What They're Saying: Kinship Care Part 1

What is Kinship Care?

'Kinship care' refers to when a relative takes over as primary caregiver for a child. Some states have expanded 'kin' to include 'fictive kin' (people who are not directly related to the child, but are relationally close to them) when it comes to kinship caregiving through the child welfare system. 

 

What are unique challenges for kinship caregivers?

• Kinship caregivers are not provided with the resources available to licensed foster parents

  • Non-licensed kinship caregivers who rely on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) for financial support, often receive less than half of the monthly support offered to licensed foster caregivers1

  • Kinship caregivers are seven times less likely to have peer support groups or have access to respite care²

The reasons why most kinships fail is due to a lack of resources and support.

-Ryan Young, former youth in care

• Kinship caregivers often don't receive the trauma education they need to support youth
  • Kinship caregivers are four times less likely, than licensed foster parents, to receive parent training³

There is a very noticeable lack of trauma education and support for kinship families. 

    -Trent Taylor, former youth in care

If she (my aunt) had training on how to deal with children who had experienced something like my brothers and I did then we would have been able to open up and receive extra help for what we were going through.

-Youth in/from foster care, CA
 

• Kinship caregivers often struggle with financial strain
  • This is especially true of grandparents raising grandchildren. Of the 2.5 million grandparents caring for grandchildren, 20% live in poverty⁴ 

Just because the youth is placed with family does not mean the family will not struggle. When a family grows in size, so does the cost of things.

-Kinship caregiver, TX

 

Wondering what can be done to support kinship caregivers? Stay tuned for part 2 of our series, “What They’re Saying: Kinship Care”.

 

Quotes are from individuals with lived experience with the child welfare system and were sourced from:

•  All-In Campaign: Permanency with Kin (FosterClub)

• Supporting Kinship Caregivers: Prioritizing Keeping Young People Safely with their Families (Family Voices United)

Sources:

¹ Beltran, A. & Epstein, H. (2013). The standards to license kinship foster parents around the United States: Using research findings to effect change. Journal of Family Social Work, 16(5), 364-381.

²Kinship Caregivers Receive Fewer Supports Than Foster Parents

³ Kinship Caregivers Receive Fewer Supports Than Foster Parents

⁴How can we prioritize kin in the home study and licensure process, and make placement with relatives the norm?