Visit the Alabama Kinship Navigator, a website designed as a one-stop shop for information and referral services for grandparents, relatives, and other caregivers who are currently raising a child. This information is useful to anyone with a child whether involved in the foster care system or not.

Federal and state legislation provides the legal means of obtaining the permanency goal of kinship guardianship for children in foster care. The timeframe for achieving this goal is set by the ISP team.

This permanency goal is limited to children who are eligible to receive either IV-E foster care or non IV-E state foster care maintenance payments and have resided in a fully approved related foster family home for at least six consecutive months. Only after the following case by case determinations have been made on a child, can the permanency goal of kinship guardianship be established: 

1. Being returned home or adopted are not appropriate permanency options and not in the best interests of the child; 
2. The child demonstrates a strong attachment to the prospective kinship guardian and the kinship guardian has a strong commitment to caring permanently for the child; and,
3. If a child has attained the age of 14, the child must be consulted regarding the kinship guardianship arrangement.

All of the above criteria must be met and must be documented in the child’s record.

Kinship guardianship is a judicially created relationship and would therefore, be achieved at the point that kinship guardianship is awarded by the juvenile court to the relative.

The custody status of kinship guardianship substantiates that a child is leaving out-of-home care and entering a kinship guardianship arrangement.

For additional information, please contact your local county Department of Human Resources or the Alabama State Department of Human Resources.