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Sibling Issues in Foster Care and Adoption
Bulletin for Professionals

Author(s):  Child Welfare Information Gateway

Year Published:  2006

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You are in section: Table of Contents 1 - Defining a Sibling Relationship 2 - The Importance of Siblings 3 - Sibling Relationships in Abusive or Neglectful… 4 - Benefits of Placing Siblings Together 5 - Barriers to Placing Siblings Together 6 - Policies and Practices for Keeping Siblings… 7 - When Siblings Cannot Live Together 8 - Maintaining Ties Between Separated Siblings 9 - Sibling Issues Within the Foster or Adoptive… 10 - Resources for Promoting Intact Placement of… References

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6. Policies and Practices for Keeping Siblings Together

Decisions regarding sibling placement may be more straightforward when siblings come into care at the same time, when their needs are similar, and when the sibling group is small. In such cases, placement together is both more feasible and likely. When there are more barriers to placement together, as listed above, caseworkers may have to make more difficult decisions regarding placement.

Connie Maschmeier (2001) developed a decision-making matrix to help agencies make decisions around the placement of siblings. The matrix takes into consideration the degree, duration, quality, and intensity of the sibling relationships; any safety risks associated with placement; possible long-term benefits; the family's ability to meet the needs of all siblings; and the children's preferences.

Standards to guide workers in placement decisions and other practice related to siblings are included in the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) Standards of Excellence for Adoption Services (2000). Standard 3.7 specifies:

Siblings should be placed together both in out-of-home care and adoption unless the serious, specific needs of one or more of the siblings justifies separation. The decision to separate siblings should be based on a carefully documented and reviewed determination that such separation is necessary.

Family-centered practice suggests that children and youth should be included in developmentally appropriate discussions and decisions about being placed with their siblings.

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Thorough Assessment of Sibling Relationships

During intake, workers need to complete a thorough assessment of sibling relationships and individual children, including the experience and feelings of each child. They should talk with children individually and ask age-appropriate questions, such as:

• Which sibling does the child enjoy spending time with?
  
  
• Who will play a game with the child?
  
  
• Which sibling would the child turn to if he were afraid or hurt?
  
  
• Who would listen to a story?

If separate placements must be made for very large sibling groups, this assessment will help the worker make decisions about which sibling relationships are most essential to the well-being of specific children.

In completing assessments, it is important to recognize that sibling relationships vary greatly in both positive and negative qualities. In evaluating the quality of sibling relationships, the worker will want to look for warmth or affection between siblings, rivalry and hostility, interdependence, and relative power and status in the relationship, as well as determining how much time the siblings have spent together.

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Strategies for Placing Siblings Together

Agency policy, along with the individual circumstances of each sibling group, will affect whether or not siblings are placed together. The following are policy and practice strategies designed to address the needs of sibling groups more effectively:

• Designate certain foster home resources for large sibling groups, and offer incentives to hold them open for these placements.
  
  
• Recruit families specifically to care for sibling groups through community outreach, the media, special events, faith-based organizations, photolistings, and websites.
  
  
• Educate foster, adoptive, and kin families about sibling and grief issues.
  
  
• Have contracts with private agencies to offer a specialized foster care program designed specifically for large sibling groups (examples of these include the Hull House Neighbor to Neighbor program in Chicago, Neighbor to Family in Florida, and the Jewish Child Care Association Sibling Houses program in New York).
  
  
• If efforts are being made to recruit an adoptive family for a sibling group, list them as a group with a picture of the entire sibling group.
  
  
• Have a system in place to track the location and status of all siblings.
  
  
• Seek kinship placements first, because they are generally more open to taking a sibling group, and because such placements offer the further advantage of preserving family connections.
  
  
• Conduct a thorough social work assessment of sibling groups as a whole, as well as of each individual child, including children in discussions.
  
  
• Assign all siblings to the same caseworker, no matter when they enter care.
  
  
• If siblings must be separated in an emergency placement, provide for a review within the first week to plan for reunification.
  
  
• At regular case reviews, discuss sibling issues and include children or youth in these discussions.
  
  
• Provide training for caseworkers and foster parents on the importance of preserving sibling connections.
  
  
• Provide sufficient resources for foster families who take in large sibling groups and may need additional household items and services.
  
  
• Ensure that information about siblings is included in each child's Lifebook.

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You are in section: Table of Contents 1 - Defining a Sibling Relationship 2 - The Importance of Siblings 3 - Sibling Relationships in Abusive or Neglectful… 4 - Benefits of Placing Siblings Together 5 - Barriers to Placing Siblings Together 6 - Policies and Practices for Keeping Siblings… 7 - When Siblings Cannot Live Together 8 - Maintaining Ties Between Separated Siblings 9 - Sibling Issues Within the Foster or Adoptive… 10 - Resources for Promoting Intact Placement of… References

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This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit Child Welfare Information Gateway.

Updated on September 18, 2008