Why? Children on the run are a great concern. As adults we worry about their safety and they don't understand our concerns.
Runaways have learned to use escape to deal with problems. They are usually either running from people, places or things or are running to people, places or things. Foster Parents and workers may not be contributing to the running behaviour. Kids who run seldom believe they can trust adults to be reliable. They rely on themselves and will manipulate and behave in ways that will get them what they want or feel they need to live.
Often these kids have police and/or probation involved with them. These are people you can work with to help the situation.
In this session you will learn about your responsibilities when a child runs away. You will also learn what you can do to put your own mind at ease. You will learn how to cope by learning what to do:
before the child runs
at the time the child runs
during the running period
at the time the child returns
after the child returns.
Come and share what has worked for you. This idea exchange will leave everyone with more ideas.