FAQ

Getting around the local community where the child normally lives is transportation; trips outside that community are travel. Whenever plans involve travelling out of the community, consult the child’s social worker beforehand, and travel outside the province or country requires the social worker’s written authorisation. A child cannot travel outside BC without a “permission to travel” letter from the social worker, which states the child’s legal name and status. For children in care by agreement, you also need written authority from their parents or guardians.

No child may travel outside Canada without the social worker’s approval. Passport handling depends on legal status: for children in care by agreement the parent or guardian applies, while for children in permanent or temporary care either you or the social worker may complete the application, with a letter of permission from the social worker if you apply. Travel medical insurance must be arranged for any child travelling outside BC; if you buy it yourself, discuss reimbursement with the social worker and your resource social worker before purchasing.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Whether the trip is local or long-distance, the driver must hold a valid Class 5 licence, or a valid Class 7N licence with full adherence to all graduated licensing conditions. The vehicle must be reliable, mechanically sound, safely maintained, and carry a minimum of one million dollars in third-party liability insurance. Children should sit in the middle of the rear seat whenever possible, since front seats carry greater risk, and must be properly secured in seat belts or correctly installed car or booster seats appropriate to their age and size.

A Class 7N driver may only drive alone or with one passenger (immediate family exempt) unless supervised by someone aged 25 or over with a valid Class 1 to 5 licence, with no blood alcohol, no electronic devices including hands-free, and the “N” sign displayed at all times.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

For a vacation outside the province, inform the social worker well in advance so they can obtain any necessary permissions, including parental consent if required. The regular family care payment generally covers the child’s share of family vacation costs, and financial assistance may be available for unusually expensive trips. Summer camp requires the social worker’s authorisation, plus parental approval if guardianship is retained; if camp costs exceed what the family care payment reasonably covers, the social worker may be able to arrange payment for fees and equipment. Foster parents may sign waivers of liability for negligence in relation to camp activities.

Air travel must be prearranged with the social worker. Before booking, discuss who pays for the ticket and how, ticket pickup, transport to and from the airport, and the full schedule. If you cannot accompany the child, the social worker may arrange a volunteer driver or escort, and the child’s maturity is assessed if they are to travel alone. High-risk or wilderness activities such as hunting also require the social worker’s written authorisation and the guardians’ consent.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

You screen and choose your own child minder, and you can ask your resource social worker or the child’s social worker for guidance, but the selection is yours. Before leaving a child with a minder, confirm the person has child minding experience suited to the child’s age and needs, knows the child and any special needs, knows positive child care and behaviour management strategies and agrees not to use physical punishment or any prohibited discipline, knows what to do in an emergency or injury, is at least 14 years of age, will be present and in charge for the whole period, and has the maturity, knowledge, skill, and ability to meet the child’s needs and follow their routines. It is preferable, though not required, that the minder has completed an approved child minding course and basic first aid.

Wherever possible, use licensed child care services, since Criminal Record Checks are already completed for licensed providers, which simplifies screening. It also helps to identify proposed minders and relief care providers during your home study so they can be screened at the same time.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Hiring a child minder does not transfer your caregiving responsibility. You remain accountable for the child’s care even while you are away, so always leave the minder with a phone number where you can be reached. When children return from any minding arrangement, follow up with them about how it went and whether they felt safe and comfortable; this check-in is part of your role as a prudent parent.

On cost, the family care payment includes an amount to cover child minding, so this expense does not come out of your own pocket. Note that this covers short-term, occasional care like a babysitter while you are briefly away; overnight or multi-day relief care has different requirements.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Discipline that teaches self-control works far better than punishment, which only tells a child after the fact that a bigger person disliked what they did. For children in care, many of whom have already been harmed by adults, punitive approaches tend to reinforce rejection and damage trust. Approaches consistent with the CFCSA include talking issues through, praising and encouraging positive behaviour, modelling the rules yourself, setting clear and consistent expectations, removing issue-related privileges as a logical consequence, allowing natural or logical consequences, and using time out without any element of seclusion or confinement.

Children have the right to know what is expected of them and what the consequences will be, and the more they help set the rules and limits, the sooner they accept them. This is especially true for older children and youth. If you are struggling with a particular behaviour, talk to the child’s social worker and your resource social worker early, before things escalate.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Physical restraint, meaning intentionally restricting a child’s ability to move, is not an acceptable form of discipline. The only situations where it may be used are for the immediate safety of the child or another person, or where it is specified in the child’s Plan of Care and was developed in consultation with a recognised professional expert in child care.

If you do have to restrain a child for immediate safety, you must report what happened to both the child’s social worker and your resource social worker immediately afterward.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Corporal punishment is forbidden for any child in care under the CFCSA, with no exceptions. That means any physical force that may cause pain, including spanking, slapping, hitting, shaking, or forcefully pushing a child.

MCFD policy also prohibits a range of other practices, again with no exceptions: depriving a child of basic needs or rights such as food, clothing, shelter, bedding, or contact with parents; denying family visits, phone, or mail contact that is not restricted in the Plan of Care; threatening to remove the child from your home; assigning excessive exercise or work as punishment; pressuring the child’s religious or personal beliefs; humiliation, ridicule, or verbal abuse; group punishment for one child’s behaviour; using another child against them; and seclusion or confinement, meaning containing a child in a space they cannot leave without permission.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Preparing the child beforehand makes a real difference: let them know what to expect and talk about how they are feeling. Children who sense that their reactions are understood tend to handle visits better. Afterward, give them time and space to process. Some children are unsettled or emotionally dysregulated after contact, and that is usually the normal result of navigating complex, meaningful relationships rather than a sign the visit went wrong. Routine, calm, and connection with you in the hours that follow help the child settle.

If a child is not having regular contact because of court restrictions, safety concerns, or other reasons, that absence matters too and should be addressed in their Plan of Care. A child in that situation may need extra support to understand and manage the loss of contact, which is worth raising with the social worker.

Source: Foster Family Handbook

Your role depends on the placement. Some Family Care Home Agreements, particularly for specialised care at levels 2 and 3, specifically require you to supervise visits; in other cases the social worker may ask you to play a particular part. Check your agreement and confirm your role with the child’s social worker before visits begin rather than assuming you are the supervisor or facilitator.

Before any visit, settle the details with the social worker: where it happens and how long it lasts, how food and gifts will be handled, how you will give the child and parents some privacy while keeping appropriate supervision, who supervises if supervision is required, and any safety concerns. Where you can, arrange visits at times that do not disrupt your family’s regular routine, which helps the visits feel ordinary rather than exceptional.

Source: Foster Family Handbook