Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in New Hampshire

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Voice: Plain, honest, practical. No false comfort. No condescension. She made a choice. Honor it and give her what she needs.

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Grandparents Raising Grandchildren in New Hampshire | InmateAid

New Hampshire calls its TANF program FANF -- Financial Assistance to Needy Families. For grandparents raising grandchildren, the relevant pathway within FANF is the **Family Assistance Program (FAP)**, which includes child-only grants. Cash assistance comes twice a month. The grandparent's income is not counted for the child-only portion.

New Hampshire also has a **Kinship Navigation Program** run directly by DHHS (Department of Health and Human Services) as of July 1, 2025. Kinship Navigators are placed in Family Resource Centers (FRCs) throughout the state, providing free, voluntary, confidential services: linking caregivers to food assistance, transportation reimbursement for appointments, school supplies, respite care, state benefits, and community resources.

The opioid epidemic is woven into the founding story of New Hampshire's kinship response. New Hampshire was among the most severely affected states per capita during the opioid crisis. The DHHS Kinship Navigation page quotes a grandmother directly: "What was preceding all that is the trauma of having a grown son who was in the throes of addiction. We were in the dark, I had no idea how to go about the legalities of guardianship. I just marched myself into the courtroom, carrying this infant baby. I said I need guardianship with my granddaughter. We felt like an island."

This series says: nobody needs to do this alone. In New Hampshire, the Kinship Navigator program was built precisely because too many families were feeling like that island.

You did not plan for this. You raised your children. You got to the other side of it. And then your child was incarcerated and the grandchildren needed somewhere to go. You said yes.

The Decision You Already Made

You already made the hardest decision. The grandchildren are with you. Everything else in this article is about making that workable.

A few things to understand about your position in New Hampshire right now:

If the grandchildren are NOT in a DCYF (Division for Children, Youth and Families) case, apply for FANF child-only (FAP), Medicaid, and SNAP through your local DHHS District Office or NH EASY. Contact the Kinship Navigator through your local Family Resource Center or by emailing kinship@dhhs.nh.gov.

If DCYF placed the grandchildren with you as a kinship caregiver: a DCYF worker will contact you. Relative caregivers are NOT required to obtain a license (but it is strongly encouraged). Fictive kin (non-relatives with a connection to the child) ARE required to be licensed. Licensed kinship caregivers receive the foster care stipend as soon as they accept placement.

In either case, the Kinship Navigator is the first call. Find your local FRC and Navigator at dhhs.nh.gov or email kinship@dhhs.nh.gov.

Legal Authority: What It Is and How to Get It in New Hampshire

**Guardianship (Probate Court)**

Guardianship through New Hampshire probate court is the primary legal pathway for grandparents not in the DCYF system. It creates a legal relationship between you and the child and grants you some of the rights and responsibilities of a parent.

New Hampshire Legal Assistance (NHLA) provides free civil legal help to income-eligible New Hampshire residents, including guardianship cases. nhla.org.

**Power of Attorney**

A notarized parental Power of Attorney from the incarcerated parent gives you immediate authority for school enrollment and medical care while you pursue guardianship. NHDOC facilities have notary services -- contact the facility case manager.

**DCYF Relative & Kinship Care (Foster Care Cases)**

If DCYF opens a case involving the grandchildren, you will be identified as a potential kinship placement. When children need a safe and temporary home, kinship caregivers are considered before unrelated foster care.

Key distinctions:

- Relatives (grandparents, aunts, uncles, siblings, grandparents): NOT required to be licensed, but licensing is strongly encouraged

- Fictive kin (non-relatives with a prior connection to the child or parent): required to be licensed

- Licensed kinship caregivers: receive foster care stipend immediately upon accepting placement

To report abuse or neglect: **1-800-894-5533** (DCYF abuse/neglect hotline).

**Adoption**

Adoption permanently terminates the biological parent's parental rights. Consider carefully when the incarcerated parent has a realistic path to release and reunification.

Money: What New Hampshire Offers Kinship Caregivers

**FANF Child-Only Grant (Family Assistance Program / FAP)**

FANF is New Hampshire's TANF program. The Family Assistance Program (FAP) is the pathway for grandparents raising grandchildren. Key features:

- Cash assistance paid **twice a month**

- For child-only grants: **grandparent's income is not counted**

- All FANF programs have the same cash eligibility requirements and benefit limits

- No time limits on child-only grants (time limits apply to adult recipients)

Apply at your local DHHS District Office or online at NH EASY: nheasy.nh.gov. Contact DHHS Bureau of Family Assistance.

**Medicaid / NH Health Protection Program (NHHPP)**

New Hampshire Medicaid provides medical coverage for children in kinship care based on income. The NH Health Protection Program (NHHPP) is a related Medicaid expansion program. Apply through DHHS or at nheasy.nh.gov.

Medicaid covers doctor visits, dental, prescriptions, mental health services, emergency care, and vision.

**SNAP (Food Assistance)**

Apply for SNAP through your local DHHS District Office or at nheasy.nh.gov. Benefits are provided on an EBT card. The grandchildren's presence increases your household food benefit.

**Child Care Scholarship**

Child care assistance helps with the cost of child care. Important: **child care assistance requires legal guardianship or custody AND full-time employment.** Children may be placed on a waitlist. Apply through DHHS; also contact the New Hampshire Child Care Resource and Referral Network.

This is different from the FANF child-only grant, which does not require legal authority. If you have guardianship and are employed full-time, you may qualify for child care assistance as well.

**Foster Care Stipend (Licensed Kinship Caregivers)**

Licensed kinship caregivers in DCYF cases receive the foster care stipend immediately upon accepting placement. This is the most substantial financial support available for kinship families -- but it requires being in the DCYF system and obtaining licensure.

**Social Security**

If the incarcerated parent was working before arrest, the grandchildren may be eligible for Social Security dependent benefits. Call 1-800-772-1213. SSI may be available for grandchildren with disabilities.

The New Hampshire Kinship Navigation Program

New Hampshire's Kinship Navigation Program is a free, voluntary, and confidential service throughout the state. As of July 1, 2025, it is managed directly by NH DHHS after a five-year partnership with the NH Children's Trust (2020-2025).

Kinship Navigators are placed in **Family Resource Centers (FRCs)** throughout New Hampshire -- community-based centers that welcome all family structures including kinship families.

**What the Kinship Navigator provides:**

- Links caregivers to food assistance, gas money for appointments, school supplies, and respite care

- Guides families through benefits and eligibility applications

- Emotional support in times of need

- Advocacy for both caregivers and children

- Information, referral, and follow-up services

- Community resource connections specific to your family's needs

**Contact:**

- Email: **kinship@dhhs.nh.gov**

- Phone (Kinship Navigator line): **(603) 224-1279**

- Find your local FRC: dhhs.nh.gov/programs-services/population-health/maternal-child-health/family-resource-centers-kinship

If you are a grandparent or caregiver in a kinship arrangement in New Hampshire, the Kinship Navigator is the first call. They know the state's systems, they know the Family Resource Centers, and they know how to help you find what you need.

Support Groups and Community in New Hampshire

**Waypoint Kinship Support Group (Concord)**

A support group for kinship families -- caregivers AND children -- meeting the second Monday of each month at the YMCA, 15 N. State Street, Concord. Dinner is served from 5:30-6pm; then parents meet while YMCA staff care for children. To register: email Beth Maltzie at maltzieb@waypointnh.org.

**2-1-1 NH**

Dial 2-1-1 or visit 211NH.org. Statewide information and referral for financial resources, utility assistance, food, housing, and more. More than 5,000 listings in the database.

**NH Food Bank**

Through Catholic Charities NH; the only food bank in the state serving food-insecure New Hampshire residents statewide.

**ServiceLink Resource Centers**

For grandparents 60+ or with disabilities; access to social and long-term services and supports through DHHS District Offices and ServiceLink.

New Hampshire's Opioid Context

New Hampshire was one of the states most severely affected per capita by the opioid epidemic. The pattern is familiar: addiction, then crisis, then incarceration, then the grandchildren arriving at your door.

The DHHS Kinship Navigation page was built around this reality. The grandmother quoted on that page describes carrying an infant granddaughter into the courtroom to ask for guardianship because she had nowhere else to go. She did not know the system. Nobody showed her.

The Kinship Navigator was created so that does not have to be your story. Email kinship@dhhs.nh.gov. Find your Family Resource Center. You should not have to march into a courtroom carrying a baby before anyone helps you.

The School Question

With a POA, guardianship, or legal custody, school enrollment is straightforward.

Without legal authority, use the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Schools must immediately enroll children who lack stable housing documentation, including children living with relatives due to a parent's incarceration. Ask the school district's McKinney-Vento liaison.

For children with IEPs, you will need legal authority or a signed parental authorization from the incarcerated parent to participate in planning meetings. NHDOC facilities have notary services -- contact the facility case manager.

Medical Authorization Before Court Paperwork Is Done

Get a notarized parental POA from the incarcerated parent through NHDOC notary services. Contact the facility case manager.

Apply for Medicaid for the grandchildren at nheasy.nh.gov or your local DHHS District Office. Medicaid enrollment does not require legal authority.

New Hampshire's Geographic Reality

New Hampshire is compact by national standards -- about 9,300 square miles. But the North Country (Coos County, the upper third of the state) is rural and remote. Berlin, Gorham, Colebrook -- communities that feel far from the resources concentrated in Manchester, Nashua, Concord, and the seacoast.

NHDOC facilities include the New Hampshire State Prison in Concord (most central), the Northern NH Correctional Facility in Berlin (North Country, about 2 hours from Concord through the White Mountains), and others in Laconia and the seacoast area.

The Kinship Navigator program operates through FRCs statewide. 2-1-1 NH connects you to county-level resources.

What She Is Carrying That He Cannot See

You did not plan for this stage of your life. The grandchildren arrived and with them came school forms, doctor appointments, someone to be home, someone to sit with a child who is afraid.

You are also carrying your feelings about your child who is incarcerated. In New Hampshire, where the opioid epidemic was particularly visible and devastating, those feelings often include watching someone you raised become unreachable because of a substance -- and then the arrival of their children at your door.

The Kinship Navigator provides emotional support alongside practical guidance. The Waypoint support group in Concord meets monthly with dinner and childcare provided. These things exist because the community of people doing what you are doing in New Hampshire is real.

You should not feel like an island. You are not.

Talking to the Grandchildren About Where Their Parent Is

The children know something is wrong. Silence does not protect them.

Use honest, age-appropriate language. For a young child: "Your dad made a mistake and he has to stay somewhere else while he learns from it. You are safe and I am here." For an older child: "Your mom is in prison. She did something against the law and a judge decided she needs to be there for a while. She loves you. She is not in danger."

Do not make promises about when the parent will be home that you cannot keep. Let the children have their feelings. Keep the parent present in appropriate ways: photos, letters, phone calls.

New Hampshire DOC phone calls go through ICS Corrections / GTL. You control which numbers are approved. The grandchildren's relationship with their incarcerated parent is theirs.

New Hampshire Medicaid covers mental health services for children. The Kinship Navigator can help with referrals. If the grandchildren are struggling, ask the school counselor.

Your Relationship With Your Incarcerated Child

Your feelings about your child are complicated. You are raising their children because they cannot. Both things are true.

What the grandchildren need: to see that you are not punishing their parent through them.

What you need: a place to hold the complicated feelings that is not in front of the grandchildren. The Waypoint support group, the Kinship Navigator's emotional support, a therapist, a trusted person -- any of these is better than carrying it alone.

What to Do First: A Practical Checklist

Email kinship@dhhs.nh.gov or call (603) 224-1279. Find your local Family Resource Center and Kinship Navigator. This is the first call.

Apply for FANF child-only (FAP), Medicaid, and SNAP at nheasy.nh.gov or your local DHHS District Office. The grandparent's income is not counted for child-only FANF.

Get a notarized POA from the incarcerated parent through NHDOC notary services. Contact the facility case manager.

If DCYF is involved: ask whether you should pursue licensure as a kinship caregiver (triggers foster care stipend immediately; strongly encouraged even if not required for relatives).

Start the guardianship process through probate court. Contact New Hampshire Legal Assistance (nhla.org) for free civil legal help.

If you have guardianship and are employed full-time, ask about the Child Care Scholarship.

Dial 2-1-1 (or 211NH.org) for local community resources and utility assistance.

Consider the Waypoint support group in Concord (second Monday of each month, dinner and childcare provided). Email maltzieb@waypointnh.org to register.

Enroll the grandchildren in school. Use McKinney-Vento if needed.

Take care of yourself. The Kinship Navigator's emotional support is there. Use it.

FAQ

**What is the FANF Family Assistance Program (FAP)?** FANF stands for Financial Assistance to Needy Families -- New Hampshire's TANF program. The Family Assistance Program (FAP) includes child-only grants for grandparents raising grandchildren. Cash is paid twice a month. The grandparent's income is not counted for child-only grants. No time limits on child-only grants. Apply at nheasy.nh.gov or your local DHHS District Office.

**What is the NH Kinship Navigation Program?** A free, voluntary, confidential program now managed directly by NH DHHS (as of July 1, 2025), operating through Family Resource Centers (FRCs) statewide. Kinship Navigators link caregivers to benefits, food assistance, transportation reimbursement, school supplies, respite care, and community resources. They also provide emotional support and advocacy. Email kinship@dhhs.nh.gov or call (603) 224-1279.

**Do I need to be licensed as a kinship caregiver in New Hampshire?** If you are a blood relative (grandparent, aunt, uncle, sibling) in a DCYF case: you are NOT required to obtain a license, but it is strongly encouraged. Being licensed means you receive the foster care stipend immediately upon accepting placement. Fictive kin (non-relatives) ARE required to be licensed.

**What is the Child Care Scholarship and does it require legal authority?** Yes -- child care assistance in New Hampshire requires legal guardianship or custody AND full-time employment. This is different from FANF child-only grants (which do not require legal authority). Children may also be placed on a waitlist. Apply through DHHS or the NH Child Care Resource and Referral Network.

**Can I enroll my grandchildren in school without legal authority?** Yes. Under the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, schools must immediately enroll children living with relatives due to a parent's incarceration. Ask the school district for its McKinney-Vento liaison. A POA from the incarcerated parent enables standard enrollment.

**What is 2-1-1 NH?** A statewide, toll-free information and referral line with more than 5,000 listings for financial resources, utility assistance, food, housing, and community services. Dial 2-1-1 or visit 211NH.org.

**How do I talk to the grandchildren about their parent being in prison?** Use honest, age-appropriate language without promises about when the parent will be home. Let the children have feelings. Keep the parent present appropriately -- photos, letters, NHDOC phone calls through ICS Corrections/GTL. New Hampshire Medicaid covers children's mental health services; the Kinship Navigator can help with referrals.

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NOTE for Poorwa: verify FANF FAP still New Hampshire TANF program name; verify child-only FAP grandparent income not counted still current; verify FANF cash paid twice a month still current; verify Kinship Navigation Program now managed DHHS kinship@dhhs.nh.gov current as of July 2025; verify 603-224-1279 kinship navigator line still current or new DHHS number; verify FRC network still distributes kinship navigators statewide; verify DCYF relative caregivers not required to be licensed still current; verify fictive kin still required license; verify licensed kinship stipend immediately current; verify nheasy.nh.gov current NH EASY portal; verify Child Care Scholarship requires legal guardianship custody AND full-time employment; verify 1-800-894-5533 DCYF abuse neglect hotline current; verify Waypoint support group second Monday YMCA Concord maltzieb@waypointnh.org current; verify 211NH.org current; verify nhla.org NH Legal Assistance current; verify NHDOC ICS Corrections GTL phone provider; verify McKinney-Vento still applicable; len/character check before publish; verify meta title exactly 60 chars.]