Foster care

Foster care is a system in which children who cannot live with their parents are placed with approved caregivers. Placements may be temporary or continue until adulthood, adoption, or reunification.

Child welfare: Child welfare is the set of services and policies intended to protect children and support families. Foster care is one intervention within the wider system of child protection and family support.
Foster parent: A foster parent is an approved caregiver who provides day-to-day care for a child placed outside the parental home. Foster parents provide the home and daily support at the center of a placement.
Childhood trauma: Childhood trauma is lasting psychological or physical harm arising from frightening, abusive, or severely stressful experiences in childhood. Many children enter care after harmful experiences, and placement transitions can add stress.
Residential child care: Residential child care provides group-based care for children in a staffed facility rather than a private family home. It is an out-of-home alternative when a family placement is unavailable or unsuitable.
Family First Prevention Services Act: The Family First Prevention Services Act is a 2018 United States law that expanded federal support for certain family-preservation services. It shifts some policy emphasis toward preventing placements through services to families.
Child protective services: Child protective services are government agencies that investigate reports of child abuse or neglect and arrange protective interventions. These agencies often assess whether a child needs placement outside the home.
Foster home: A foster home is a private household approved to care for children placed by a child-welfare authority. Approval and oversight distinguish a foster home from an informal caregiving arrangement.
Attachment theory: Attachment theory explains how early relationships with caregivers shape patterns of emotional bonding and security. Changes in caregivers can affect a child’s sense of safety and continuity.
Guardianship: Guardianship is a legal arrangement that gives an adult authority and responsibility to care for a child. It can provide lasting care without the legal relationship created by adoption.
Indian Child Welfare Act: The Indian Child Welfare Act is a United States federal law setting protections and placement preferences in child-custody proceedings involving Native children. It addresses the disproportionate removal of Native children and the preservation of tribal connections.

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