Transracial foster care is a reality due to the ongoing social problems in South Africa, that leads to a high number of children found in need of care and protection and in need of foster homes. The Children’s Act (38 of 2005) encourages children to be placed in the care of a person with a similar background to their own, but simultaneously makes provision for children to be placed in the care of a person that does not have the same background as their own. The number of children found in need of a foster care placement, significantly surpasses the number of willing and able, same race, foster care parents. Transracial foster care has been a topic for research internationally for a couple of years, highlighting the influence of the transracial placement on the foster child. However, there continues to be limited research in South Africa on this growing phenomenon. Most research in South Africa focus on transracial adoptions and not specifically foster care placements. The aim of this qualitative research study was to broaden the knowledge base of transracial foster care in South Africa, in order to contribute to services provided to transracial foster care families. The research study was based in the northern and southern suburbs of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. Participants included foster parents of transracial foster care families and the social workers who supervise the foster care families participating in this study. Nine foster parents and three social workers participated in the study. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with each participant in order to explore their experiences of being involved in transracial foster care placements. The article in Section B of this document aims to highlight the important aspects of transracial foster care in order to create a better understanding of this phenomenon. / MSW (Child Protection), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Transracial foster care is a reality due to the ongoing social problems in South Africa, that leads to a high number of children found in need of care and protection and in need of foster homes. The Children’s Act (38 of 2005) encourages children to be placed in the care of a person with a similar background to their own, but simultaneously makes provision for children to be placed in the care of a person that does not have the same background as their own. The number of children found in need of a foster care placement, significantly surpasses the number of willing and able, same race, foster care parents. Transracial foster care has been a topic for research internationally for a couple of years, highlighting the influence of the transracial placement on the foster child. However, there continues to be limited research in South Africa on this growing phenomenon. Most research in South Africa focus on transracial adoptions and not specifically foster care placements. The aim of this qualitative research study was to broaden the knowledge base of transracial foster care in South Africa, in order to contribute to services provided to transracial foster care families. The research study was based in the northern and southern suburbs of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. Participants included foster parents of transracial foster care families and the social workers who supervise the foster care families participating in this study. Nine foster parents and three social workers participated in the study. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with each participant in order to explore their experiences of being involved in transracial foster care placements. The article in Section B of this document aims to highlight the important aspects of transracial foster care in order to create a better understanding of this phenomenon. / MSW (Child Protection), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015