Image source: National Adoption Month website / Child Welfare Information Gateway
Since 1995 the U.S. has recognized November as National Adoption Month. This year’s theme is Promoting and Supporting Sibling Connections. The theme was chosen to recognize the unique bond between siblings, which research has shown to be influential in children’s emotional well-being and development. In some studies, children in foster care have experienced better outcomes when they were placed with their siblings in the same home.
Federal and state governments (including Minnesota) have recognized the importance of sibling connections in child welfare-involved youths’ lives and outcomes. President Obama’s proclamation naming this November “National Adoption Month” includes a statement emphasizing the importance of sibling relationships and encouraging states and agencies to make the effort to keep siblings together. The federal Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 requires states to make reasonable efforts to place siblings together in foster care and adoption placements, and to ensure frequent visitation if such placements are not possible.
Minnesota law explicitly states that siblings should be placed together for both foster care and adoption as early as possible, unless such placement would be detrimental to the safety or well-being of any of the siblings or the agency has made reasonable efforts to find such a placement but has been unsuccessful; the Minnesota Department of Human Services’ Policy on Sibling Placement, Separation and Visitation also promotes sibling placement and maintaining sibling connections if placement is not possible.
Unfortunately, finding out-of-home and pre-adoptive placements for sibling groups, as well as recruiting and supporting foster and adoptive parents who can parent sibling groups, can be difficult. Our 9th issue of Practice Notes focuses on strategies for placing siblings together, strengthening and encouraging reunification efforts, and recruiting families able to foster and adopt sibling groups. Additionally, the National Adoption Month and AdoptUSKids websites have resources for promoting and supporting sibling connections. We will also be blogging regularly throughout the month on our Stability, Permanency, & Adoption Blog on topics pertaining to sibling connections and permanency.