FAQ

Regional Foster Parent Support Agencies are community organisations funded to recruit, orient, train, and support foster caregivers within a particular region of British Columbia. They run discussion groups and workshops, support foster families through peer groups and one-to-one contact, work with MCFD and Indigenous agency staff on programmes, and provide protocol and investigation-resolution support. They are the practical, community-based layer of support closest to caregivers day-to-day.

On Vancouver Island, the regional support agency is the Foster Parent Support Services Society (FPSSS), which is the home of Caring Families Society (CFS). In most regions the regional agency and the local caregiver support programme are the same organisation, so there is usually a single agency to go to for recruitment, training, peer support, and investigation-resolution support.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

How caregivers feel when a child leaves can range from relief to profound loss, and often involves a mix of both. You may regret having become attached, or feel you did not do enough. These feelings are natural and widely shared. Developing caring feelings for children who live with you is a normal part of fostering and not something to prevent. At the same time, foster care is by nature temporary, and success often means a child moving on, whether back to family, to a permanent placement, or to independence. Learning to let go is a real part of foster parenting, and it takes time.

After a child leaves, your family may need time to adjust before welcoming another placement. It is sometimes wise not to take a new child in immediately just because a space has opened up. Only after you have processed the transition should you decide when or whether to continue fostering. Discuss your feelings with your resource social worker or your local foster parent support association.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Caring for a child in your home is rewarding and demanding, and for children to live in healthy families you need to look after your own well-being as well as theirs. In practice, self-care means more than rest. It means being honest about your own and your family’s limits before you reach a crisis point, and making active use of the supports available to you. That includes formal supports like your resource social worker, training, and respite care, and informal supports like family, friends, and other foster parents in your community who can share information, strategies, and the load.

If you feel uncertain, need more information, or feel like you are struggling, reach out. You are part of a team, and working constructively with the child’s care team rather than carrying the weight alone is how experienced caregivers sustain this work. Talking to your resource social worker or your local foster parent association is not a sign of difficulty.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

On Vancouver Island, training and the foster education programme are organised through CFS. Call your Area Coordinator or the Regional Office to learn about upcoming workshops, discussion groups, or other training.

In other regions of British Columbia, contact the regional support agency directly. The agencies and their websites are: Hollyburn Family Services (hollyburn.ca) in the Coast Fraser region; Interior Community Services (interiorcommunityservices.bc.ca) for Kamloops and the Kootenays, and Okanagan Foster Parents Association (okfosterparents.ca) for the Okanagan, Similkameen, and Shuswap; Axis Family Resources (axis.bc.ca) in the North; and the Foster Parent Support Services Society (fpsss.com) on Vancouver Island.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

The amount of funded relief depends on your home level. For Kinship (Restricted), Regular, and Level 1 family care homes, up to three days of relief per month can be claimed using a billing or payment form. For Level 2 and Level 3 homes, up to three days per month are covered within the service payment under the Family Care Home Agreement.

If you need more than the standard three days a month, because of a significant change in your circumstances such as illness, divorce, or family crisis, or because the child has extraordinary and demanding needs, supplementary relief may be available. Talk with your resource social worker about what is happening; approval is assessed case by case. If relief alone is not enough to address stress or burnout, ask about homemaker services or other professional support.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

You are expected to plan and arrange periodic relief on a schedule that works for you and the child. Ideally it happens in your own home, as that is least disruptive; otherwise it takes place in the home of an approved relief care provider. The best time to identify potential providers, such as relatives or trusted family friends, is during your home study assessment, when they can be screened and approved alongside you. If you have difficulty arranging relief, contact your resource social worker for help.

Relief providers are usually approved foster parents from a local roster, but sometimes it is in the child’s best interest to stay with unapproved relatives or adults already known to them. If you plan to use a provider who is not an approved foster parent, discuss it with the child’s social worker and your resource social worker before the arrangement begins, so the necessary screening and approvals can be completed first. Providers must be at least 19, and any relief lasting over 14 days requires approval from both the child’s social worker and your resource social worker.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Although the terms are often used interchangeably, they mean different things in foster care. Relief is overnight care of a child in foster care, usually one to three days, provided either in your own home or in the home of a relief care provider; it is for foster caregivers who need a break. Respite is out-of-home care provided or funded as a service to a child’s parents under a Support Services Agreement, so it supports families rather than caregivers.

Taking relief is an expected and supported part of fostering, not a sign of struggling. It is a planned part of sustaining a healthy, stable home, and all approved Family Care Homes may provide respite care for families in their community as well as relief care for other foster caregivers.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Possibly, yes. BCFPA has a three-tier structure — local associations, regional councils, and a provincial body — and local associations are made up of foster families in a particular community. If you live in an isolated community without one, it may be possible to start a local association.

Ask your resource social worker for help, or call BCFPA directly: in the Vancouver area, 604-660-7696; elsewhere in the province, toll-free 1-800-663-9999.

Sources: Foster Family Handbook; Foster Caregiver Orientation Guide

Yes. BCFPA advocates for foster caregivers and will help you sort through a difficult situation — whether it’s a placement decision, access arrangements, concerns about a social worker, or a decision to close a home. You do not have to be a BCFPA member to ask for advocacy help.

Reach BCFPA through the Fosterline to talk it through. Your resource social worker can also help, and on Vancouver Island your CFS Area Coordinator is another route for support and referral.

Sources: Foster Family Handbook; Foster Caregiver Orientation Guide

Yes. BCFPA offers comprehensive dental and extended health plans to current members and their families. To purchase these plans you need a valid BCFPA membership, which is verified before the policy is delivered.

Note that life insurance, segregated funds, disability insurance, and critical illness insurance offered through other channels are separate and not tied to BCFPA membership. For details on the health and dental plans, contact BCFPA.

Sources: Foster Family Handbook; Foster Caregiver Orientation Guide