REPORT CHILD ABUSE | Suspect abuse or neglect? Call 800-649-5285 | Child in immediate danger? Call 911
What We Do
What We Do
KidSafe works to support our neighbors
KidSafe, first and foremost, works to address situations in which vulnerable children are experiencing or are at risk of abuse or neglect – including physical, emotional and sexual abuse and neglect. When are children at risk? Almost always, it’s when parents or other primary caretakers are affected by such stressful and traumatizing factors as substance abuse, domestic violence, lack of employment or adequate housing, incarceration of a partner, physical or psychological factors – often occurring at the same time.
How does KidSafe help children and families?
KidSafe connects:
- Families in crisis/kids at risk with coordinated services and supports
- Vermonters who work with children and youth with training, to know how to recognize and report suspected maltreatment
- Human services staff with each other, connecting people and agencies so that our child protection systems are effective.
Working with Families
At the family level, KidSafe leads Child Protection Teams—known as CPFST & CHARM—that provide coordinated supports for parents who are coping with issues that are affecting their child(ren)’s safety. KidSafe brings together everyone who can help, to work with the parents and take concrete steps to immediately improve the family’s safety.
Our community offers an array of supports and services to families in crisis. To be effective and ensure that children are safe, it is essential that their parents or other primary caregivers have access to coordinated services. That’s where KidSafe comes in:
- Serving as ‘neutral convener’ with no agency agenda other than improved child safety
- Making sure everyone is communicating and providing services effectively
- Cutting through interagency red tape and preventing duplication of effort, while ensuring that no child ‘falls through the cracks’.
Child Protection and Family Support Team (CPFST)
Children and Recovering Mothers Team (CHARM)
Working with the Community
At the community and state levels, KidSafe works on a broader scale, monitoring and seeking to improve the network of systems designed to prevent and address child abuse and maltreatment. For example, the KidSafe Collaborative Council members, who represent the full array of community partners in this effort, have identified gaps in care – unserved or underserved populations – and taken steps to address the issues. Click here to find out more about our systems work.
Online Training for Mandated Reporters of Child Abuse
Coordinate Systems Change for & with local organizations
Who do we reach?
In one year, KidSafe's work touches the lives of more than 400 children and adult family members. In addition, the "mandated reporter" training program KidSafe undertakes in collaboration with Vermont's Department for Children and Families (DCF) annually teaches hundreds of Vermont's educators, child care workers and many others who work with children and teen how to recognize and report maltreatment. An innovative on-line training program introduced in 2016 has reached thousands of these mandated reporters and interested members of the general public as well.
Working together to improve our community's response to child abuse and neglect
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Children shown in images on this site are models.