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Surry County social services warns of surge in foster placements, seeks more staff and vehicles
Summary
Social Services Director Sharon Sheena told commissioners that foster care in Surry County rose from 13 to 50 children between December and March, driving requests for additional staff and a multi‑passenger vehicle; she said vacant positions make caseloads high and urged cautious, staged hiring.
Sharon Sheena, Surry County social services director, reported a sharp rise in foster placements and asked commissioners to fund additional caseworkers and a multi‑passenger off‑road vehicle to help staff transport foster children and sibling groups.
Sheena said foster care caseloads increased from 13 children in December to 50 children in March 2025. She said some workers are using personal vehicles to transport multiple siblings because county fleet vehicles are not configured to carry large sibling groups; she requested a multipassenger, off‑road vehicle to reduce mileage reimbursements and meet terrain/access needs. She provided an example of a staff mileage payment of about $1,200 in a single month for one worker and said county‑provided vehicles would reduce those reimbursements.
Sheena requested nine new positions overall across social services, with two positions for the Mount Airy office, one in adult services and the rest in child welfare; she said three positions already approved by the board are filled and that those hires reduced a backlog (investigations caseloads fell from about 95 to roughly 38 over a month). She said the state recommended as many as 20 new child‑welfare workers in county estimates but Sheena proposed a more conservative, staged approach tied to current recruitment capacity.
Sheena said many placements involve behavioral health and domestic‑violence elements that complicate placement options, and noted the state’s Medicaid expansion has expanded caseloads for income and adult services and increased administrative workload. Commissioners pressed for data on caseloads per worker (Sheena said child‑welfare workers are at roughly 20 cases each after recent hires, and foster‑care workers average about 23 cases where the state standard is 10–12), and noted state recommendations and vacancy challenges across rural counties.
Sheena said some out‑of‑state placements (specialized settings) can cost thousands of dollars per day and that the department pursues reimbursements where possible.
