After kin, the best placement for a child or youth is with a foster family in their area that shares their language and culture. Sometimes this can be hard to find, but placement teams may miss strong matches simply because a foster family hasn’t finished licensing yet.

Include families who have applied to foster but haven't finished their license in your placement searches. When a child or youth has no strong match, focus on licensing a matching family that’s still in the process first.

How to do this

Include families that are still getting licensed in your placement searches. If there is a match, figure out which steps have to happen right away to license the family and which can wait until after placement. Placement and licensing teams should work together on this.

Set up interactions while families finish licensing. If the child or youth doesn't have to move right away, set up visits or other interactions with the matching family while they finish licensing. This can help them build a relationship before being placed.

Consider judicial orders for strong matches. In some places, a judge can order a placement with a family that's a strong match but isn't licensed yet.

This strategy in action

Frederick County, MD pays close attention to new families in the application process. They consider whether the families would be a good match for any children or youth who need a new placement or a better-fitting placement. When they find a match, they work with the family to speed up their application process.

Washington, D.C. looks for strong matches between children and youth and new families. In some cases, they set up visits between a child or youth and potential families (with caseworker involvement and approval). This allows them to build relationships while the family is finishing licensing.