4600.
In addition, the Winnebago County Human Services Department works closely with the State of Wisconsin to ensure that children who require permanent care through adoption are placed in an appropriate home. Visit the Division of Health and Family Services website for more information on their services to children and families.
Foster Home Care
Family foster homes provide care to children while the child’s family is resolving the circumstances that led to the child’s placement outside of the home. While the child lives in the foster home, the foster family becomes an important team member in the provision of care to the child. It is likely that the foster parent will need to work closely with the child’s parent to ensure that the child’s needs are met. This can include going to school conferences, assisting with transportation to visitations, and arranging for and attending medical appointments with the child and the child’s parent.
Our efforts are to return children to their parents or other appropriate family member as soon as possible. However, sometimes this is not an option and the child remains in foster care. In some cases, children are then adopted, often by their foster parents.
Respite Foster Homes
Respite homes are used to provide care on a very time-limited and planned basis for parents of special needs children and also for foster families who need a break from the demands of care taking. Short-term and planned care are ideal situations for individuals who do not wish to make a long-term commitment to care for a child.
Respite care is offered to all licensed foster homes. One respite day for each month the child is placed in the home is earned by these homes in which the department pays for respite card.
To arrange Respite Care for a foster child, contact needs to be made with the Foster Care Coordinator in charge of arranging respite care. This worker will gather information about the child needing respite, arrange for an appropriate placement and complete the payment form to ensure that payment is made. Many times, foster families "swap" respite care with other families. Your foster care coordinator still needs to know about arrangements.
We are always looking for respite homes. We still use our foster parent licensing process so our respite homes are also licensed foster parents.
Treatment Foster Homes
Treatment foster homes are designed to provide treatment to children who have emotional and behavioral problems. The treatment home provides a safe, nurturing and family environment for the child to change behaviors that have created difficulties for the child and the child’s family. Children placed in treatment foster care require a great deal of care and support, so it is essential that the treatment foster parent have a strong support network, training and regular breaks from care-taking. Like other foster parents, the treatment foster parent will work as an important team member in the child’s treatment. Treatment foster care has additional licensing rules that must be followed by the family and the agency. The Winnebago County Department of Human Services contracts with foster families for treatment home services. Additional training is required for anyone wishing to become a licensed treatment foster parent.
An example of a treatment Foster Home scenario: Mickey is a single mom who is licensed to provide care to four children with treatment needs. Most often these children are teenagers, some who have been in trouble with the law. They frequently receive many services and Mickey's transporting to appointments, meeting with other team members, and may have providers in her home. Mickey may have to be involved with schools as often, youth have difficulty in many areas of their life.
Receiving Home Care
Foster families that provide receiving home care provide children a place to live for approximately 30 days. Children living in receiving care have been removed from their family’s home due to an emergency. Foster parents receive these children on short notice. Sometimes little information is available about the child and the child’s family when the placement is made.
There is consistent turn-over of children placed in receiving care. Any family committed to providing receiving care requires the ability to be flexible and available on short notice.
An example of a receiving home scenario: Julie is a single mother with three biological children and one adopted child. She provides care to three children in receiving care. She spends time transporting many of the children in her care to medical appointments, appointments with social workers and counselors and to school. There is a need for her to be flexible as there continues to be a great deal of uncertainty in the care for children who come to her on an emergency basis.
Like all receiving home parents, Julie carries a pager so the agency can reach her when her care is required. Since most placements in receiving care are made on an emergency basis, the agency requires that one person work full-time in the home while providing receiving home care.
