Deciding to Allow Children Contact with his or her Siblings
To determine what is best for their child and their family, parents need to consider why the siblings have been separated and what the long-term effects of separation might be.
To determine what is best for their child and their family, parents need to consider why the siblings have been separated and what the long-term effects of separation might be.
Foster children who are siblings or half-siblings must not be unnecessarily separated unless placement together is determined to be detrimental to the best interests of the siblings
As adoption records are becoming more accessible, social workers are finding that requests for information about siblings outnumber the requests for information about biological parents.
The National Center Child Welfare Excellence is operated by the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College and provides links to resources and more information on sibling placement.
This issue of Fostering Perspectives is about honoring and maintaining sibling connections. We lead off by bringing you the voices of children in care responding to the question, “Why are your siblings important to you?”
A special emphasis on two situations of separation and loss requiring specific attention: sibling separation and children with incarcerated mothers.
Keeping Siblings Connected: A White Paper on Siblings in Foster Care and Adoptive Placements in New York State emphasizes the importance of the sibling bond to children’s development and emotional well-being.
Sibling relationships are tremendously important particularly when children face difficult circumstances like foster care. I thank Governor Cuomo for signing this legislation and bringing fairness to our foster care system. This action will lead to stronger relationships and families in communities across the state.
Placing siblings together not only reduces the children’s losses and preserves kinship ties, it also reduces stressed agencies’ adoption costs. Siblings can help each other process the past, remember experiences, and move into the future together.
Camp To Belong New York reunites siblings separated by foster care for a week of camp in Lake George allowing siblings to connect and bond with each other through various camp activities making for a memorable week.