does anyone have information re: becoming a foster parent and what a homestudy consists of??

Answer 1

Depends upon the state that you live in as to who you contact. Usually the child protective services agency in your jurisdiction can direct you to an agency that licenses foster families. In Los Angeles county, in which my husband and I adopted our son, we had to become licensed as foster parents initially and then permitted to adopt.

A homestudy evaluates your home's environment as well as the ability of your family to provide adequate parenting and family environment to children who have usually been subjected to some type of abuse and who may have emotional, psychiatric, or social problems relative to that abuse. They want to know if you are emotionally able to provide a loving environment for a child who may be very difficult to appropriately parent. Most often, you will also be required to attend and complete a course in foster parenting as well. Each member of your family will be interviewed individually and together. There will also be requirements as to certain safety measures that you must have in place in your home as well. You must be willing to transport the child to appointments for therapy and participate in family therapy with the child, if that is required, as well as to transport him/her to many other appointments, including court. Also, you may be required to allow and sometimes monitor parental visits, etc.

Good luck with it. The world needs more good foster parents. Besides being adoptive parents, I was also a psychologist to the Dept. of Child and Family Services in LA, and became very familiar with foster system in California. There are also many excellent web resources on foster parenting. Feel free to contact me if you like as well.

Answer 2

I am an adoptive "waiting parent", meaning I have passed my homestudy and am waiting for a placement. For adoption, depending on what state you are from, there are different criteria. Here are some of the things we had to do.
FBI backround check and fingerprinting
DMV backround/record (driving) (criminal)
Full physical
Fire Department inspection of your home
Health and Human Services inspection of your home
3 letters of recommendation (from friends, not family)
Autobiography
3 sessions with a social worker, 1 in your home
financial records/statements
***there are many more items, and the one thing I would recommed, is to begin early, it takes time for the results to come back, especially the FBI (took 3 months).
In any case, you are doing a wonderful thing, good luck!

Answer 3

Generally, you must sign up for an orientation class, and once you have completed the class, the county services will help you with all the paperwork, etc. . They require you to be fingerprinted, and they do a backround check. They also check with personal references, job, possibly credit?? When they come to check your home, they are looking to make sure you have room for a foster child(or more than one), basic cleanliness, smoke detectors, outlet covers(for infants/toddlers), and other safety concerns.
Room for foster child must be at least a shared bedroom with a bed, small storage space for personal items.

Answer 4

I dont know how it works in other states, but you can start by finding what good foster units are in your area. You will have to take some classes; like cpr classes. (Look in the phone book, or call social services)

Answer 5

Contact your Department of Social Services.

Answer 6

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Answer 7

visit.....http://www.fosterparents.com
homestudy visits consists of a stable, loving home the kid can live in.