Foster Care Statistical Information

As of March 31, 2007, there were 9,818 children in the custody of the Children’s Division. Of those children, 4,614 of them were in the care of foster care providers.  Relatives provided care for 2,750 of the children and 1,577 of the children needed a level of care that required placement in residential treatment facilities.  Another 110 are in homes with families planning to adopt them.

The average age of children in foster care is just below 10 years.  Their average stay in alternative care is over 27 months.

There are 3,226 licensed foster homes across the state of Missouri and another 3,056 licensed relative homes.  The average age for a foster mother is 45 years and for a foster father is 46 years.  However, the state’s oldest foster parent is 84 years old and the youngest is 22, just over the required age of 21.

All foster care and relative care providers receive specialized training.  Prospective foster parents take a total of 27 hours of training on five competencies necessary to work with the children in CD custody and their families.  Those competencies are:

• Protecting and nurturing children;
• Meeting children’s developmental needs and addressing developmental delays;
• Supporting relationships between children and their families;
• Connecting children to safe, nurturing relationships intended to last a lifetime; and
• Working as a member of a professional team

Relative providers complete nine hours of agency-approved training.  All prospective caregivers must complete a comprehensive background check.