Fostering a child in Luxembourg

Not all parents are able to provide for their children’s basic needs. In order to protect them, these children might need to be separated from their families and placed in care, generally either in an institution or taken in by a foster family.

There is no such thing as a typical foster family. People with very different personalities and life situations perform the role well. In Luxembourg, a foster family can be a couple, a single person, or a family that welcomes a child into their home who, for various reasons, needs a living space outside their original family.

When it is necessary to remove a young child from their family setting, being cared for in a foster home is preferable to an institutional care facility, explains Michèle Bressanutti, director at the National Office for Children (ONE).

"The foster family offers a calming, secure, stable, warm, and stimulating environment that promotes a secure relationship with the child, protecting his or her well-being and defending his or her interests."

Up to four children may be fostered by the same family under Luxembourg law, with the recommendation that when one first becomes a foster parent, they are below the maximum age limit of 50.

Statistics

Currently, 553 children (figure as of 1 April, 2024) between the ages of 0 and 18 are being cared for by foster families in Luxembourg.

Of this number, 440 were placed in foster care by a juvenile court judge as their proper development and well-being could no longer be guaranteed within their original family, Ms Bressanutti outlines.

Of the remaining 153, it was the biological parents or care workers who contacted ONE to request that the child be taken into care due to difficult family circumstances. Bressanutti adds and emphasises that all efforts are made to facilitate ongoing contact between the parents and child while the child is in foster care.

There are currently 475 foster families in Luxembourg with some of these parents having fostered more than one child. 
 
The three fostering services in Luxembourg who are professional partners of ONE are ARCUS, Luxembourg Red Cross and Lëtzebuerger Kannerduerf.

Meeting the needs of the child

When it is necessary to remove young children from the biological family setting, it is preferable that they are looked after in a foster home rather than an institutional care facility.
 
“For babies it is always better to be in a foster family to enable secure attachment rather than in institutional care. Most of the children placed in foster care are between 0-12 years old. Foster care better meets the attachment needs of a child, so for very young children, this form of placement is preferred.

"We always look at the needs of the child and look at the setting of its biological family because the primary goal of any placement in foster family or institutional care is to meet the needs, interests, and well-being of the minor."

Reunited

In order for the possibility of reintegration of the child into their family of origin, the biological parents must show that they can work on problems that are occurring in the family, according to Ms Bressanutti.

"The primary goal of any placement is family reintegration, provided the parents can ensure the safety and proper development of their child. The juvenile court judge who placed the child in foster care is the one who orders family reintegration."

The ONE is responsible for the care and follow-up of foster families. It assesses the child’s needs and gives its opinion regarding possible family reintegration. As each child's needs are different and the reasons for placement vary, the duration of placements also varies.

“The goal is not to keep a child in foster care until they are 18 or in the care system. It is always to see if the possibility exists for reintegration into their biological family. When reintegration is possible and the safety of the child is guaranteed, the ultimate goal is to be reunited with their biological family,” she stresses.

Encouraging more foster families

"ONE runs regular promotional campaigns together with their partners, who work directly with the foster families, to highlight and explain the incredible work of foster parents and attract more people who are interested," Ms Bressanutti says.

She adds that research carried out by ONE to compare the number of foster families in Luxembourg against a small number of other European countries revealed positive results.

“We compared how many foster families there are in other countries such as Belgium, France, Germany, and Austria. We looked at how many foster families these countries had and, pro rata, Luxembourg has a similar number of foster families. The percentage was similar for every country we looked at.”

How to become a foster parent?

A person interested in becoming a foster parent should make initial contact with one of the support services (ARCUS, Luxembourg Red Cross and Lëtzebuerger Kannerduerf) who will advise of the steps involved.

According to myguichet,the training requirements consist of the completion of a 30-hour 'selection, preparation and training' procedure with one of the hosting oversight bodies to obtain the selection certificate.

Also, prospective foster parents must attend the 54-hour basic training course for foster families, organised under the supervision of the MENJE.

Once selected as a foster parent, there is a requirement to attend continuing training and/ or supervision sessions totalling 12 hours a year.

It is also required that you understand and speak at least one of Luxembourg's three official languages: Luxembourgish, German, French.

Find all the information you need to become a foster family here.