This webpage will connect you to the most frequently asked questions and answers (FAQs) on many child welfare topics, including child abuse and neglect, foster care and other out-of-home placements, adoption, and more.
If you do not find an answer to your question, you can submit a question by clicking on the Ask a Question box.
State child abuse and neglect reporting laws do not specify the age at which a child can be left home alone. No consistent community standards exist describing when and under what circumstances children can be left alone or in the care of other children. Information about the age at which it is considered appropriate to leave a child alone may exist elsewhere in your local, county, or state policies or ordinances that address this special topic.
Many states accept anonymous reports of alleged child abuse and neglect. Reporting suspected child abuse and neglect is everyone's responsibility. If you have any concerns about a child's welfare, you should contact the appropriate authorities in the county or state where the child resides. Each state has trained professionals who can evaluate the situation and determine whether intervention and services are needed. Most states have a toll-free number to call to report suspected abuse. Child Welfare Information Gateway, a service of the Children's Bureau, provides a list of state child abuse and neglect reporting numbers.
Most states have laws authorizing a statewide central registry, which is a centralized listing of child maltreatment records.
If you viewed disturbing images depicting child abuse on the internet, please contact your local child protective services or law enforcement agency so that professionals can assess the situation and intervene as needed. If you are able to determine the video's filming location, it is important to alert local authorities in that jurisdiction so they can respond. The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline (1.800.4.A.CHILD) offers immediate assistance. Staffed by trained counselors, Childhelp operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All calls are anonymous.
Each year, the Children's Bureau releases a detailed Child Maltreatment report, which includes data submitted by child protective services agencies in the United States.
The report answers questions such as the following:
- How many children are the subject of child abuse and neglect reports each year?
- What types of maltreatment are reported?
- What are the ages, genders, and other characteristics of child victims?
- How many children die each year from child maltreatment?
- What services were provided to children who were maltreated—or are at risk of maltreatment—and their families?
It is important to keep in mind that these reports and other statistical publications often are released a few years behind the current year because it takes time to collect, analyze, and release the data.
Child Welfare Information Gateway, a service of the Children's Bureau, maintains a comprehensive list of statistical sources of child welfare data on its website.
If you are worried that a friend may be abused or neglected, please contact Childhelp, a national organization with a 24-hour crisis hotline number (1.800.422.4453). Childhelp's staff consists of trained counselors that can listen to your concerns and connect you to the appropriate local child protection agency or other helpful services in your community. Childhelp now offers text and chat-based support for reporting suspected child abuse or neglect.
Families involved with the child protection system may experience challenges at any point in their interaction with an agency and disagree with the course of action or findings of the investigation. However, there are steps parents or other caregivers can take to express and resolve their concerns. If you have questions about the way child protective services handled your case, first discuss the matter with your caseworker and the agency supervisor. An open discussion will often help answer your questions and clarify future steps.
Parental substance use is generally recognized as a risk factor for child maltreatment; however, it is difficult to obtain precise, current statistics on the number of families affected by substance use issues in the absence of an ongoing, standardized, national data collection on the topic.
Most state laws, policies, and regulations require districts and schools to implement a bullying policy and procedures to investigate and respond to bullying when it occurs. Stopbullying.gov provides information on state antibullying laws and policies.
There are various types of abuse and neglect and symptoms may vary from child to child.