Goals for Children in Substitute Care

When parents are unable to care for their children in their own homes the Department is obligated to provide substitute care. These children come to the Department either through a court order or through a parent’s voluntary request for substitute care. In either case the Department's goal is to alleviate or mitigate the causes necessitating placement; or in those circumstances where a child is unable to return home, to provide the child with a permanent new home in a timely fashion.