If you have a heart for kids and want to bring foster children into your home, you may find yourself wondering whether or not you have to be married first. You’ve heard too many facts and figures about children raised in single parent homes, and it’s made you wary. Can you foster a child as a single parent? Are you able to bring children into your home when it’s just you providing care for them? Understanding the requirements to foster children can help smooth your way.
The simple answer: Yes, you can foster children as a single parent. The only requirement is that you have adequate room for the child or children you’ll foster and that you have enough flexibility in your schedule to provide the care that the children in your care need, including transporting them to therapy appointments, parent visits, and more.
What you need: In order to be a foster parent, you need to have bedroom space for the child or children in your care. Children over the age of five have to room with other children of the same gender, if they share a room; and children over the age of two can’t share a bedroom with an adult. You must also have the flexibility to provide the care that foster children need: even teenage foster children must be supervised when they aren’t participating in an activity or going to school. While this may be more difficult as a single parent, since you won’t have that extra set of hands there to help you provide care, it’s still entirely possible.
As a single parent, it may be more difficult to be a foster parent and provide care every day, but it’s also one of the most rewarding things you’ll do in your life. If you’re interested in becoming a foster parent, contact us today to learn more about the requirements and get started with the process.