A child’s placement in foster care is never meant to be a permanent situation. Rather, it’s a temporary solution until the child can safely return home. Nor do providers like Saint Francis Ministries decide to place a child in foster care. That’s the purview of the State and the court.
Yet, until a child can safely return home, Saint Francis works with the court and the parents to resolve unsafe issues, stabilize the family, and connect parents with the resources they need to better care for their children. Most kids remain in foster care 1-2 years, and just under half of the children in foster care return home (Source: U.S. Department of Health & Human Services).
Of course, in a perfect world, no child would be removed from their home and parents. Saint Francis Ministries and other providers know that, when their health and safety permit, kids need to stay with their birth families. That’s why SFM works so hard to prevent removal in the first place by empowering families with the skills and tools they need to ensure the well-being and security of their children. Our in-home prevention services, like Family Centered Treatment®, are designed to fortify family dynamics and address challenges that risk children’s safety.
The success rate speaks for itself. About 98 percent of all families that complete Family Centered Treatment® had a positive placement at closure, according to national research.
We recently featured such a family in Episode 5 of our video series “Conversations.” Watch as Jami and Blake Andrews describe how FCT saved their marriage and family (their words). Thanks to their participation, their family is stronger, happier, and healthier:
That’s good news because, as Saint Francis knows, strong families make children’s lives better.
During National Family Reunification Month, we celebrate those moments when a child returns home and a family is restored to wholeness. Healthy, strong, and whole families are both the hope and goal, and foster and kinship families play an essential role in making that happen.
Yet, even better, is avoiding foster care in the first place. SFM’s in-home prevention services can fill the gap. Learn more about those services here: saintfrancisministries.org/in-home-prevention.
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