GREENSBORO, N.C. — There is a breakthrough in finding care for foster children.
Before the state approved a new program, relatives or family members caring for foster children did it for free.
This made it difficult for some to sustainably care for the children because of the costs involved.
Now, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services launched the Kinship Care Reimbursement Program.
The program pays the next of kin foster parents beginning back on November 16th.
It pays relatives and family members up to 400 dollars a month if they help care for next of kin children placed in foster care.
Lisa Cauley, the Senior Director of Human Services in North Carolina said this helps stabilize the system.
"Some of the benefits are children move less in kinship care, they reunify with their parents sooner or either their kinship care take custody or adopt so they take permanence sooner."
According to the department, there are more than 10,000 children in foster care in North Carolina.
There are only about 5400 foster homes licensed in the state to care for children in need of a temporary out-of-home placement.
Cauley said this funding stabilizes the system, by giving money to the families who step in to help and it opens up more foster homes to those who don't have a relative to help.
"You have to build a continuum of care," said Cauley. "This is one place where North Carolina will build its continuum of care by funding kinship care homes, we are more likely to have children placed with their relatives because it's the reality that some people need funding to be able to provide care."
If you remember, a few months back WFMY News 2 learned foster kids were temporarily living in the Greensboro DSS office building, temporarily.
It came after there was a lack of foster parents, an increase in foster children, and a need for beds for children with high needs.
The Division Director for Child Welfare in Greensboro, Shelia Stokes, said while there is still a great need for foster parents, the department welcomes the change from the state.
"It helps them to provide for these children and where they can offer more support to these children and where they can have different things in the home because it calls to have additional people in your home," said Stokes.
Stokes said their office has more than doubled the kinship caregivers in the last 3 months and is on track to have 25 percent of placements with kinship providers by mid-January.
"With this assistance, we believe by the first of the year we should see a 25% increase," said Stokes. "We were really excited because we feel this is an opportunity for families to have financial support as they help their relatives, we believe this is the best thing for children in order for them to maintain that connection with family for them to continue to grow and feel familiar with that family."
The department said roughly one-fourth of the children in foster care live in kinship care across the state and this new payment program is expected to increase the number of children who live with their relatives.
"This helps them to provide for these children," said Stokes.
The work doesn't end here. Stokes said there are still more areas that need help. She said there is still a great need for those to step in and take care of these kids.
"We are still looking for foster parents in Guilford County, the need is great," said Stokes.
You can learn more about being a *foster parent* this week.
The Department of Social Services is holding an information session at their office on 1203 Maple Street in Greensboro on November 30th.
There are also two more sessions left this year. There is one on December 11, in person, at 325 E. Russell Ave. in High Point from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
The second one is on December 21, which is a virtual information session from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
You must register to attend any of these sessions and can do so by emailing foster@guilfordcountync.gov or by calling (336)641-KIDS.
You can also fill out an online inquiry here.
There will be more sessions as well in the New Year, and all updated information can be found here.