To report a reasonable suspicion that a child has been or is being abused or neglected phone the Child Abuse Report Line (CARL) on 131 478.
When a child reveals abuse or neglect, the most important thing is to make sure they feel supported and safe.
After a child has told you about abuse or neglect
You can show your care and concern by:
- remembering the child may be experiencing a crisis
- listening carefully
- controlling your own expressions of panic or shock
- taking what the child says seriously
- using the child's own vocabulary
- telling the child that this has happened to other children and that some adults do wrong things
- reassuring the child that they have done the right thing by telling you
- telling the child you will do your best to support them but do not make promises you may not be able to keep
- explaining to the child that you need to tell someone who can help them.
Clarifying the situation
You may need to ask more questions to clarify the situation. This will facilitate CARL social workers in their assessment of risk to the child.
Open questions are the best way to gain more information from children. Open ended questions are non-leading. There questions start with who, what, when or where. Examples of open questions are:
- How did it happen?
- What happened?
- Who was there?
- How does it make you feel?
- How often does it happen?
- How does the other person react?
- When did it happen?
Leading questions should not be asked as children often get confused. Examples of leading questions are:
- Did mum or dad hit you?
- Did mum or dad leave you by yourself again?
- I bet that made you cry?
Avoid leading questions by rephrasing the question so that it no longer suggests an answer. Try for a more open-ended question.
Related information
Other websites
- Reporting child abuse for mandated notifiers - Department for Child Protection
