Foster Family Network – Kern County
Providing Quality Foster Care Services in Kern County, California
In 1986, ChildNet Youth and Family Services, Inc. opened their first foster care program in California – Foster Family Network (FFN), in order to address the foster care needs in Los Angeles County and Orange County. Since that time, the organization has expanded to include foster care services in the Inland Empire and Kern County.
How to become a foster parent in Kern County
ChildNet currently has three Foster Family Network (FFN) offices in order to meet the foster care needs of the counties it serves, one of which is Kern County, California
If you are interested in learning about becoming a foster parent (aka resource parent) and are looking for information, please contact our Kern County Office:
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Foster Family Network — Kern County
4101 Easton Drive
Bakersfield, CA 93309
Kern@childnet.net
Tel: (661) 633-1700
Fax: (661) 633-1785
Hundreds of Children in Kern County Need Foster / Resource Parent
To provide policymakers, child welfare workers, researchers, and the public with information concerning California’s child welfare system, the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) and the University of California at Berkeley (UCB) formed a collaboration called the California Child Welfare Indicators Project
According to the California Child Welfare Indicators Project (CCWIP), from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018, 5,223 California children from the ages of less than one month to 20 years entered the foster care system and placed with relatives, Foster Family Agencies (FFAs), group homes, temporary shelters, guardians, or alternate individuals. (Ref: http://cssr.berkeley.edu/ucb_childwelfare/Entries.aspx). More specifically, according to CCWIP, over that same timespan, 262 children were entered into the Kern County foster care system. (Ref: http://cssr.berkeley.edu/ucb_childwelfare/Entries.aspx).
Finding and Supporting Foster / Resource Parents in Kern County
ChildNet’s Foster Family Network (FFN) receives referrals from the child welfare and probation agencies of Kern County. ChildNet’s FFN identifies, recruits, and trains foster parents. Foster parents may be single or divorced adults, married couples, retirees, or same-sex couples. One important characteristic they must all share is the ability to provide a safe, loving, stable, and nurturing home for the foster child placed in their care. Foster parents must also satisfy all State and County requirements and become approved as a resource family. ChildNet’s FFN helps foster parents satisfy the mandated requirements and provides the monthly stipends to foster parents for food, clothing, and supplies, etc. for their foster children.
To obtain an up to date Beneficiary Handbook click here: http://KernKBHRS.org
FFN’s ongoing training and support of foster parents include:
1) ChildNet FFN’s pre-approval training and qualifications
2) Child and Infant First Aid and Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) training
3) Ongoing parenting instruction, in-home and at the FFN office
4) Courses related to child trauma, abuse, neglect, abandonment, development, behavior management, drug abuse, academic performance, and more
5) Counseling and consultation as requested
6) Home visits
7) Referrals to community resources
8) Coordination of medical, educational, and psychological services
9) Water safety certification training
Other ChildNet Foster Family Network Offices
You may also contact our other Foster Family Network offices:
Foster Family Network – Los Angeles and Orange Counties
5150 E. Pacific Coast Hwy, Suite 100
Long Beach, CA 90804
Tel: (800) 945-KIDS
Fax: (562) 492-6760
Foster Family Network — Inland Empire
3877 12th Street
Riverside, CA 92501
Tel: (951) 247-6064
Fax: (951) 242-6201