

Foster Care Services with Summit
Foster families play a vital role in a child’s physical, emotional, and educational development.
A foster family provides a warm home and a temporary solution for at-risk children who can no longer live with their biological parents, whether due to the parents’ choice or a court order.
Our foster families go through preliminary training as well as ongoing training and support to ensure that each child has their individual needs met and the best chances at a healthy transition.



Families
Foster Families
The Summit Institute provides guidance and direct support for families at all stages of foster care. The services are available for foster families in the Jerusalem and Southern regions, in partnership and under the regulation of the Ministry of Social Welfare. Summit works closely with the welfare authorities in local councils and municipalities.
In order to optimize the foster care system, The Summit Institute offers foster families a range of resources alongside in-depth, professional support.

Families
Emergency Shelter Foster
Emergency shelter foster families take in children who are in immediate danger - in accordance with a court order - providing a safe, stress-free environment for three to five months. During this period, the child’s welfare and relationship with his or her biological parents are closely examined. A formal recommendation for the child’s future is then presented to the Social Services Treatment Planning Committee and the child is either returned home or sent to a more permanent foster care family or other external framework.
Foster Families
The Summit Institute for Foster Families offers advice and close support in all stages of the foster care process. The service is provided to foster families in the Jerusalem area.

PODCAST
DISCUSS FOSTER

Talk foster with Mira Vercker
מהי אומנת חירום?
שיחה עם יעל, אם אומנת חירום.
PODCAST
DISCUSS FOSTER

Galit specifies a decade as a foster mother and celebrates a mitzvah for a foster child
מהי אומנת חירום?
שיחה עם יעל, אם אומנת חירום.
Always Here for You
The Summit Professional Team
Director of Foster Care Services

- 4 Hasadna Street, Jerusalem
Executive Director of The Summit Institute

- 4 Hasadna Street, Jerusalem
Director of Resource Development and Public Relations

- רמב״ם 4, באר-שבע
Therapeutic Treatment Center Director and Deputy Director of Foster Care

- 4 Hasadna Street, Jerusalem
Jerusalem Foster Care Branch Director

- 4 Maase Hoshev Street, Jerusalem
- Does not exist
Kiryat Malachi Foster Care Branch Director,

- Narkisim Center, 55 Bar Yehuda Street Kiryat Malachi
מנהלת איזור דרום

- Beit Hillel Building, 4 Rambam Street PO Box 6453, Beer Sheva
Therapeutic Foster Care Branch Jerusalem

- 39 Harav Herzog Street, Jerusalem
From a slightly different perspective
Hear from Our Families
לרגל יום האומנה אנחנו משתפים כתבה שפורסמה בוויינט על 4 משפחות אומנה מדרום הארץ, ועל האתגרים שהם מתמודדים איתם בצל…
"גם אם הבן שלך לוחם בעזה ואת מפונה, כשיש ילד אומנה אסור לך להתרסק"

Questions and Answers
Important Questions

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A child is separated from his or her parents' custody only after efforts have been
made to assist the parents and maintain the child's presence within the family.
Priority is given to exploring the possibility of placing the child with a close relative,
such as grandparents, uncles, or older siblings, before considering placing the child
with an unrelated family.
Foster families who are relatives undergo the same screening and training as other foster families. These individuals are committed and dedicated to providing a stable and secure home for a child from their own family, often transforming their lives to do so.
Within the family, foster care helps the child maintain a sense of belonging and often allows them to remain in a familiar environment.
The Summit Institute offers specialized and comprehensive support for these families, including customized courses and group activities, according to their specific needs.
In 2006, the foster care law was enacted thanks to the efforts of Karin Elharer (of the Yesh Atid party). As a result of this legislation, many relative foster families are now able to receive the same services and assistance as other foster families.
The Summit Institute supports close foster families by providing professional guidance throughout the process and assisting the children with their fundamental needs.
Foster families who are relatives undergo the same screening and training as other foster families. These individuals are committed and dedicated to providing a stable and secure home for a child from their own family, often transforming their lives to do so.
Within the family, foster care helps the child maintain a sense of belonging and often allows them to remain in a familiar environment.
The Summit Institute offers specialized and comprehensive support for these families, including customized courses and group activities, according to their specific needs.
In 2006, the foster care law was enacted thanks to the efforts of Karin Elharer (of the Yesh Atid party). As a result of this legislation, many relative foster families are now able to receive the same services and assistance as other foster families.
The Summit Institute supports close foster families by providing professional guidance throughout the process and assisting the children with their fundamental needs.
The term emergency foster care refers to a temporary arrangement for infants and
children who have been urgently removed from their homes due to an immediate
danger. For up to three months, these families provide children with all the necessities
they need after being removed from their homes, including physical and educational
support, as well as a safe and nurturing environment. In addition, emergency foster
families facilitate meetings between children and their biological parents at
designated contact centers.
During emergency foster care, welfare service care planning committees determine the children's future arrangements, including whether they will live with a long-term foster family, move to another out-of-home placement, or return home.
The Summit Institute supports close foster families by providing professional guidance throughout the process, accompanying the children, and assisting them with their basic needs.
During emergency foster care, welfare service care planning committees determine the children's future arrangements, including whether they will live with a long-term foster family, move to another out-of-home placement, or return home.
The Summit Institute supports close foster families by providing professional guidance throughout the process, accompanying the children, and assisting them with their basic needs.
The therapeutic foster care system is designed to support children and adolescents
with challenging backgrounds who have faced traumas, primarily due to their
biological parents' inability to provide essential emotional and physical care for their
normal development.
Therapeutic foster care focuses on helping children exhibiting extreme and diverse behaviors, often requiring ongoing psychiatric supervision and emotional or medicinal treatment.
In order to accommodate these children, therapeutic foster families must possess a high degree of emotional resilience and family strength.
Therapeutic foster families receive extensive support throughout the process, including emotional support for the child as well as financial aid to alleviate the burden on the foster family.
Therapeutic foster care focuses on helping children exhibiting extreme and diverse behaviors, often requiring ongoing psychiatric supervision and emotional or medicinal treatment.
In order to accommodate these children, therapeutic foster families must possess a high degree of emotional resilience and family strength.
Therapeutic foster families receive extensive support throughout the process, including emotional support for the child as well as financial aid to alleviate the burden on the foster family.
When a child enters foster care, it is a transformative event that necessitates a high
degree of readiness from the foster family. In the case of foster care for children with
special needs, additional considerations come into play.
The CMAD foster care system addresses three types of limitations:
1. Masha - Mental-developmental limitations
2. Autism
3. Physical limitations
A family choosing to become a foster family for children with special needs receives comprehensive support from the moment they make the decision, and throughout the process. This support encompasses psychological, financial, and expanded medical assistance.
We deeply admire and appreciate the families who choose to provide foster care for children with special needs.
The CMAD foster care system addresses three types of limitations:
1. Masha - Mental-developmental limitations
2. Autism
3. Physical limitations
A family choosing to become a foster family for children with special needs receives comprehensive support from the moment they make the decision, and throughout the process. This support encompasses psychological, financial, and expanded medical assistance.
We deeply admire and appreciate the families who choose to provide foster care for children with special needs.
It is natural for biological parents to be involved in their children's lives.
In most cases, they continue to be the children's legal guardians
and retain many parental rights. Foster care is essentially a cooperative parenting effort between the child's biological parents and the welfare services.
The involvement of biological parents is crucial for the development of children in foster care, and we always encourage fostering a positive relationship between foster and biological parents whenever possible.
In accordance with the child's and biological parent's needs, meetings with the children are scheduled weekly, biweekly, or monthly. These meetings take place at supervised contact centers or, in cases where supervision is not required,
at pre-arranged locations like the parents' home or a public park. Contact may be limited to phone calls in some instances, depending on the case.
For a child's mental health, it is vital to foster a strong relationship between the biological and foster parents.
All decisions made by welfare services, foster parents, and biological parents should prioritize the child's best interests and foster a healthy connection with their parents.
In most cases, they continue to be the children's legal guardians
and retain many parental rights. Foster care is essentially a cooperative parenting effort between the child's biological parents and the welfare services.
The involvement of biological parents is crucial for the development of children in foster care, and we always encourage fostering a positive relationship between foster and biological parents whenever possible.
In accordance with the child's and biological parent's needs, meetings with the children are scheduled weekly, biweekly, or monthly. These meetings take place at supervised contact centers or, in cases where supervision is not required,
at pre-arranged locations like the parents' home or a public park. Contact may be limited to phone calls in some instances, depending on the case.
For a child's mental health, it is vital to foster a strong relationship between the biological and foster parents.
All decisions made by welfare services, foster parents, and biological parents should prioritize the child's best interests and foster a healthy connection with their parents.
Foster care is a supplementary family framework for children whose parents are
incapable of providing adequate care, ranging from incapacity to neglect. This
solution allows children to grow up in a nurturing, supportive, and caring family
environment while allowing parents to rehabilitate and eventually reunite with their
children.
The primary recommendation in situations where multiple siblings require foster care is to keep them together.
Children can experience emotional challenges when they are separated from their parents and close siblings.
As a foster family, it is also beneficial to keep siblings together, as it provides the children with a familiar connection in a new environment.
A foster family receives ongoing support throughout the process,
including emotional support for both the child and the family,
as well as financial assistance to cover the children's expenses.
The primary recommendation in situations where multiple siblings require foster care is to keep them together.
Children can experience emotional challenges when they are separated from their parents and close siblings.
As a foster family, it is also beneficial to keep siblings together, as it provides the children with a familiar connection in a new environment.
A foster family receives ongoing support throughout the process,
including emotional support for both the child and the family,
as well as financial assistance to cover the children's expenses.