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Children's Protective Services
Our Children's Protective Services (CPS) program is responsible for investigating allegations of child abuse and neglect. The Michigan Child Protection Law provides the framework for what CPS must do.
Child Abuse: Harm or threatened harm to a child's health or welfare that occurs through non-accidental physical or mental injury, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, or maltreatment, by a parent, a legal guardian, or any other person responsible for the child's health or welfare or by a teacher, a teacher's aide, or a member of the clergy.
Child Neglect: Harm or threatened harm to a child's health or welfare by a parent, legal guardian, or any other person responsible for the child's health or welfare that occurs through either of the following:
- Negligent treatment, including the failure to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, or medical care.
- Placing a child at an unreasonable risk to the child's health or welfare by failure of the parent, legal guardian, or other person responsible for the child's health or welfare to intervene to eliminate that risk when that person is able to do so and has, or should have, knowledge of the risk.
Additional Resources
Reporting Process
Information on initiating a Children's Protective Service's complaint, tips on identifying suspected abuse, and mandated reporting.
Mandated Reporters
Important documents and links for people that have established relationships with children based on their profession.
Central Registry
Michigan’s Central Registry is a repository of names of individuals who are identified as perpetrators related to a central registry case. Children’s Protective Services (CPS) cases that result in confirmed methamphetamine production, confirmed serious abuse or neglect, confirmed sexual abuse, or confirmed sexual exploitation will be classified as a central registry case in Michigan. In addition, select criminal convictions involving children will result in placement on central registry.
Governors Task Force
The Governor's Task Force is a multidisciplinary task force from across the State of Michigan driven to improve the handling of Child Abuse and Neglect cases.
Office of Recipient Rights
Information about safeguards for your rights when you receive mental health services.
Preventing Sexual Abuse of Children
The Task Force on the Prevention of Sexual Abuse of Children is charged with making recommendations for reducing child sexual abuse in Michigan, including recommendations for state and school policies that address the sexual abuse of children.
Out of State Child Protective Services Agencies
Resources to assist in providing for the ease and timely processing of information for agencies outside of the State of Michigan who are investigating a report of known or suspected child abuse or neglect.
Prevention and Family Preservation Services
MDHHS and partners support a continuum of prevention services. The continuum is inclusive of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention activities. Visit this page to learn more.