Safety of Children in Foster Care - Report Released

Did you know that…

• As of December 31, 2008, there were 2,638 children in out-of-home care in Milwaukee County?
• On that same date in 2008, there were 680 active, licensed foster homes in Milwaukee County?
• There were seven children in 2008 in Milwaukee County who were victims of maltreatment in court-ordered kinship care?

The Planning Council has released its report on keeping children safe in foster care in Milwaukee County. This study, which was commissioned by the Greater Milwaukee Foundation’s Bright Futures Milwaukee Fund in memory of long-time child advocate James R. Ryan, was undertaken to engage the community in a discussion about the safety of children in foster care. To learn more about the current status of children in foster care, best practices for keeping foster children safe, and strategies for enhancing the safety of children in foster care in Milwaukee County, visit our website at www.planningcouncil.org and click on the report titled “A Community Conversation About the Safety of Children in Foster Care.” Additional information about best practices and more detailed information on what key informants, caseworkers, foster parents, and biological parents had to say will be coming soon to our website.

Click on the following link to view an article about the foster care study written by Milwaukee Journal Sentinel staff http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/46266767.html. The following link is an article about the study written by LaToya Dennis of Milwaukee Public Radio http://www.wuwm.com/programs/news/view_news.php?articleid=4613.

Note: If you visited the Planning Council or Ombudsman Website prior to May 8, 2009 to review the Office of the Milwaukee Ombudsman for Child Welfare’s 2008 Annual Report, please be aware that some corrections were made to the report. Please use the following links to access the corrected documents: 2008 Annual Report or 2008 Executive Summary.