Luxembourg has one of the highest child placement rates in the world, but the country doesn't have enough foster families to help all of them in the best possible conditions.
In fact, with 1,461 children in the current system, Luxembourg needs twice as many foster families able to care for children for an indefinite period. Placement reasons can be manifold and range from abuse to neglect, and physical as well as psychological violence. Generally, there are two options for affected children: they are either placed in an institution or taken in by a foster family.
Numerous studies have shown that the better solution is to live with a foster family, where children's contact people are always the same, which in return offers a greater degree of stability. However, Luxembourg is one of the few countries in Europe where the number of children placed in homes is higher than those placed in foster families, of which the country only has 465.
One of the aims of the national action plan is "to progressively phase out residential care in institutions and promote family-based care for children wherever possible".
What is the reality? Mireille Molitor, president of FleegeElteren Lëtzebuerg asbl, laments that "the country needs more foster families, but we are opening more and more homes".
The experiences of a foster family can be intense, and can vary depending on the situation. In this report by RTL Infos, some foster moms and dads talk about their impressions, as well as some of the adults who lived in foster care as children in Luxembourg:
"They grow in our hearts, we love them and they love us. We are their trusted person, and we offer them this trust in return," explains Ketty Jung, 51, who has already taken in more than 20 foster children."
"I wish they'd listened to us more and not taken into account the wishes of the biological parents," testifies Zoe Hoffmann, 23, placed in emergency care at the age of 5.
Find all the information you need to become a host family here or via the website of FleegeElteren Lëtzebuerg asbl.
