State of New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services Division for Children, Youth and Families – 2020
More than six million children across the country are living in households headed by grandparents or other relatives who have stepped forward to care for them because their parents could not safely care for them in their homes. In New Hampshire, more than 6,700 grandparents have reported that they are responsible for grandchildren living with them, with more than 10,000 children living in grandparent-led households. More than 4,000 of these children are living with grandparents without either parent present. In addition, more than 2,300 children live in households headed by other relatives. Sometimes, though not always, there is involvement with the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services’ Division for Children, Youth and Families (DCYF). Relative care in New Hampshire is a living arrangement in which an adult relative (other than a parent) cares for a child under the age of 18 on a temporary or permanent basis. The relative can be related by blood, marriage or adoption and is most often a grandparent, but can also be an aunt, uncle, sibling or step-sibling, cousin, niece, or nephew.
