Foster Care Program
Foster / Resource Parents
Foster/Resource parents provide a safe, caring, and family home for a child ranging in age from birth to 18 who has been temporarily separated from his/her own family for various reasons. The child is in the custody of the Chesapeake Department of Human Services.
Resource parents are Foster parents who meet the criteria to adopt if the foster child in their home was freed for adoption. Chesapeake's Foster/Resource parents are dually certified so that if they wanted to adopt a child they were fostering, the process is easier.
How to Become a Foster / Resource Parent
Chesapeake Human Services appreciates its foster/resource parents and welcomes the opportunity to include more dedicated families in its Foster/Resource parent pool.
- Talk with a family services specialist in the Foster Care Home Finding Unit. Call 757-382-2249 or 757-382-2246 to schedule an appointment to answer a few questions. (Option for phone or in person)
- Attend the PRIDE pre-service Foster/Resource parent training. You will receive a letter with the next training date. Over several weeks, you will complete 27 hours of training. Both parents are required to attend in two-parent homes. During this commitment-free training, about fostering, you will be given the necessary paperwork to become a Foster/Resource parent.
- After the classes and paperwork, the Home Finding unit will conduct a home study to make sure you meet the requirements to be a foster/resource parent.
Documents
- How does a child become involved in the Foster Care System?
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A child becomes involved with the foster care system through an abuse/neglect petition filed by the Chesapeake Child Protective Service Unit in which the child is found by the Chesapeake Juvenile Court to be at imminent risk of harm. Delinquent children are sometimes placed in foster care, as well as children whose legal guardians have been relieved of custody by the Juvenile Court.
- Which children are in most need of placement?
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Foster/resource parents that are willing to accept sibling groups and teenagers are in the highest need. There is also a need for homes in which there is a parent who does not work outside the home so he/she can provide for a child with special needs or a newborn infant that is not able to go to child care.
- Can I bring my child to Chesapeake Social Services and place my child in foster care?
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No, every effort must be made to prevent foster care placement. Foster Care placement takes place through the Juvenile Court. If you are having problems with your child, the Department will assess the needs of the family and refer the family for services.