Child Neglect
The child has suffered harm or the child’s safety or development has been endangered as a result of the caregiver(s) failure to provide for or protect the child. Examples include:
- Failure to supervise: physical harm – the child suffered or is at substantial risk of suffering physical harm because of the caregiver’s failure to supervise or protect child adequately. Failure to supervise includes situations where a child is harmed or endangered as a result of caregiver’s actions (e.g. drunk driving with a child or engaging in dangerous criminal activities with a child).
- Failure to supervise: sexual harm – the child has been, or is at substantial risk of being sexually molested or sexually exploited, and the caregiver knows or should have known of the possibility of sexual molestation and failed to protect the child adequately.
- Permitting criminal behavior – a child has committed a criminal offence (e.g. theft, vandalism or assault) with the encouragement of the child’s caregiver, or because of the caregiver’s failure or inability to supervise a child adequately.
- Physical neglect – the child has suffered or is at substantial risk of suffering physical harm caused by the caregiver's failure to care and provide for the child adequately. This includes inadequate nutrition/clothing and unhygienic dangerous living conditions. There must be evidence or suspicion that the caregiver is at least partially responsible for the situation.
- Medical neglect – the child requires medical treatment to cure, prevent or alleviate physical harm or suffering and the child’s caregiver does not provide, or refuses, or is unavailable, or unable to consent to the treatment. This includes dental services when funding is available.
- Failure to provide psychiatric treatment – the child is at substantial risk of suffering from either emotional harm demonstrated by severe anxiety, depression, withdrawal, or self-destructive or aggressive behavior, or a mental, emotional or developmental condition that could seriously impair the child’s development. The child’s caregiver does not provide or refuses or is unavailable, or unable to consent to treatment to remedy or alleviate the harm. This category includes failing to provide treatment for school related problems such as learning and behavior problems, as well as treatment for infant development problems such as non-organic failure to thrive. Parents awaiting service should not be included in this category.
- Abandonment – the child’s parent has died or is unable to exercise custodial rights and has not made adequate provisions for care and custody, or child is in a placement and parent refuses/unable to take custody.
- Educational neglect – caregivers knowingly permit chronic truancy (5+days a month), or fail to enroll the child, or repeatedly keep the child at home. If child is experiencing mental, emotional or developmental problems associated with school, and treatment is offered but caregivers do not cooperate with treatment, classify the case under failure to provide treatment as well.