Foster Care is a program that provides services, substitute care, and supervision for a child on a 24-hour basis until the child can return to his or her family or be placed in an adoptive home or another permanent foster care placement. All local departments of social services provide foster care.

The philosophy of Virginia's Foster Care Program is to maintain family unity and ensure that all children grow up in safe and stable homes. Because all children deserve a permanent home in which to develop, foster care is intended to be a temporary response, not a long-term solution, to family problems.

In Virginia, more than 8100 children are in foster care at any given time. Each child in foster care is unique, so there is no description for a typical child. These children range from infancy to 21 years of age and come from a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds. Many are teenagers - some are brothers and sisters.

Some children in foster care face physical, emotional or mental challenges. For some of these children, special services are needed to help them develop age-appropriate skills. Services like counseling, special education, physical therapy, speech therapy, specialized medical care and others are made available to these children.

Most children in foster care are going through a troubled period in their family life. They are often confused, sad, angry or a combination of all of these. These children need lots of understanding, love and patience from adults to help them manage these feelings.

While many families provide foster care homes for children, the need for more individuals willing to share their home and heart with a child is on-going. Being a foster parent has many challenges and rewards. All foster parents receive support as part of a team of individuals and agencies, working together in the best interests of each child.

Local departments of social services provide training for foster parents. The training is designed to help foster parents understand and manage the needs of children in their care.