DCFS Mission Statement

The Los Angeles Department of Family Services is one of the biggest child welfare agencies in the United States. The mission statement of DCFS is to service children by maintaining their safety, permanency and access to effective caring services. DCFS has struggled to provide these core values for numerous reasons. Social workers face overwhelming amount of caseloads. The increasing amount of children and families that are assisted by DCFS require provision of multiple services. Many of the crucial services are being shut down due to lack of funding. The biggest problem DCFS is currently facing is the absence of placement for foster youth.
Becoming a foster parent is very demanding. Foster parents are expected to provide a safe and nurturing home to children that have experienced different types of abuse. Foster parents have to respond to the minor’s emotional and behavior needs. Some of these children are defiant because they have been separated from their parents. Many of them do not understand why they are being taken away. Children in the foster care system have often been placed in many different foster homes and do not feel they could trust the foster parents. Children with behavioral issues are labeled in the child welfare system. No …show more content…
For example, changing the requirements for the amount a space a child is suppose to have. Allowing more children to share rooms, will keep fewer children in emergency shelters. This solution would also allow foster parents to take siblings, instead of separating them because of the lack of space. Another, solution would be increasing the stipend given to the foster parents. This would encourage foster parents because children are not cheap to take care of. Every year basic necessities go up on price, so it is hard for someone to take that responsibility when they barely have enough for