Delaware Heart Gallery
Foster and adoptive families play a vital role in the children served by the Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families (DSCYF). Right now, we are actively recruiting families to give children the loving, safe, and stable home that they need and deserve. We are happy to work with families who are willing to provide a safe and supportive environment to any of our children, though we are particularly in need of families who can open their homes to teens, sibling groups, youth with special needs, and medically fragile children.
At any given time, there are over 500 children in Delaware who need foster families to keep them safe and nurture them during a very difficult time in their lives. In addition, there is a need for respite families. Respite families are homes where foster children can go for very short periods of time to give the primary foster family a break or time to deal with family emergencies, for example. Respite families receive training and support just like foster families.
Services and information
- Traditional Foster Care
- Emergency Foster Care
- Respite Foster Care
- Adoption
Requirements to become a foster parent
Children in foster care go through incredibly stressful situations. When child welfare has to remove them from their homes, the kids face uncertainty. One of the first questions is wondering where they will live.
To become a foster care parent in Delaware, you must follow a series of steps. First, you need to contact an agency.
Then, you must attend an information session and fill out an application. After that, you will need to complete training and undergo a home assessment. Finally, once you complete all these steps, you will earn certification as a foster care parent.
In Delaware, foster parents must:
- Be age 21 or older
- Prove financial stability
- Complete the required training course
- Pass a criminal background check and fingerprint screening
- Complete the Home Study
- Provide a spare bedroom (for children of one gender)
- Confirm the parent's good health
- Live in a safe environment
If you meet the requirements, contact your local foster agency or department of human services. They can help you and other family members enroll in foster orientation.
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