Foster care is a unique situation of temporary family-based care to children who cannot remain in their own home due to child protection concerns or exceptional special needs.
The Foster Care Program is based on the belief that a family is the best environment for raising a child. A foster family is a temporary family for a child whose birth family is unwilling or unable to assume full responsibility for the child. The goal of foster care is to return the child to his or her own family as soon as possible.
The supportive atmosphere of a foster home helps a child develop healthy self-esteem, values and behaviours. Foster parents play an important role providing a temporary place a child in care can call home and supporting children through the hardship associated with separation and loss of family. Foster parents also ensure that a child's mental, emotional and physical needs are met and help maintain familial, cultural, social and religious ties.
Sometimes, it is not possible for children to return to their families. In these situations, caseworkers will work with the child to develop a plan for them to live in the best permanent home possible - this could include living with a relative, private guardianship or adoption.
