“Kings County Family Resource Care Providers value the children in our community. They are dedicated partners of a professional team, who open their heart and homes to children.  They ensure children are safe and part of a loving family who respects a child’s identity, family connections and culture.” - Kings County QPI Mission Statement

What is a Resource Family?

Resource families consist of relative or kinship families, licensed foster care families, certified resource families, guardianship families or adoptive families. Regardless of the type, resource families play a key role in the life of a child in care. When out-of-home placement is needed to keep the child safe, CPS makes diligent efforts to identify, evaluate and consider relatives, family friends and those culturally tied to the family as the primary placement option. When relatives cannot be a placement option for the child, CPS makes efforts to actively recruit and support resource families within the child’s home community and in as close in proximity as possible to the child’s parents.  Resource families work together with CPS staff and actively support the child and the child’s family to return home successfully and permanently. Should the child be unable to safely return to the parent’s home, CPS actively prepares the child for adoption or guardianship with permanent, “forever” family.

Resource Family Approval Program (RFA)

Resource Family Approval (RFA) is a unified process that replaces existing processes and increases approval standards by incorporating a comprehensive psycho-social evaluation of all families who want to foster, adopt, or provide legal guardianship to a child. 

The RFA Program includes assessing all families who wish to provide out-of-home care for children and adoptive or guardianship families. The RFA Program ensures standards of safety are met in each resource family home.  The RFA Program includes licensed foster homes, resource care providers, adoption, guardianship, and recruitment services for care providers in Kings County.  Resource families are necessary to Kings County Child Protective Services (CPS), as in the event that a child cannot permanently return home to their parents, CPS strives to place children for adoption or guardianship in safe, nurturing, permanent homes. 

Qualifications to become an RFA home include (but are not limited to):

• Completion of a Resource Family Application
• Criminal background clearance
• Pre-approval and post-approval training
• Personal references
• Financial resources adequate to meet the needs of your existing household
• Combined home environment and permanency assessments

For information on the Resource Family Approval (RFA) Program, please call (559) 852-4289 or email: HSA.RFA@co.kings.ca.us.