Foster Care
Providing care for the children who need it most
Children who need help most—those who are abused or neglected, behaviorally challenged, have special medical needs or whose parents cannot adequately care for them—can find safe haven through Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia.
Our highly trained and established staff support children, foster parents, birth families and governmental agencies. We work to ensure the safety and success of those children within the foster care system.
JFCS Provides
- Access, navigation and certification for individuals and families interested in foster parenting
- Case management for foster homes
- Recruiting
- Certifying
- Training
- Information, resources, and support
Foster Care Process
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Qualifications JFCS is always seeking compassionate people ready to open their hearts and homes to a child in need, a child with special medical or behavioral challenges, or siblings who need a home together in the greater Philadelphia area. Qualifications for foster parents include:
Process to become foster care resource parent (foster care, kinship, adoptive)- 21 years of age or older
- Physically able to care for children as certified by a physician
- Adequate and independent source of income
- Satisfaction of criminal, child abuse, and FBI background clearances
- Willingness to work as part of a team to help meet the needs of the children and birth families
- Completion of all necessary information and documentation required for a Pennsylvania Resource Family Profile
- Possession (ownership or rental) of a safe and appropriate home with adequate space, furnishings and equipment for a child or children
The 2- to 5-month certification process includes:
Training support and in-home services- Phone screening
- Initial paperwork
- Foster care orientation
- Governmental clearance paperwork
- Home inspection
- Foster care training
- Home interviews
- Home study
- Final disclosure to DHS
- Positive parenting training
- Ongoing monthly training on various child rearing topics
- In-home safety and support services
One of our goals is for children to be able to return to their birth parents’ homes; to that end, we encourage birth parents to be engaged with the foster families. When appropriate, birth parents are encouraged to have supervised and unsupervised visits as well as attend medical, therapy and school appointments.