How to report child abuse and neglect in NC (and what happens after)
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- State law requires suspected child abuse be reported to the child's county DSS.
- Call local DSS or after-hours numbers; failing to report is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
- CPS must investigate abuse in 24 hrs and suspected neglect in 72 hrs.
The negative consequences of child abuse and neglect ripple far beyond one child and family.
Children who face severe adversity are more likely to have long-term intellectual, behavioral, physical and mental health problems, according to a landmark study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Here’s what to know about reporting child abuse, and what happens after a report is filed.
How to report child abuse or neglect in North Carolina?
State law requires anyone who suspects a child is abused or neglected or that a child has died from abuse or neglect to report it.
A report should be made to the county Department of Social Services where the child lives. You’ll be asked to share the name, age and address of the child, the names of the parents or caregivers and why you suspect abuse or neglect.
If a person knowingly fails to report suspected abuse or neglect or prevents someone from making a report, they could be charged with a Class 1 misdemeanor, according to state law.
How to report child abuse or neglect in NC
Reports can often be made in-person at county Department of Social Services offices or by phone.
- Wake County: Call 919-212 7990 for English or 919-212-7963 in Spanish during weekday business hours. If you want to make a report after hours, on weekends or holidays, dial 911 and tell the operator you need to make a CPS report. The dispatcher will contact an on-call social worker.
- Durham County: Call 919-560-8424 during weekday business hours. Call 984-243-1280 or 919-560-4600 and an after-hours social worker will call you back.
- Orange County: Call 919-245-2818 during weekday business hours. Contact Orange County Emergency Services at 919-732-5063 for an after-hour report.
- Mecklenburg County: Call 980-314-3577, available 24/7.
- Chatham County: Call 919-642-6988 during weekday business hours. Call 919-542-2911 and ask to speak to the on-call social worker for child protect services if reporting after hours, on weekends or holidays.
- Johnston County: Call 919-989-5442 during weekday business hours. After normal business hours call 919-989-5000 and ask to speak with the on-call social worker.
What happens after you report abuse?
If the report meets the criteria for abuse and neglect, a social worker will conduct an in-person assessment of the child and their family.
Child protective services must investigate within 24 hours of a report of abuse or 72 hours after a report of suspected neglect, according to the North Carolina Judicial Branch website. An assessment must be completed within 45 days of receiving the report.
A report will either be “substantiated” or “unsubstantiated,” which means there was not enough evidence for CPS to find abuse or neglect.
If you’re not satisfied with the outcome, Positive Childhood Alliance recommends connecting with the CPS supervisor and then the DSS director. If that fails, you can call 919-527-6340 to reach the Child Welfare Policy Consultation Team at the state level.
What are the signs of child abuse?
Sudden behavior changes and unexplained burns, bruises and injuries may be a sign of child abuse, according to the state.
“It is important to note that any one of these things could mean anything or nothing,” according to the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services website. “However, when you have a cluster of two or more of these, this should raise a red flag to at least talk to the child and or parent, or at most call your local Child Protective Services agency.”
Signs of child abuse or neglect you might see from children, according to NCDHHS, include:
- Sudden changes in behavior or school performance
- Overt sexualized behavior or sexual knowledge that isn’t consistent with their age
- Hasn’t received medical care after an injury was brought to the parents’ attention
- Has learning problems unrelated to specific physical or psychological causes
- Is an overachiever, too responsible and is always watchful like something bad is going to happen
- Has unexplained burns, bites, bruises, broken bones, black eyes or other injuries or has bruises or marks in non-prominent areas of the body
- Seems frightened of parents, comes to school early, stays late and doesn’t want to go home
- Shrinks when adults approach them
Signs of child abuse or neglect you might see from parents or caregivers, according to NCDHHS, include:
- Shows little concern for the child and rarely responds to school conferences and home visits.
- Denies the existence of problems or blames the child for the problems.
- Asks a teacher to use harsh physical discipline if the child misbehaves.
- Sees the child as “entirely bad, worthless or burdensome,” describes the child as “evil” or in another negative way.
- Is using alcohol or drugs and that use is having an adverse impact on the child
- Uses harsh physical discipline with the child
Can you prevent child abuse and neglect?
Poverty is one of the biggest risk factors for child maltreatment, said Sharon Hirsch, CEO and president of Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina.
“This is a preventable problem, and we need communities to step up and support families,” she said. “Because all of us are a member of a family, and we were all children at some point. And we would have wanted somebody to step up and help our parents, too.”
She mentioned a recent abuse case in Wake County in which parents are accused of serious abuse and assault, including keeping a child in a dog kennel.
“If we did a better job of addressing those neglect cases and really targeting those then we’d have better resources and support for the really awful cases that could make a big difference and would better support that workforce that is often as overloaded and overwhelmed as the families that they’re trying to support and protect,” she said.
Prevention is about strategies, policy changes and programs that support children and their parents. Those can range from connections to local food banks and parenting classes to child tax credits or paid family and medical leave, Hirsch said.
“Research shows that those kind of policies reduce child abuse and neglect reports and substantiations because anytime we can make it easier for families to pay for their basic needs, child maltreatment rates drop.”
Long-term impacts from child abuse
The Adverse Childhood Experiences Study, or ACE Study, highlights the cascading effects of abuse throughout a child’s lifetime and in the larger community.
Two-thirds of the more than 17,000 participants reported at least one adverse childhood experience, which includes abuse, household challenges and neglect, according to the CDC. One in five children reported more than three adverse childhood experiences.
Federal child welfare data shows there were more than 25,000 child abuse or neglect victims in 2024, including 46 deaths.
“Problems now concretely linked to child abuse and neglect include behavioral and achievement problems in school; heart, lung and liver disease; obesity and diabetes; depression, anxiety disorders and increased suicide attempts; increased criminal behaviors, illicit drug use and alcohol abuse; increased risky sexual behavior and unintended pregnancies; and other problems,” according to Positive Childhood Alliance North Carolina, the state chapter of Prevent Child Abuse America.
New research shows that positive childhood experiences can “ease toxic stress and help children and youth grow into more resilient, healthier adults,” according to Healthy Outcomes From Positive Experiences.
Across the country, about half of Black and Native American children experience a CPS investigation by their 18th birthday, Hirsch said, and while Black children represent about 14% of the population, they make up 23% of the foster care population.
“In North Carolina, in particular, Native American children have the highest percent of substantiated reports and rate of victimization than all other races and ethnicities in North Carolina,” she said. “So, again, I would point back to resources that we make available and systemic barriers to accessing services.”
This story was originally published April 2, 2026 at 4:52 PM with the headline "How to report child abuse and neglect in NC (and what happens after)."
