Nearly 1,000 children wait for families as foster numbers fall

Nearly 1,000 children in Latvia remain in care and crisis centres waiting for a family, while the number of foster families and guardians continues to decline, LSM reported. A row of chairs titled “Waiting for a family” was installed in Riga on Monday to draw attention to the issue.

Last year, 816 children joined guardians or foster families, said Ilze Paleja, chair of the board of the Latvian SOS Children’s Villages Association. She said there are few available foster families, making it difficult to find a place for a child removed from their family. Existing foster families are also ageing, adding to the need to attract new foster parents.

Aivars Krasnogolovs, head of Riga’s guardianship authority, said the average age of foster families in the city is 52. Twenty-eight of every 100 foster families are older than 60, he said.

Paleja said children who have been removed from their parents may need time, particular attention and additional support, including help from specialists. She said public misconceptions persist about these children.

Dace has been a foster mother for seven years. Her foster daughter joined the family at age 11. Dace had wanted to become a foster parent since childhood and decided to pursue it after her son was born. Before becoming a foster mother, she spent two years hosting a boy from an orphanage during weekends and holidays, then completed foster-parent training.