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The majority of children placed into foster care are separated from their 
siblings upon entering the child welfare system. Some research suggests 
that siblings enjoy more stable home environments and fewer behavioral 
problems when placed together in care. The sibling relationship may provide 
stability, consistency, and unconditional positive regard to the children most 
at risk for poor outcomes such as anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and 
loss of identity. This paper argues that foster care and child welfare agencies 
must institute the changes necessary to make sibling relationships a priority. 
Recommendations for integrating the protection of sibling relationships in 
the placement process are proposed.

The Sibling Relationship in  
Foster Care: Policy Implications

Nearly 17,000 New York City children are in foster care 
(Administration for Children’s Services, 2005). The majority of 

children in foster care have siblings (Herrick & Piccus, 2005), yet strong 
efforts to preserve this critical relationship have yet to be put into practice 
within most states’ foster care systems. As a result, the majority of children 
with siblings in foster care are separated from their siblings (Herrick & 
Piccus). This paper will outline the arguments for the protection of, and 
support for, sibling placements in foster care, as well as offer practical 
recommendations for the child welfare and foster care systems.

The Sibling Relationship

A sibling relationship is usually the longest relationship in an individual’s 
life course (Groza, Maschmeier, Jamison, & Piccola, 2003). Children who 
are separated from siblings in foster care face potentially traumatic and 
long-term effects from this loss. Older children are “attachment figures for 
younger siblings” according to Groza et al. (p. 481). Children in chaotic 
homes with inconsistent parenting may come to rely more upon one another 
than on a parental figure (Hegar, 1993) such that the loss of this sibling 
relationship may, in fact, be more damaging than the loss of the parent. 

Through the sibling relationship, children develop relationship skills 

 

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Kate Sheehan



including how to successfully negotiate, empathize, and communicate 
emotions. Siblings who are separated based on a history of disagreements 
will learn to retreat from conflict rather than resolve it (Groza et al., 2003). 
Siblings placed separately may show more aggression and be more depressed 
than children who are placed with siblings (Smith, 1998). These two factors 
may be related in that children who have fewer interpersonal skills may 
experience greater conflict while together and then more aggression or 
depression when separated from their siblings. It is reasonable to believe 
that children might benefit by learning new communication skills while 
remaining with their siblings, even in the face of conflict, and could apply 
such skills across their life course.

The foster care system too frequently acknowledges the importance of 
sibling relationships for children in care without integrating the necessary 
supports for the preservation of those relationships into the system’s 
structure. Out of respect for the primacy of this relationship and its duration, 
New York State regulations mandate diligent efforts toward placing siblings 
together whenever it does not jeopardize the safety, health, or well-being 
of one of the siblings (Smith, 1996). However, in practice siblings may 
often be separated in foster care for reasons other than those specified by 
Administration of Children’s Services (ACS) regulations. These issues must 
be rectified in order to uphold the mandate and best serve children in foster 
care. Similarly, the importance of sibling placement has been recognized 
on a federal level. The Administration for Children and Families’ Child 
and Family Service Reviews (CFSR), a national effort to monitor state 
agency compliance with child welfare requirements, also considers sibling 
placement in its examination of child and family outcomes (Administration 
for Children and Families, 2004).

Risks and Consequences of Separation

Families facing chronic poverty and its potential stresses including high 
levels of internal chaos, a lack of clearly defined roles, or a want of parenting 
and disciplining skills, may be more likely to produce highly stressed and 
maladjusted children. These lower functioning children are in greater danger 
of being placed in foster care and, at that time, being separated from siblings 
due to behavioral or safety concerns. Older siblings are particularly at risk 
since they may have lived in adverse conditions for a longer period of time 
than their younger siblings and are at increased risk of reactive behavioral 

the sibling relationship in foster care

1�    Journal of Student Social Work, Volume IV



problems (Tarren-Sweeney & Hazell, 2005). These behavioral problems and 
safety concerns, in turn, are used as arguments for separation of siblings 
during placement.

In a sample of nearly 12,000 children in care, less than half were placed 
with all of their siblings, while one third were not placed with any sibling 
(Shlonsky, Webster, & Needell, 2003). According to Hegar (2005), the 
greatest risk factors for separate placements are: age, sibling group size, 
timing of entrance into care, and the presence of special needs within 
the sibling group. Specifically, Hegar found that older children are kept 
with siblings less frequently, large sibling groups are harder to place, and 
children entering care at different times are not tracked as a sibling unit but 
as individuals. Children deprived of their sibling relationships may react 
behaviorally and emotionally, showing signs of guilt, a loss of self-esteem, 
grief, anger and acting out, anxiety, developmental setbacks (especially 
in identity formation), and depression (Tarren-Sweeney & Hazell, 2005; 
Herrick & Piccus, 2005). 

The emotional and behavioral symptoms of children who have been 
separated from their siblings in care may resemble the symptoms of children 
experiencing the death of a parent or sibling. Many children in foster care 
experience multiple losses, which include the loss of parents, of home, of 
siblings, of school, of peers, and of their role within the family system. 
These losses are seldom acknowledged by others, leaving the children with 
disenfranchised, or, as Boss (1999) terms it, ambiguous grief; this is a grief 
that has no name, no rituals, and sometimes no end. DeVita-Raeburn (2004) 
warns that such losses, unacknowledged by others, can create a life of ennui 
ranging from strained relationships and dissatisfaction to self-destructive or 
even suicidal behaviors.

Certain demographic characteristics also place children at an increased 
risk for separation from siblings. For example, because of their developmental 
needs, younger children are often most attached to their siblings, yet are the 
least likely to be kept with their older siblings (Shlonsky et al., 2003). Gender, 
age, and ethnicity regularly limit the placement options for siblings (Smith, 
1998). Sisters are more frequently kept together than brothers (Tarren-
Sweeney & Hazell, 2005), even though some studies show that boys benefit 
more from the presence of their siblings (Smith). Mixed gender sibling 
groups are more frequently often apart than same gender siblings (Shlonsky 
et al.). Thus, children are often frequently and permanently deprived of 
an important relationship with someone of the opposite gender and all the 

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 Journal of Student Social Work, Volume IV    1�  



learning and growth that such a relationship offers. They are also deprived 
of the roles they play for one another: chaperone, confidante, challenger, 
mentor, caretaker, guardian, and clown. Wendy Piccus (2005), an author who 
has worked and published literature on sibling foster care, entered foster care 
and lost her “sole purpose” in life, which was being a big sister; she described 
her separation from her sibling as “devastating” (p. 848).

Recommendations

Though more research is needed on the best practices for making sibling 
placement decisions (Chapman, Wall, & Barth, 2004; Shlonsky et al., 2003; 
Smith, 1996; Smith, 1998), there is evidence that points to some of the 
potential benefits of keeping siblings together. Such benefits include less 
time in placement, fewer placements overall, and more stable behavior and 
emotions in the children who remain with siblings (Groza et al., 2003; Smith, 
1998). Children who were placed with a consistent number of siblings, 
though not necessarily the same siblings, during the length of their out of 
home care were better adjusted to their foster homes than children separated 
from siblings or placed inconsistently with siblings (Leathers, 2005). Foster 
children placed with siblings were also more likely to be adopted (Leathers) 
and thus more likely to experience a long-term stable home environment. 
For children from unstable home environments, siblings may provide “a 
sense of safety and emotional continuity” (Shlonsky et al., p. 29). These 
children, perhaps more than any others, need stability, which siblings can 
offer (Herrick & Piccus, 2005).

The following changes would help foster care agencies meet the New 
York State standard for the best interests of siblings in foster care:

1) Ensure that children entering care are assigned to the same agency 
and the same worker. As it now stands in practice, children in foster care 
may be served by different caseworkers, or even different agencies. This 
is especially likely when children enter care at different times. Children 
entering care within one month of one another were found to be four times 
as likely to share a residence than if they entered care at separate times 
(Shlonsky et al., 2003). The need for consistency in caseworker asssignment 
was furthered by the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, which sped 
up the process of terminating parental rights in hopes of placing children 

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20    Journal of Student Social Work, Volume IV



into permanent homes more quickly. As a result, however, siblings separated 
during removal from their homes have less time to be reunited (Groza et al., 
2003). Foster care workers now have less time to find a suitable home for 
a sibling group, which poses unique challenges to the system. Therefore, it 
is crucial that sibling relationships be considered from the very beginning 
of the placement process, otherwise it becomes unlikely that siblings may 
ever be reunited.

2) Work to recruit foster families and reserve foster homes specifically 
for sibling placements. At this time, foster care agencies do not specifically 
recruit foster homes for sibling groups. Often, those foster homes able to 
care for multiple children have already been filled by individual children 
and are unavailable when a sibling placement is needed. Homes that could 
potentially accept sibling groups should be reserved for sibling groups, rather 
than filled with single children as they enter the system (Leathers, 2005). 
Also, as Groza et al. (2003) note, the amount of physical space required 
per child could be reduced from the requirements currently in place for for 
single children, potentially freeing up more homes to accept sibling groups. 

Even though most foster parents and caseworkers report that they want 
siblings to remain together and believe there is no added burden in keeping 
them together, caseworkers report that intact placement options are difficult 
to find (Smith, 1996). In contrast to the caseworkers’ views, foster parents 
generally felt that sibling groups were no more difficult to care for than 
non-related children (Smith). The foster mothers also felt that siblings 
integrated more easily into the foster family (Smith). Caseworkers believed 
the opposite: caseworkers felt that siblings had more trouble integrating into 
a new family (Smith). There seems to be a disconnect between the views  
of the workers and foster parents. Personal biases or preconceptions may 
be overriding policy and professional education is needed to address these 
discrepancies.

3) Set up regular case reviews for siblings who are separated after 
initial placement with the goal of sibling reunification whenever possible 
and as quickly as possible. Children in placement who have siblings should 
receive more frequent reviews of their placements (Groza et al., 2003). 
Whelan (2003) suggests that siblings should not always be kept together, 
especially if the presence of one endangers another or hinders that child’s 
development. He argues that older siblings who may have a parent-like 

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 Journal of Student Social Work, Volume IV    21  



role in the context of an abusive home may be freed from this burden of 
responsibility, and ulitimately benefit from an opportunity to take on a new, 
more appropriate role, if his siblings are placed elsewhere. Sensitivity to 
the roles children have played in what was likely an unsupportive home is 
critical. However, a parentified role may be a healthy coping response to an 
abusive situation and may change as children are given the opportunity to 
redefine their roles and relationships with one another in the context of a 
more supportive environment. Again, professional training would be helpful 
for caseworkers to be able to support foster parents as they attend to each 
child’s development. Morton and Browne (1998) and Whelen support the 
drive to attune workers to these relationships.

Though siblings may not always get along, if they are separated due to 
normal sibling rivalries and coping responses, they may regret the loss of 
that relationship as adults. Sibling relationships should be expected to be 
fluid and evolving. The regard one sibling has for another at any given point 
in time does not represent the breadth and depth of the relationship and 
should not determine the future of that relationship. Regular and frequent 
reviews of placements should be mandatory so that if siblings are placed 
separately they may be reunited as soon as possible, whenever possible.

4) Educate caseworkers on attachment theory, disenfranchised grief and 
ambiguous loss (Boss, 1999), and the importance of sibling relationships. 
The influence of siblings upon development should be mandatory training 
for all caseworkers so that keeping siblings together becomes an informed 
priority, rather than an unlikely hope. Caseworkers seem to need more  
training about attachment relationships (Grigsby, 1994). In a sample 
of caseworkers and foster mothers, nearly half did not view a sibling  
relationship as very important in a child’s life (Smith, 1996). Furthermore, 
caseworkers, legal representatives, and politicians may often overlook 
the “enormity of the losses” (Leathers, 2005, p. 817) already endured by 
children removed from their homes. For these children, as with children 
whose parent or sibling has died, the world loses its predictability (DeVita-
Raeburn, 2004). Siblings have the unique ability to offer each other 
continuity and stability. Siblings, perhaps more than parents or other adults, 
help us to create and understand ourselves. Without them, that identity may 
be fractured or even lost (DeVita-Raeburn), which graduates of the foster 
care system acknowledge as a common feeling among separated siblings 
(Herrick & Piccus, 2005).

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22    Journal of Student Social Work, Volume IV



5) Empower the children to name their family members, to emphasize 
key relationships, and to build on their strengths. Very few studies cite the 
preferences or experiences of children in foster care, yet children know 
their family better than any caseworker. Children are best equipped to guide 
workers towards maintaining close sibling relationships (Leathers, 2005) or 
supporting existing roles within the family system (Herrick & Piccus, 2005). 
Sibling relationships may serve as “permanent, unconditional relationships” 
(Herrick & Piccus, p. 851) that the children can no longer experience with 
their birth parents nor can they anticipate enjoying from anybody unrelated 
to them. Siblings represent a lifetime relationship.

6) For those children who are separated from siblings, ensure and 
enforce their rights to regular visitation. Children in separate placements 
are supposed to have regular visitation with each other. However, there is no 
guarantee of any sibling visits in different placements, and indeed very little 
support of regular visitation is built into the child welfare system. Grigsby 
(1994) found that siblings placed separately into care lacked documentation 
of sibling visitations. Researchers have found that less than half of these 
children see their sibling at least monthly, while nearly 80% expressed the 
desire for more contact with their absent siblings (Chapman et al., 2004). 
Only half of children in separate placements believed they would ever 
live with their siblings again (Chapman et al.). Also, once children are 
separated, even if visitation plans are made, the foster and adoptive families 
may relocate to different communities, geographically severing the sibling 
bond. 

7) Sibling supportive placement practices must be integrated into the 
foster care placement as a framework more than a goal. All forms should 
include, as a priority, sibling information including ages, educational needs, 
amount of time spent with the primary sibling, and other factors pointing 
to shared histories and emotional and practical interdependence. Forms 
could also include the children’s placement desires. Children in foster care 
are rarely given a voice, and, accordingly, emphasis should be placed on 
strengthening efforts to document children’s preferences as related to sibling 
placement. 

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 Journal of Student Social Work, Volume IV    2�  



Conclusion

New York State’s commitment to sibling relationships has been solidified 
by the best interests standard  to keep siblings together in foster care whenever 
possible. It is now time to put policy into practice. New systems must be 
developed to accurately track siblings in placement. Sibling groups, even if 
placed separately, should all be guarded by the same caseworker who has 
been educated on sibling issues and supports the policy to reunite siblings as 
quickly as possible when it does not endanger one of the siblings to do so. 
Foster families have already indicated their support of sibling relationships 
and their belief that siblings are no more difficult to care for than unrelated 
children. Foster families, then, may be more receptive to accepting sibling 
groups than caseworkers imagine them to be. 

More research needs to be conducted on the best practices when making 
sibling placement decisions. Future research should especially focus on the 
long-term effects of sibling separation from the point of view of the children 
themselves, particularly emotional well-being as measured by self-esteem, 
feelings of worth, and interpersonal skills. This information, along with the 
appropriate and supportive theoretical and practical frameworks, should be 
regularly disseminated to caseworkers in order that they may best serve the 
interests of the children they work to protect.

References

Administration for Children’s Services. (2005). The children’s services  
 update. Retrieved December 1, 2005, from http://www.nyc.gov/html/ 
 acs/html/home/home.shtml 
Administration for Children and Families. (2004). Child and Family  
 Services Review summary of key findings fiscal year 2003-2004.  
 Retrieved February 27, 2006, from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/ 
 cwmonitoring/results/ keyfindings2003.htm
Boss, P. (1999). Ambigious loss. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University  
 Press.
Chapman, M. V., Wall, A., & Barth, R. (2004). Children’s voices: The  
 perceptions of children in foster care. American Journal of   
 Orthopsychiatry, 74(3), 293-304.
DeVita-Raeburn, E. (2004). The empty room: Surviving the loss of a brother  
 or sister at any age. New York: Scribner.
Grigsby, R. K. (1994). Maintaining attachment relationships among children  

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 in foster care. Families in Society, 75(5), 269-276.
Groza, V., Maschmeier, C., Jamison, C., & Piccola, T. (2003). Siblings and  
 out-of-home placement: Best practices. Families in Society, 84(4),  
 480-490. 
Hegar, R. (1993). Assessing attachment, permanence, and kinship in  
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Hegar, R. (2005). Sibling placement in foster care and adoption: An overview  
 of international research. Children and Youth Services Review, 27(7),  
 717-739.
Herrick, M. A., & Piccus, W. (2005). Sibling connections: The importance  
 of nurturing sibling bonds in the foster care system. Children and Youth  
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Leathers, S. (2005). Separation from siblings: Associations with placement  
 adaptation and outcomes among adolescents in long-term foster care.  
 Children and Youth Services Review, 27(7), 793-819.
Morton, N., & Browne, K. (1998). Theory and observation of attachment  
 and its relation to child maltreatment: A review. Child Abuse & Neglect,  
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Shlonsky, A., Webster, D., & Needell, B. (2003). The ties that bind: A  
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Smith, M. (1996). An exploratory survey of foster mother and caseworker  
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Smith, M. (1998). Sibling placement in foster care: An exploration of  
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Tarren-Sweeney, M., & Hazell, P. (2005). The mental health and socialization  
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Whelan, D. (2003). Using attachment theory when placing siblings in foster  
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Katherine Sheehan is a second year master’s student at 
CUSSW. She is currently an intern at St. Vincent’s Services Families  
in Transition Program in Brooklyn, NY. She holds a master’s degree 
in Comparative Literature from the University of North Carolina 
at Chapel Hill, a DCF in French Literature from the University of 
Paris Sorbonne, and a bachelor’s degree in French and English from 
Birmingham-Southern College. Her email address is kms2123@
columbia.edu.

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