Adoption & Foster Care

Adoption

Adoption provides children who are unable to be raised by their biological parents the chance to become permanent legal members of another family while maintaining genetic and psychological connections to their birth family.

Building a family by adoption is fundamentally different than building a family biologically, with lifelong implications for the adopted individual, the adoptive parents, and the birth parents.

Before a child is adopted, Virginia law requires that the adoptive family have an approved home study performed by a licensed agency. The Louisa County Department of Human Services will assist you in this process.

Foster Care

  Thank you for your interest in becoming a Resource Family and fostering a child in Louisa County! 

What is a Resource Family?

A family that provides care for children in the foster care system is referred to as a “Resource Family”. These families may include, but are not limited to: foster families, adoptive families, respite caregivers (temporary relief for foster families), and approved relatives. 

 Resource families play an important part in the foster care process by providing a stable home and support to a child in need. By having trained resource families in our locality, children are able to stay in or near their community. 

Our program’s main goal is to provide resource families with pre-service and in-service training to adequately prepare families for placement. LCDHS believes that by providing consistent and relevant trainings to our families, children will have a more successful and stable placement. 

What is Foster Care?

Foster Care is defined as twenty-four-hour substitute care for children who have been placed outside the home of their parents or legal guardians. Children may come into care for a variety of reasons, including neglect, abuse, or having a parent that is unable to appropriately care for their child. 

The child then becomes the responsibility of the state, and the local department of social services is tasked with identifying an appropriate foster family that is equipped to meet the physical, behavioral and emotional needs of the child. 

The primary goal of foster care is to reunite the child with his/her biological family. 

The Application Process

• Complete a provider application
• Providers must be at least 21 years of age, single or married
• Complete a state and national criminal background check (This includes fingerprinting)
• Consent to a Child Protective Services background check
• Be Tuberculosis free
• Provide a copy of your DMV driving record
• Actively participate in the approval process, which includes 3-5 home visits 
• Complete 27 hours of pre-service training
• Provide 3 references
• Provide additional documentation: financial verification, medical exam, home inspection, and rabies certifications for all household pets

All foster families are dually approved, meaning they are approved to foster and to adopt a foster child through LCDHS. Once approved, foster parent certifications are valid for a period of three years. You will be required to successfully complete ten hours of annual in-service training to maintain your certification. 

Upcoming Training Events

Traditional Foster Parent Training (New Resource Families – all required)

Traditions of Caring (Relative Specific – 2 days required)

Contact Us

Should you be interested in becoming a foster parent through LCDHS, please contact our Resource Parent Coordinator, Tina Wilson at (540) 967-1320 or tina.wilson@dss.virginia.gov.