Israel’s political parties must make out-of-home care a national priority - opinion

But national security is not only about borders, military strength, and weapons systems.

It is also about whether a child removed from home has a stable adult waiting at the end of the day, whether a foster family can be found when one is urgently needed, and whether a young adult leaving care has somewhere safe to turn.

Israel’s out-of-home care system – residential care facilities, youth villages, and foster care – serves more than 25,000 children and adolescents.

These young people are not a marginal issue. They are part of Israel’s future, and the way we support them today will shape the strength of our society tomorrow.

One of the most urgent challenges is the shortage of counselors in residential care facilities. Counselors are often the most significant adult figures in the lives of the children they support.

Yet at any given time, the system is short of roughly 10%–15% of the counselors it needs, and more than half leave during their first year. Low wages, heavy workloads, burnout, and the absence of a professional career path all contribute to the crisis.

This is an important step, but it is not enough. Israel needs a multi-year government plan that combines fair pay with training, certification, professional recognition, advancement, and long-term career opportunities.

Residential care counseling must stop being viewed as temporary work or simply as a job for students. It should become a respected profession.

The Hofim academic program already points in that direction, enabling counselors to pursue a bachelor’s degree in education through a curriculum adapted to their work in residential care.

Programs like this should be expanded, alongside additional professional training and a national community that gives counselors knowledge, support, belonging, and a voice in shaping their profession.

The second challenge is what happens when young people leave care. Young adults aged 18-25 without family support often face adulthood alone: housing, education, employment, emotional well-being, financial security, and social belonging all become personal battles.

Existing law still does not clearly define this population or guarantee a comprehensive set of rights. A bill promoted by the Public Forum passed a preliminary reading in the previous Knesset, but the legislative process ended when the Knesset dissolved.

That work must resume. Israel should formally recognize young adults without family support as a population entitled to a structured package of assistance until age 25 – including housing, education, employment support, emotional care, and, critically, a significant adult who can accompany them into independent life.

Their needs have only deepened during the years of war and national instability.

The shortage of foster families demands a national recruitment effort, accessible professional guidance, adequate financial support, stronger therapeutic services, and fewer bureaucratic barriers.

There has been progress. In July, the Knesset passed an amendment to the Foster Care Law removing the maximum age limit for foster parents and streamlining the process for approving certain psychiatric medications for children in foster care.

That reform matters because it shows that systemic change is possible when government, professionals, lawmakers, and civil society work together. But it should be the beginning – not the end – of a broader national strategy for foster care.

Youth villages and residential care facilities also face eroded budgets and growing emotional and therapeutic needs.

Funding models must be updated to reflect real costs and the increasing complexity of children’s needs. Mental-health services, trauma treatment, and professional support for staff must be expanded accordingly.

So what should voters demand from every serious political party?

At minimum, five commitments: a multi-year plan to improve counselors’ salaries and status; recognition of residential care counseling as a profession with training and career pathways; legislation and a rights package for young adults without family support; a national plan to expand foster care; and updated funding for youth villages and residential care, including expanded emotional and therapeutic services.

These commitments must come with timetables, dedicated budgets, and clearly defined government responsibility. Sympathy is not policy. General promises are not a plan.

Investing in out-of-home care is a moral obligation, but it is also an investment in Israel’s resilience.

Supporting vulnerable children today can reduce future social, health, employment, and law-enforcement costs – and, more importantly, give thousands of young people a genuine chance to fulfill their potential.

The coming election should force every party that seeks to lead Israel to answer a simple question: What will you do for the children and young people who depend most directly on the state and on the adults it places in their lives?

Israel must be able to defend its borders. But it must also be able to protect its most vulnerable children, provide them with stability and opportunity, and ensure that no young person is left to face adulthood alone.