Monday, a team of state agencies including the Department of Family and Protective Services and local law enforcement moved more than 40 foster children out of residential centers run by “Children’s Hope.” On Tuesday, more details were made available.
The non-profit brands itself as a foster care service that targets abused and neglected children.
On Monday, Children’s Hope CEO James Aldrich told our reporter that the decision to move the children was made by the organization as part of a move to “focus more on foster care and foster family recruitment.”
Documents show that two Children’s Hope locations had placement suspensions put on them by the DFPS.
They show that on January 29, Aldrich was informed that his Canyon Lake facility and another facility off West Avenue in Levelland would no longer receive new placements from the state.
The document cited “concerns for the safety and well-being of children placed with Children’s Hope Residential Services, Inc.”
Tuesday, Aldrich told our reporter that the safety issues were centered around their West facility.
“We had some folks visit us from the departments say that there were concerns with the physical plant of the West facility.” He said. “All parties agreed it would be best to have our children moved to a different placement and that children’s hope would close that facility due to the huge amount of money it would take to make the upgrades.”
Aldrich added that he didn’t understand the DFPS’s decision to remove the children from the Lubbock facility as well.
“We didn’t see what their concerns were,” he said. “I think Lubbock was a great facility. It was actually built to be a residential facility for treatment, whereas in West we had made modifications for treatment there.”
When asked for comment, The DFPS told our reporter that the case was under review. A written statement said in part:
“You can certainly say that a comprehensive assessment of the three facilities is under way by our agency, and that the results will be made public. The placement suspension for the three facilities remains in place because of our concerns for the safety and well-being of children. Children remain at the single facility on Washington Street in Levelland, but we have DFPS staff at the facility.”
Aldrich said that they weren’t aware of any other issues.
“There’s no open investigation that we’re aware of for safety of children,” he said. “All the things being addressed had to do with facility issues – and them not being at the standard that we wanted it to be for children at the West campus. We agreed and that’s why we worked to move those children.”