Why Pathways?

Foster Homes Need Support

When you enter the world of fostering you may encounter new experiences or ones you were not prepared for. Your Pathways Support Team will provide skilled guidance and direction throughout your fostering journey.

Caring for children with complex needs while navigating a complicated system can become demanding. Your Pathways Support team actively works with you, and your family, by providing information and/or assistance.

Careful Matching and Intake Support

Upon intake, the needs of the child/youth are carefully matched to the training and skills of the foster home. The foster parent will always make the final determination on whether to accept a placement or not. Upon the placement of a child, the agency will make contact within 24-hours followed by a visit to your home by your designated Foster Care Support Worker.

Home Visits

The Foster Care Support Worker is responsible to visit your home each month and will provide support, guidance and accountability to meet your expectations. Your support worker will attend the professional’s meetings you are asked to attend. This includes support when the Residential Licensing Unit visits your home.

Advocacy

Support workers will advocate on behalf of your family and the children placed in your home. There are many vested professionals involved in the welfare of a child and often a foster parent represents the voice of a child who cannot speak on their own behalf. Your Foster Care Support Worker will help you navigate through these processes and link you to the appropriate community resources.

On-Going Support

A Foster Care Support Worker is assigned to your family and is available if special concerns are identified. As your liaison to the broader service team, they will initiate and facilitate contact with stakeholders who are directly involved in the well-being of the child/youth. Regular visits to your home are conducted to provide support, guidance and direction. Meeting caregiving expectations can be demanding and your support team monitors and updates you on the mandatory requirements.

Assessments/Investigations

Pathways Support Team offers on-going support throughout an assessment/investigation, along with access to training and resources focused on preventing allegations.

Training & Ongoing Support

Training

Training is essential to a foster parent’s success. Core Training consists of 100 hours of mandatory training. Mileage and childcare costs are covered for all mandatory training. Workshops are presented by specialists in behavior management, children’s disorders, community supports, self-care, and a variety of areas of interest. On-going Indigenous training and engagement activities are required.

Crisis Support Line

Pathways offers a 24-hour crisis support line for foster parents. After regular business hours, the crisis line cell phone is staffed by a qualified Foster Care Support Worker; who is also available for in-home support if an emergency requires direct contact.

Support Meetings & In-Services

Support meeting or in-service is offered minimally once per month on the last Wednesday at 9:30am and 7:00pm. Support meetings can consist of a “small group” format that allows foster parents to support one another, or a professional speaker is available for a presentation and discussion. Meetings are mandatory for new families to the agency and regular on-going attendance is expected.

Yearly Events

Support can be viewed in many ways and Pathways believes in creating a supportive team that feels valued for the hard work they do. Gathering in fellowship are just a few ways Pathways can recognize and celebrate foster parents and the support team. Pathways celebrates Foster Care Appreciation Week by honoring foster parents with their years of service with a celebration. In December we host our annual Family Christmas Party, where all children who attend receive a gift from Santa. To kick off the summer we invite our families to our annual Family Picnic, where outdoor events are geared toward the children. On-going Cultural opportunities are offered such as Indigenous Teachings, Moccasin Making, Culture Camps and much more.

Financial Compensation

Foster parents are provided a daily stipend to cover the general costs of maintaining the added expense for the child in your home. The fund covers such items as food, clothing, toys, recreational/craft supplies, gifts, baby-sitting, etc. The Basic Maintenance fee is broken down per the age of the child. Foster parents also receive a skill fee or per diem based on their training/skill level, as well as a daily respite rate.

Age Rate
0 - 1 $ 24.99
2 - 5 $ 25.40
6 - 8 $ 27.86
9 - 11 $ 29.44
12 - 15 $ 33.34
16 - 17 $ 38.12
Skill Fee
Level 1 $ 15.83
Level 2 $ 28.66
Respite Fee
Per day/per child $ 2.71

Ex: child’s age + foster parent’s skill fee + respite = foster parent stipend

The agency facilitates payments for all mandatory renewals, such as First Aid, Suicide Awareness, Security Clearance, and Cultural Awareness. Families are compensated for kilometers and babysitting while attending mandatory training.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?