Riverside County foster agencies, such as Knotts Family Agency, are addressing training and access barriers that keep prospective parents from beginning the application process to foster a child, even as a statewide shortage of licensed providers leaves fewer options for children waiting for placements.
REDLANDS, Calif., Sept. 26, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- For many prospective parents in Riverside County, the hardest step is getting started. A wave of provider closures across California adds new urgency to the effort. Knotts Family Agency (KFA) is working to simplify the way families begin the foster care application process.
How to Start the Application Process for Fostering a Child in Riverside County?
Riverside County's Resource Family Approval process begins with an orientation session, which KFA now offers online, allowing applicants to start remotely rather than waiting for an in-person slot. From there, families complete paperwork, background clearances and preapproval training before a home study finalizes their status as foster parents, also called resource parents under California's unified licensing model.
KFA's "Get Paid to Get Trained" program offers a stipend to those who complete more than 40 hours of annual training, a benefit designed to reward the time commitment many resource parents make.
Why Are California Foster Family Agencies Under Pressure This Year?
California's foster family agencies began feeling the pressure in 2024, when a wave of insurance nonrenewals pushed dozens of them out of business. Liability premiums have climbed as much as 400% since then.
As a result, 29 agencies across 13 counties shut down, thinning the pipeline that connects prospective parents to home studies and training slots.
Families already anxious about caring for higher-needs children may see those closures as another reason to hesitate. KFA offers specialized programs, respite care and 24/7 family support, so applicants do not have to manage difficult cases alone. The agency says its intake session is a "no-pressure, one-on-one" meeting rather than a standardized group orientation. That reassurance is often what moves a family from considering to applying.
Prospective parents can request an application or schedule an orientation appointment directly through KFA to begin that process.
About Knotts Family Agency
Knotts Family Agency provides foster care and adoption services across Riverside County and other Inland Empire communities, training and supporting the families it certifies as foster parents, known in California as resource parents. With over 30 years of experience, the agency follows what it calls a Parent Delight philosophy that treats those families as partners rather than applicants. KFA holds CARF accreditation and is a member of the California Alliance.
Media Contact
Shane Jones, Knotts Family Agency, 1 7179280683, [email protected], https://knottsfamilyagency.org/
SOURCE Knotts Family Agency
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