People become foster parents for many different reasons. You may want to make a difference in a child's life but don't know how. You have been thinking about fostering or adopting a child for a long time and now is the right time for you and your family. You are ready to learn and grow along with a child. You are interested in providing respite care (short-term), long-term care, or have even considered adopting through the foster care system.
So, what do you have to do to become a foster parent with People Places, Inc.?
- Call the People Places office closest to your home. Our foster parents are called Teaching Parents, so express your interest in becoming a Teaching Parent and request information. After an initial phone contact, you will be asked to participate in a short, general information interview with agency staff before you can proceed with the training process. During this interview, you will receive an application packet that includes policies, reference information, background check information, health statements and other information required for the certification process.
- Once you have completed the general information interview, you will be referred to Parent Skills Training (PST). Parent Skills Training is nine weeks of training where you learn the tools needed to help the children who are placed in our foster homes. The first session is a general orientation session with information on the agency and the children served by this agency. The remaining eight weeks of training topics include positive communication techniques, behavior management planning, attachment issues, multicultural issues, trauma and the impact of trauma on brain development, grief and loss, etc.
- Once you have completed nine weeks of training and you must go through the home study process. The home study process requires two to three visits in your home which includes you and your family/household members, conducted by an agency staff person. During one visit, you will discuss information about the community where you reside, general safety information about your home, the space for the child, type of children you are interested in working with, information about family life and daily routine. You will also discuss your background from birth to present, highlighting educational experiences , work experiences, special events during your childhood, how you were parented, those that had a significant impact in your life, your parenting experience and skills etc. Another visit will focus on relationships and marriage, strengths and weaknesses in relationships, what skills you hope to teach a child about relationships, etc. For those interested in adopting a child/ren, there is an additional visit that focuses specifically on adoption issues including infertility issues, motivation to adopt, ways adoption will impact life and extended support network, guardianship, and other permanency needs for a child.
- Once you have completed the home study process, the staff person will write up a home study including information shared during visits, references, background check information. The home study will need to be approved through an agency certification process. Once your home study is approved, you will be notified by mail that your home is certified to provide treatment foster care services or foster to adoption services.
Now that you are a certified Teaching Parent, you will wonder when a child will be placed with you. Successful foster care placements are based on a matching process between the needs of the child or youth, and how you and your family can best help that specific child, while providing the best fit with your family.
Your first contact will be from the Admissions Coordinator regarding a child who has been referred for admission. Families are generally certified to work with one to two children or a larger sibling group if there is adequate space in the home. While you are waiting for a placement, all of our families are encouraged to provide respite, short-term weekend care for children already in the program prior to the time they receive a long-term referral.
Request Additional Information
To request additional information regarding our Foster/Adoptive Parents program please contact the nearest location for immediate assistance:
| People Places of the Valley Phone: (540) 885-8841 Fax: (540) 886-6379 |
People Places of Charlottesville Phone: (434) 979-0335 Fax: (434) 979-0202 |
