Social Services

Family & Child Services - Foster Care

Child Foster Care

Foster care is a safe place to be if a child can not live with their own family or on their own. Children enter foster care because of neglect, abuse, a family crisis or the child's acting out at home. Foster parents help children feel good again by providing them with stability, affection, consistency and nurturing.

Foster care is temporary, it is not meant to be forever. Children usually continue to visit their own parents until they are reunited. While the child is out of the home, Social Services is working to provide services so the child can return to his parents.

If this is not possible, family members and other persons important to the child are contacted to find a permanent home for the child. Sometimes foster families are asked to provide permanent foster care, accept a transfer of legal custody or adopt a child in their care.

2013 Child Foster Care Information Meetings
held at Sherburne County Government Center Board Room
Tuesday February 12 6:30pm
Tuesday April 9 6:30pm
Thursday June 6 6:30pm
Thursday August 1 6:30pm
Monday October 14 6:30pm
Monday December 9 6:30pm
To register, call Suzanne Hulett at 763-765-4033

Therapeutic Foster Care

Sherburne County also offers a Therapeutic Foster Care Program. This program was developed to provide an alternative placement option for children and youth with emotional and behavioral challenges. The needs of these youth surpass what a traditional child foster care setting can offer but are not significant enough for a group home setting.

Services within the program are strengths based, goal orientated and family driven. A treatment team comprised of the foster parents, social workers, the child and the child’s family develops an individualized treatment plan.

Aftercare services at the time of reunification provide ongoing support. Services are provided in specialized foster homes located in Sherburne County to ensure the child can maintain connections with their family and community.

Therapeutic Foster Care parents receive additional training and support to help meet the needs of the youth place in their homes.

Adult Foster Care

Foster care for adults assists men and women, 18 years of age and older, who are unable to live alone but want to live in a family setting. They are emotionally, physically or mentally dependent, or frail elderly who may be able to attend school, work or day programs.

As an adult foster care provider it is your responsibility to provide a home-like setting, care, supervision and companionship, and to provide the opportunity for people to do as much as possible for themselves as long as possible in the community. Foster families may request a certain gender, age and anticipated duration of placement. It is most important that the family is able to provide a safe, nurturing environment.

Requirements

  • You need to be at least 21
  • You must live in Sherburne County
  • You need to have enough income to meet your own needs
  • You should be one year from a major life change such as a marriage, divorce, completion of chemical dependency treatment, birth of a first child or a significant loss.
  • You must be willing to give us permission to check social service and court records.
  • Your home must have at least two bedrooms.
  • You must be willing to participate in regular training.
  • If you are interested in pursuing foster care licensing or have more questions, please contact our office at 763-765-4000 and ask to speak with a Foster Care licensor.

Referrals

If you are a county social service worker and would like to place a client in an adult foster home, please complete the Host County Notification Form PDF and fax to the attention of Adult Foster Care Licensor at 763-765-4096.

Education and Training

2013 Resource Family (formerly FAK) Pre-Service Training
held at Sherburne County Government Center - Commissioner's Room
Saturdays from 9am-4pm
Saturday, January 12 module 1: Orientation and Overview of F/A/K Care
module 2: Team Building
Saturday, February 9 module 3: Cultural Issues in Placement
module 4: Family Systems
Saturday, March 9 module 5: Impact of Abuse & Neglect on Child Development
module 6: Attachment, Separation and Placement
Saturday, September 7 module 7: Discipline
module 8: Primary Families
Saturday, October 5 module 9: Sexual Abuse
module 10: Effects of Caregiving on the Family
Saturday, November 16 module 11: Permanency Issues for Children
module 12: Permanency Issues for Families
To register, email or call Suzanne Hulett at 763-765-4033