Social workers’ views on positive foster care placements in South Africa: an Africentric foster care supervision and monitoring perspective

When children cannot be cared for by their biological parents, they are placed in alternative care, which includes foster care. Effective supervision and monitoring of these placements is required to ensure foster children receive care and protection that promotes their optimal well-being. This article reports on an Africentric theoretical perspective to examine foster care monitoring and supervision practices for foster care social workers. Purposive sampling was employed to recruit twelve child welfare social workers. Data were collected through a focus group and one-on-one interviews. Reflexive-thematic analysis was used to analyze data. The findings suggest that foster children’s positive school engagement and performance, the nature of the home environment, participation and engagement between the child and other family members, cheerfulness and comfort of the child, saving some of the monthly grant, and foster parents’ involvement in foster children’s lives are usually components indicating positive foster care placements. Interpreted through an Africentric lens, these components reflect a holistic and relational understanding of child well-being, where care is embedded within family life, communal responsibility, and everyday lived experiences rather than individualized indicators. It is recommended that an Africentric foster care supervision and monitoring framework be developed to guide social workers in rendering services.