How do I get started with foster care in Ohio?

Question

My husband and I have 2 kids of our own (daughter - 3 and son - 9). We were recently talking to a couple who do foster care, they have 8 kids currently in there care, 2 of which they have adopted. Before I had kids of my own I had wanted to adopt but my own kids came and that thought faded away until we were talking to this other couple. I no longer want to necassarily adopt now but I am thinking about being a foster parent.

I've been a stay at home mom for the last year and a half and recently started in home daycare, I only watch my sister's 2 girls and I wouldn't want to quit doing that, I know they're safe with me and wouldn't want them going to some other daycare facility, would doing daycare affect whether or not I could be a foster parent? And when doing foster care do you only take as many kids as you want or can provide for because I think I would only want to start out with 1, maybe 2 seeing as I have 4 kids (my own 2 and my sister's) in my care quite often already.

Answer 1

I am in Ohio and doing it right now

You need to go through classes it is like 8 weeks at once a week for four hrs each class and everyone over 18 in the house who is going to do foster care has to be there.  then you go through the home study which is like 4 to 6 months of paper work and inspection. You must have fire extinguishers, smoke dectors in each bedroom and on each floor of the house.  The child must have a place to sleep and you have to show the social worker where when they come. They can't sleep in basements or attics and they must have a real bed.  No day beds, sofa beds or trundles.  Also you tell them the age and s*x of children you want but only same s*x can share a room when you foster.  You also have to show your fiances to prove you can support the child without the state reimbursement. Because the reimbursement is not enough to support a child you need to be able to swing it on your own. If you have kids especially older ones they interview them to see if they want foster kids in the home. This is to make sure your kids don't abuse the foster child  out of resentment.  Then after the home study you go to a class called foster parent 101 and they give you all the rules and regulations for fostering.  Then you get your license and you  can begin to have kids.

You must show proof of residency go through a crimnal background check and four letters of refference two family members and two non

Answer 2

Fix it. Foster care is barbaric and is under attack in almost every state and province in north America as well as the U.K etc..

Help bring reform. Then worry about being a foster parent. Unless you want to house stolen children... as it's been reported on by various news agencies, families and advocates alike..

Answer 3

First of all, you need to get in touch with your department of family & community services. It can be a fairly long process.

I'm in New Brunswick Canada & I know what the process is like here, having been threw it. Please remember though that different areas will have different requirements, but it will give you a general idea of what to expect.

After your phone call to them, you will have a social worker assigned to you that will come see you & your husband in your home. They'll want to discuss with you WHY you want to foster children, what ages you feel you can handle, and if there is a s*x preference. (ie most families are not going to want a teen boy in there home if they have teen girls)They'll also want to see what bedrooms you have set up for a foster child, and generally a foster child is not to share a room with one of your biological children.

From there you'll need to get a criminal reference for every adult in the household, the dept will do a check to for abuse history (see if youve ever been investigated for abuse on your own children) Then you'll need to attend a couple of classes to prepare yourself for what to expect with a foster child, the do's & dont's (ie anyone babysitting a foster child usually has to pass their ok) And from there its the waiting game of when you get one.

I have 2 foster sons, that are my nephews, and my best friend is an emergency foster mother (ie, kids that have been taken away in the middle of the night and they have no where to go, they take them to her, she must have 2 bedrooms always ready to go and be ready to drop whatever is going on in her life to take them in )

I would hope that you wouldnt be doing it for the money, but if you are, let me tell you that the pay for it, really barely covers the child's basic necessaties. For my 2 nephews I receive $1500 a month for both. This is to cover their food, the clothing everything. quite often I pay out a considerable more to see that they have good food in their bellies & good clothes on their backs. I want them to have everything MY children have and never feel left out or lower because their "foster" children.

I too have 4 children of my own, so that wasnt an issue. I cant see you babysitting during the day being an issue either especially if you take school age children.

Hope that helps !!