Foster parents provide a caring temporary home environment for children who are unable to live with their birth families. In most cases foster parents work with Social Services Agency staff to reunite the child with their birth parents. Families may choose from a variety of specialized programs that care for:

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·         Drug-exposed infants and toddlers

·         Brothers and sisters who need to stay together

·         Children with special medical needs

·         Children with special developmental, emotional and educational needs

·         Teen mothers with babies

·         Children of all ethnic and racial backgrounds

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Adoptive Parents:

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Adoptive parents take a child who is no longer able to live with his/her birth family into their home as a permanent family member. Traditional Adoption families are approved to adopt those children who are legally freed and waiting for an adoptive family.

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Concurrent Planning Parents:

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Concurrent Planning Families have the goal of adoption but are also licensed to provide foster care. These families have the opportunity to be the only foster placement for a child whom they may eventually be able to adopt.

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Who can become a foster or adoptive parent?

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Foster parents are adults from all segments of society and a variety of ethnic backgrounds. You can be married or single, work in or out of the home, and rent or own your own home or apartment in the County of Los Angeles that has adequate space, privacy and safety for all family members.

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The Foster and Adoptive Family Development Team is responsible for developing and sustaining prospective placement options for the dependent children of Los Angeles County. Orientation sessions are provided monthly. For information on becoming a foster or adoptive parent or to register for an orientation, call (818) 745-2515.  You can also click on the links on the left for more information.

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