How can I go to Foster Care?

[Guest]

Who do I contact to say that my parents are neglectful/abusive? What would justify some authority (like the CPS) removing me from home? I don't want to call the police; I just want to leave 'home' without having to drop out of school and live on the streets. I don't have relatives that I could live with either apart from my biological parents. I also don't have a job, so emancipation isn't an option. What can I do?

[ccsmod15]

Hey there, thanks for writing to us here at the National Runaway Safeline (NRS). It sounds like you’re going through a challenging time and it is really resourceful of you to find us, as well as courageous of you to reach out for support!

No one deserves to be harmed in any way or feel unsafe at home. If you’d like an abuse report filed, you can tell a teacher or school counselor, you can directly contact Child Protective Services (CPS), and also we can help you file a report. It sounds like you asking for more details around the various forms of child abuse which you can read about here: https://www.childhelp.org/child-abuse/ . Also, Child Help USA 1-800-422-4453is an organization that helps protect minors from being harmed. They can tell you more about how CPS might respond to the situation.

Unfortunately, we don’t know your city/state in order to provide local resources, but you can look here at National Safe Place to find safe spaces for youth at https://www.nationalsafeplace.org/find-a-safe-place. You can also contact us via hotline or online chat service and we’d be happy to help you determine if there is a local youth shelter in your area. Depending on your age, there might also be Transitional Living Programs (TLPs) available.

You are not alone in this. We want you to know that we are here as support to help you through this difficult time.

We are Limited in the Number of Times we can respond via the Forum so if you’d like further contact, please instead contact us via our online chat service at www.1800runaway.org (click on the CHAT button) or our hotline at 1-800-RUNAWAY (1-800-786-2929). We are here for you and wish you all the best, NRS.