Keeping Siblings Together
A sibling is one of the only persons in an individual’s life who has a shared life experience with having the same parent(s), a similar background or upbringing, and home environment. Because of this shared life experience, it is so important to try to keep siblings together when a family intersects with the child welfare system.
Keeping siblings together in foster care helps to promote security, adjustment, and is tied to higher rates of reunification with primary family, better school performance and overall better mental wellbeing compared to children who live separately from their siblings in care.
Cadence is committed to keeping siblings together to continue to support the development of youth involved in foster care. Some ways in which Cadence helps to promote sibling placements are:
Financial Bonuses
Cadence provides a financial bonus at placement when a resource parent accepts three or more children
Providing Resources
Cadence may lend an additional crib, bed or car seat out to resource parents for emergency placements
Case Managers
Cadence assigns one case manager to the home to reduce the amount of people involved
Transportation
Cadence assists with transportation to family visits
If siblings must be separated due to space, safety, or other reasons, then Cadence will participate in coordinating or facilitating family visits and respites so that the children can still see each other as much as possible.