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The Humboldt County Child Protection Reporting Guide (CPRG) has been developed to serve as a web-based guide that community members and professionals can use in determining whether concerns they may have about a child should be reported to Child Welfare Services. The intended goals of the web-based CPRG are to:

1) Assist reporters as they gain familiarity with child abuse and neglect reporting threshold;

2) Help ensure that children and families requiring a child protection response are promptly reported; and

3) Provide links to information about alternative options for reporters to assist children and families who do not meet the statutory child protection reporting thresholds.

The CPRG is intended to complement rather than replace critical thinking and provides a recommendation on whether a report to Child Welfare Services should be made. Using the CPRG does not prohibit a reporter from any course of action the reporter believes is appropriate. The CPRG incorporates design principles that help focus on the most critical pieces of information for the decision at hand. The CPRG reflects the consensus of multiple child protection agencies and community partners concerning situations that are best served through a formal child welfare response and those that are best served through alternative interventions.

Below are some tips to help parents prevent or detect abuse: 

• Be involved in your children’s activities.
• Notice when someone spends a lot of time with your child. Talk with your child about what they do, who else is there, what kind of games they play, etc.
• Believe your child. Listen seriously and sensitively to what your child says.
• Teach your child to say no, get away, and to tell someone, if anyone tries to touch him or her inappropriately.
• Teach your child: Your body belongs to you.
• Explain to your child not to keep secrets that feel scary or uncomfortable.
• Go through rules with your babysitter when your child is present.

Also remember:

• Bad things sometimes happen even when we do our best.
• Discuss abuse prevention in a constructive manner, just as you would other safety concerns. Fear does not keep children safe.
• If abuse occurs, it is not the child’s fault.
• Report the abuse immediately and seek medical help.
• Remain calm and take what your child says seriously.