Filing a Complaint with Sacramento County Child Protective Services

Sacramento Child Protective Services (CPS) is a county agency that investigates reports of child abuse and neglect. The primary mission of the CPS is to keep children safe. However, they also offer adoption services and provide training and licensing for family day care homes and foster families. You can file complaints about suspect child abuse or neglect with CPS. There is also a mechanism in place to file complaints about the agency itself.

Instructions

Complaints Regarding Suspected Child Abuse or Neglect

• 1

  Call 911 if the child is in an urgent life-threatening situation and requires immediate intervention by the police or sheriff's department. Law enforcement will investigate the matter and contact Sacramento Child Protective Services (CPS).

• 2

  Call the 24-Hour Child Abuse Hotline at 916-875-5437 (875-KIDS), to report any suspicion of child abuse when there is no immediate life-threatening incident that requires law enforcement on the scene. The hotline is managed by Sacramento CPS social workers.

• 3

  Provide any information about the suspected child abuse to the CPS social worker. The information you give is confidential. You are not required to give your name when speaking on the hotline. The Sacramento CPS social worker with review the report and determine the appropriate intervention and prevention procedures for the case.

Sacramento DHHS Ombudsman

• 4

  Call the ombudsman's office of the Sacramento Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), which reviews and investigates complaints about the agency itself and concerns about other cases regarding child welfare. Anyone can call the ombudsman; again, all discussions remain confidential.

• 5

  File a complaint in writing if you are making a claim about activities regarding the Sacramento CPS agency itself. A complaint form can be downloaded from the website of the Sacramento County DHHS (sacdhhs.com).

• 6

  Contact the ombudsman's office by telephone if you have any questions or concerns. Mail the formal complaint directly to their office.