Could I foster?
Someone two doors down fosters. It is more ordinary than you think, and right now the young people waiting are teenagers. Most people who ask us this assume the answer is no. Usually it is not.
Ask us a question firstOrdinary people with a spare room and some patience
Our foster parents are nurses, drivers, retired teachers, pastors, care workers, and people who have never worked in the sector at all. What they share is steadiness.
You do not need to own your home, be married, be young, or have raised children of your own. You do need a spare bedroom for the young person's own use, and every adult in your household needs to pass a Vulnerable Sector Check.
You can foster whether or not you have children of your own
Single, partnered, married, divorced, renting or owning, any faith or none. We assess the home and the person, nothing else.
Fostering is not a way to earn a living
The daily care rate covers the real cost of caring for a young person properly. Anyone who suggests otherwise is selling you something. We will go through the numbers openly before you decide anything.
The young people waiting are teenagers
Ontario has lost a third of its foster homes since 2020. Nearly every agency reports the same thing: the hardest young people to place are the 13 to 18 year olds.
They are also the ones closest to leaving care with nobody. That is who we are asking you to consider. Not a baby. A fifteen year old who has been moved four times and has quietly stopped expecting anyone to stay.
Nine steps, and we are honest at every one
Initial enquiry
Call 905-507-8700 or email admin@matrixfostercareservices.ca. A conversation, about twenty minutes. Nobody signs anything.
Information session
An overview of the process, requirements and expectations, and a chance to ask anything. Sessions run monthly, ask us for the next date.
Application
Personal information, background checks, references, and details of your readiness. We call you back within 24 to 48 hours.
Home study
A social worker visits to look at the living environment, family dynamics, your motivation and your ability to meet a young person's needs.
Training
Pre-service training covering child development, attachment, trauma-informed care, cultural competency, behaviour management and the legal side.
Approval and licensing
Your application is reviewed against the requirements. If approved you receive your licence. If not, we tell you why in writing.
Matching
Matched on age, needs, preferences and your own strengths. You can say no to a match, and it costs you nothing with us.
Placement and support
The young person moves in and you begin, with ongoing support, guidance and resources from us throughout.
Review and reassessment
Regular review of the placement and of your approval, so problems surface early rather than late.
"The work is mostly proving, slowly, that you are not going to leave too."
What fostering a teenager actually asks of youA daily care rate
Paid for every day a young person is with you, to cover their food, clothing, activities and travel.
Someone who answers
A named worker who visits monthly, and a 24-hour on-call line that a real person picks up.
Training and respite
Pre-service training, then ongoing training we pay for, and planned breaks with trained respite carers.
In their words
This is where three foster parents say, in their own words, what fostering with MATRIX is actually like. We have not written anything here on their behalf.
Every quote will carry a first name, a region and how long they have fostered with us, and will be published only with that person's written consent.
No young person is named or described in any quote, ever.