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Report

Strengthening Families Through Guardianship


Quick Summary

More than 500,000 children will close their eyes tonight as wards of the state in foster care. They are waiting for the security, stability and love of permanent families. Foster care was created as a short-term safety net for children in crisis, however, on average children will languish in care for more than two years. More than half the children leaving foster care will return home to their birth parents, and about 18 percent will leave foster care to adoptive families. For some, however, reunification with their parents or adoption is not an option.

Strengthening Families Through Guardianship
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Report Project

Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care

Report Topic

Health Topics

The Importance of Family in a Child's Life

Evidence suggests that children living in foster placements with relatives are as safe as those living with non-relatives.1 They are more likely to be placed with other siblings while in foster care and are more likely to be in the same placement (or living arrangement) one year later, which is an important measure of stability for children.2 Stability in a child’s life contributes to improved health and education outcomes.

In addition, placing children with relatives helps maintain connections to their extended family, community and culture.3 For example, in American Indian and Alaskan Native (AI/AN) tribal communities, the use of extended family as a placement resource is very common. A 2007 report by the United States Government Accountability Office recommended that federal guardianship support could help reduce overrepresentation of African-American children within the foster care system.4 Guardianship placements are viewed as an important placement option because they allow children to maintain their relationships with their extended family and support the transfer of culture to the child.

Table of Contents
 

Date added:
Apr 10, 2008
Project:
Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care
Topic:
Health Topics
References:
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References:

1 Testa, M., Bruhn, C. & Helton. J. Comparative safety, stability, and continuity of children’s placements in formal and informal substitute care. A paper presented at the NSCAW Data Users’ Workshop, January 25-26, 2007. Washington, DC;
2 Ibid.; Analysis by the University of Illinois, Children and Family Research Center at Urbana-Champagne (2007), reported in Kids Are Waiting. (2007). Time for Reform: Support Relatives in Providing Foster Care and Permanent Families for Children. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from http://kidsarewaiting.org/tools/reports/files/0004.pdf
3 Rolock, N. & Testa, M. (2006). Conditions of children in or at risk of foster care in Illinois. Urbana, IL, Children and Family Research Center.; Wulczyn, F. & Zimmerman, E. 2005. Sibling placements in longitudinal perspective. Children and Youth Service Review, Vol.27, pp. 741-763.
4 US Government Accountability Office. (2007). African American Children in Foster Care: Additional HHS assistance needed to help states reduce the proportion in care. Retrieved April 1, 2008 from: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d07816.pdf
5 Macomber, J.E., Geen, R. Main, R. (2003). Kinship Foster Care. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from: http://www.urban.org/url.cfm?ID=3108936
6 Children’s Defense Fund. (2004). Financial Assistance for Grandparents and Other Relatives Raising Children. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from http://www.childrensdefense.org/site/DocServer/financialassistance0805.pdf?docID=467
7 Kids Are Waiting. (2007). Time for Reform: Support Relatives in Providing Foster Care and Permanent Families for Children. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from http://kidsarewaiting.org/tools/reports/files/0004.pdf
8 National Abandoned Infants Resource Center. (2005). Subsidized guardianship. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from http://aia.berkeley.edu/publications/fact_sheets/subsidized_guardianship_2005.php
9 The American Bar Association, Casey Family Programs, and Generations United. (2008). Subsidized Guardianship Programs. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from: www.grandfamilies.org and http://www.grandfamilies.org/index.cfm?page=aboutus; US Children’s Bureau. (May 2007). Summary of the Title IV-E Child Welfare Demonstration Waivers. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/programs_fund/cwwaiver/2007/summary_demo2007.htm
10 US Children’s Bureau. (May 2007) Summary of the Title IV-E Child Welfare Demonstration Waivers
11 The American Bar Association, Casey Family Programs, and Generations United. (2008). Subsidized Guardianship Programs. US Children’s Bureau. (May 2007) Summary of the Title IV-E Child Welfare Demonstration Waivers.; Generations United. (2005). Grandfamilies: Subsidized Guardianship Programs. Retrieved March 30, 2008 from: http://www.gu.org/documents/A0/GUGeneralFactSheetJune.pdf
12 US Children’s Bureau. (May 2007). Summary of the Title IV-E Child Welfare Demonstration Waivers.
13 US Children’s Bureau. (May 2007). Profiles of Child Welfare Demonstration Projects. Retrieved April 1, 2208 from: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/programs_fund/cwwaiver/2007/profiles_demo2007.htm

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