There are various kinds of foster care opportunities available to people wishing to adopt a child but are unable to find a suitable child to adopt, or that find that the waiting list is too long. In such cases, it is advisable to consider foster care.
Foster care is designed to give children a safe, secure home to stay in, should their birth parents be incapable of doing so. In cases where the child is in need of foster care because the parents have abused or neglected the child, it is very often possible to adopt the child permanently. Foster care is supposed to be an 'in between' measure and if the child's birth parents get their problems sorted out and experts and authorities deem the household to be safe again, the child is expected to return to the birth parents. This can be sad for both the child and the foster parents. These cases are monitored and reassessed on an ongoing basis and should the birth parents give up their rights, or authorities decide that the child is better off with the foster parents, the child can be adopted. The advantage of foster care is that it is easier to find a child to care for and there is a support programme to help to train the foster parents.
Find out more about how to adopt a child in Ireland and types of fostering
