I want to foster a child before adopting, is that possible?

Many prospective adoptive families have this fear of unknown and hence they think of various ways to mitigate it.  One such measure a few think of is to foster a child before adopting.  But is that possible under the law/ rules governing adoption in India.  This blogpost explores it.

Adoption Conference and IA Summit

It's time to sign up! If you are interested in adoption, going through the process or work with adoptions, this conference might be for you. Read on to find out about all the interesting things they will be going addressing this year. Here is a copy of information that I received about it.



REGISTRATION NOW OPEN!


NCFA's 2010 NATIONAL ADOPTION CONFERENCE AND INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION SUMMIT | JULY 7-9, 2010

You won't want to miss NCFA's 2010 National Adoption Conference and Intercountry Adoption Summit - Uniting the Adoption Community: Parents, Professionals, Policymakers.

With an exciting venue near Washington, D.C., exclusive educational content dedicated to your specific needs, and unprecedented opportunities to network and interact with your peers and industry experts, this year's conference is sure to be better than ever.

Check out everything the 2010 National Adoption Conference has to offer:

- This year's schedule will keep you engaged, learning, and having fun! Click here to view the preliminary agenda.

- We'll have a variety of sessions covering topics on transracial adoption, intercountry adoption, foster care adoption, and much more!

- This year's conference includes an Adoptive Parent Track on Friday, July 9. The sessions are for professionals and adoptive parents alike.

- We've got the tools you need to plan your trip and keep on budget. Check our our travel and lodging page.

Registration is NOW OPEN!
You are eligible for a discount when you register before June 4, 2010. Hurry...click here and register today!

Want to learn more about the event?
Full program details are available on the conference website--you're "go-to" resource for all conference information!

Questions? Contact us today.
We are happy to answer any questions about the 2010 National Adoption Conference. Call us toll-free at 1-866-21-ADOPT, M-F 9:00am-5:30pm EST or e-mail us at ncfa@adoptioncouncil.org.

Click here to visit NCFA's newly re-designed website!

National Council For Adoption
225 N. Washington Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 299-6633
(703) 299-6004 (fax)
ncfa@adoptioncouncil.org
www.adoptioncouncil.org

Heart of the Matter

I recently heard of a website that has been highly recommended for those who want to adopt or do foster care.

Once to the site you will see sections for Adoption, Foster Care, Teachers and General Parenting. I noticed a link to a blog as well, which looked like an interesting read. Also the classes on site are said to be compatible for Hague training. Hope this helps some of you get prepared for a wonderful life of parenting some very special kids. Here’s the link:
http://www.heartofthematterseminars.com/

National Survey of AP

I read an article today, put out by the National Council for Adoption. It is based on a new survey taken by adoptive parents (AP). In this article they tell how adopted children fare....


and indicate how beneficial adoption is to parents and child/ren. Domestic and International adoption are compared with foster care and shows some pretty interesting results. Hope you enjoy the article. Here is the link:
https://www.adoptioncouncil.org/images/stories/documents/AdoptionAdvocate22.pdf

How to become a 'Fit Person' to do foster care in India? (Q and A)

I want to become a 'Fit Person' to do foster care in India and I would like to know how to become one?

Rule 35 of the JJ Act says this:

35. Criteria for selection of families for foster care:

(1) In case of the children covered under rule 34 of these rules, the following criteria shall apply for selection of families for foster care, namely:-

(i) Foster parents should have stable emotional adjustment within the family.

(ii) Foster parents should have an income in which they are able to meet the needs of the child and or not dependent on the foster care maintainance payment.

(iii) The monthly family income shall be adequate to take care of foster children and approved the Child Welfare Committe (CWC)

(iv) Medical reports of all the members of the family residing in the premises should be obtained including checks on HIV virus, TB and Hepatitis B to determine that they are medically fit.

(v) The foster should have experience in child caring and the capacity to provide good child care.

(vi) Foster parents should be physically/ mentally and emotionally stable

(vii) The Home should have adquate space and basic facilities

(viii) The foster care family should be willing to follow rules laid down including regular visits to pediatrician, maintainance of child health and their records.

(ix) The family should be willing to sign an agreement and to return the child to the speciallized adoption agency whenever call to do so.

(x) Foster parents should be willing to attend training or orientation programs and

(xi) The foster parents should be willing to take the child for regular (at least once a month in the case of infants) check ups to pediatrician approved by the agency.

(2) There shall be no discrimination in selection of foster parents on the basis of caste, religion ethinic status, disability or health status and the best interest of the child shall be paramount in deciding foster care placement.

(3) Foster parents shall be declared (fit persons) by the committee before placing the child as per the provisions laid down in clause (i) section 2 of the act after thorough assessment done by the child welfare officer or social worker as per form XVI.

How does the Indian foster care system work? (Q and A)

How does the Indian foster care system work?

SCENARIO:

Child Welfare Committee (CWC) meeting is going on and a mother brings a 10 year old son with a complaint that she is unable to provide for the child and needing help. After the initial inquiry, CWC confirms that the lady is widow and and has two more children to care for and has no extended family help available. Requests the probation officer to do a thorough investigation and give them a report.

After one month, probation officer indeed gave a report to CWC confirming the statements of the mother and recommended that child be given in for foster care with visitation provision for the mother. CWC signs an order to send the child to a foster family with visitation provision for the mother/ child to/ from home.

LEGAL BACKING: (READ THIS PART CAREFULLY BECAUSE THIS IS THE LAW)

This is what the JJ Act says about the foster care in Section 42 and sub-section (2)

In foster care,the child may be placed in another family for a short or extended period of time, depending upon the circumstances where the child's own parent usually visit regularly and eventually after the rehabilitation, where the children may return to their own homes.

CITIZENS ROLE:

Any citizen desiring to provide their home for foster care, must apply to CWC to be recognized as a 'Fit Person' (Click here to read about 'Fit Person'). Once the due inquiry is completed and recognized as a fit person or fit family, child can be placed in a home when a child is needing a place like in the scenario above.

This is a simple way of doing foster care.

Volunteers wanted

Do you have direct or indirect knowledge and/ or experience in the field of foster care? HOPE House is looking for you.

HOPE House is Looking for volunteers (Indian or Foreign) that can help us develop a manual of policies to implement foster care system under the Juvenile and Justice Act of India. Those that have the experience in the field of implementing foster care may contact us at rubynakka@hopehouse.in