kinship care

Affirmed - DCF did have sufficient evidence to revoke Appellant kinship foster parents' license given the totality of the circumstances, including: 1) Appellants were not forthcoming with information and at times lied to DCF workers; 2) Appellants were having marital issues, including one allegation…

Reversed - DCF's decision to not support pre-adoptive placement of the child with Appellant and to remove the child from Appellant's kinship foster home based on insufficient income was not made in the best interest of the child given the bond between the child and Appellant, Appellant's ability to…

The primary purpose the Commission on the Status of Grandparents Raising Grandchildren is to serve as a resource to the Commonwealth on issues affecting grandparents and all relatives raising grandchildren. Commission's website is devoted to fostering education, networking, research,…

Affirmed - DCF had sufficient evidence to take children away from Appellant Foster Parents where Appellant Foster Parents violated rules in a written and verbal agreement they made with DCF by physically disciplining the children.

Affirmed - DCF did not act abuse its discretion in determining the appropriate level of care for the child; even though the kinship family created an increased health risk by smoking in the presence of an asthmatic child and the birth mother wanted the child to stay with the Appellant. There is a…

Affirmed - The decision to remove the child from the appellant’s home and place them in kinship care was upheld. Department did not act unreasonably/abuse its discretion because the burden of proof of the appellant was not met; even though the kinship family created an increased health risk by…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to find neglect where Appellant had a history of substance abuse (alcohol, heroin, marijuana, cocaine, opiates, and Fentanyl) while her granddaughter was in her custody, resulting in the Appellant’s failure to provide minimally adequate supervision and other…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support a 51B decision when Appellant allowed a child to visit her their mother and, unbeknownst to Appellant, that visit resulted in physical abuse of the child by another person.

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support allegations of neglect where the Appellant Mother held the infant child during a brief verbal and physical altercation with the child’s Legal Guardian Paternal Grandfather. The child appeared unharmed by the incident, and the Hearing Officer…

Reversed - Hearing Officer reversed the Department’s finding of neglect where the appellant-mother held the infant child during a brief verbal and physical altercation with the child’s paternal grandfather-legal guardian. The child appeared unharmed by the incident, and the Hearing Officer…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support a neglect finding where Appellant: (1) made several attempts to contact the child’s parent; (2) told other adults that she was leaving; and (3) left the child with another adult before leaving the house.

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the allegations of neglect and physical abuse against both Appellants where: (1) the child was lacking details or explanations in numerous statements regarding abuse and neglect; (2) the level of discipline via spanking with a belt was found to…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect because 1) the department had no evidence to confirm that the mother was actively abusing substances at the time 2) the department did not consider statements obtained from the child regarding her parents and their drug use…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect because the child's mother overdosed in Appellant grandmother's home and the child reported to her social worker that she saw her mother unconscious in the bathroom. The Appellant claimed that the child was not home, but DCF did not…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to deny the Appellant's kinship foster care license. In reaching the decision that the Appellant failed to meet licensing standards, the Department relied on statements from one of the four children in the Appellant'a care (J) as well as statements from…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to revoke the Appellant's foster care license because the Department's licensing reassessment did not clearly identify any failure by the Appellant to comply with specific licensing standards. In its decision to revoke her license, the Department cited…

Affirmed - Cambridge Family and Children's Service (CFCS), a DCF contracted agency, had reasonable cause to deny the Appellant and the Appellant's home licensure as a pre-adoptive resource for her 3 great-nieces and great-nephews (A, G, and Z) where the following concerns were identified: 1) lack of…

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A report for neglect against the Appellant (direct care staff member at the IFC home where the child was previously temporarily placed). The Appellant did not fail to provide the child ("A") with minimally adequate supervision or care by…

DCF did not have reasonable cause to revoke the Appellant's license to be a foster parent. The Department made the decision to revoke the Appellant's foster care license following a supported 51B report for neglect against the Appellant after the Appellant left the child in question, the Appellant's…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support the 51A decision for neglect against the Appellant (maternal grandmother and guardian of the child "N"). A Probate and Family Court Order from June 24, 2014 ordered the Appellant to continue to serve as the guardian of N due to a history of substance…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to revoke Appellant Foster Parents’ license and remove children from their pre-adoptive kinship home where: (1) Appellant Foster Parents appear to be sabotaging relationship between children and birth parents by having children call them “mommy and daddy” against…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support the 51A report for physical abuse and neglect against the Appellant ("JV"). The Hearing Officer found that the Appellant utilized objects such a coat hanger and a belt to discipline his children, A and J, that left marks on their face, back, and legs…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support a 51A report of neglect where the Appellant Grandmother violated a DCF order by allowing the children to contact their mother, and drugs that were sufficient to present a risk to the children’s health were found in the children’s toy chest.

Reversed - DCF did not have reasonable cause to support the 51A decision for sexual abuse against the Appellant (biological father of children D and J). In an initial disclosure to a mandated reporter, D and J stated that they had played a game with the Appellant where all three of them took their…

Affirmed - The Hearing Officer found that the Department’s decision to remove children from Appellant’s DCF kinship foster/pre-adoptive home was reasonable; the decision was affirmed. The Department found that the appellants, great grandmother and great aunt, violated their established safety plan.…

Affirmed - DCF’s decision to remove children from Appellant’s kinship foster/pre-adoptive home was reasonable where the Appellants, great grandmother and great aunt, violated their established safety plan; there were substantial concerns that the children lacked order and were missing daycare, which…

Affirmed - DCF had sufficient evidence to revoke the Appellant's kinship foster care license. The Appellant was an open kinship foster care provider for her niece, but the Department determined that the Appellant failed to meet foster care licensing standards after 1) a 51A report was filed alleging…

Affirmed - DCF did not violate regulations, policies, or procedures in revoking kinship care license where Appellants did not show adequate efforts to address the emotional needs of the child. Appellants showed no desire to be a part of their first child’s life once the child was hospitalized for…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to deny Appellant’s application to become a licensed kinship, child-specific family resource when: (1) Appellant allowed non-approved individuals to care for the child in Appellant’s absence, including the child’s mother, who has a history of substance abuse, as…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support a 51A report for neglect against the Appellant (kinship foster parent) where the Appellant allowed two unapproved caretakers to have unsupervised contact with the child. In the first documented instance, the unapproved caretaker had a criminal record…

Affirmed - DCF had reasonable cause to support a finding of neglect against the Appellant guardian where: (1) the children's mother and her ex-boyfriend had a previously supported 51A report due to a history of domestic violence and substance abuse, and as a result were not allowed to be alone with…

This report addresses how Massachusetts can reform specific policies to advance its commitment to kinship foster care and achieve a higher number of good kinship placements, especially for children of color. Massachusetts has been an early national leader and pioneer in its commitment to placing…

Center for Law and Social Policy's (CLASP's) information section on supporting kinship families including the Fostering Connections to Success Act.  Click the "Go to Website" link below to access these resources.  

A comprehensive overview of different types of kinship (or relative) caregiver relationships, including Informal Relative Caregivers, Foster Care Relative Caregivers, Legal Guardians and Adoptive Parents.  The guide is intended to help caregivers decide what type of relationship is best for…

The NLRC website is a collaborative effort developed by the Administration on Aging to provide legal support to the aging advocacy network.  The section of the website that is linked below includes information on Grandparent Rights and Caring for Grandchildren.