Family and Child Protective Services

Introduction

The Family and Child Protective Services Units (FCPSUs) of the Social Welfare Department (SWD) aims at protecting children who are / have been harmed / maltreated; assisting spouses / cohabitants who are / have been harmed in domestic violence and their family members to restore normal functioning; and safeguarding the interests of children being affected by custody / guardianship disputes and referred by the Courts.

Service Target

• Children being / having been harmed / maltreated, persons being / having been harmed in / affected by domestic violence, and their family members can approach the FCPSU which geographical service boundary covering their residential address for assistance. They may also be referred for services by other units of SWD, non-governmental organisations or other government departments.
• Children and their families being affected by disputes on custody / guardianship or child abduction matters should be referred for services by the Courts, Department of Justice, and other concerned authorities in accordance with the relevant Ordinances.

Service Content

• Handling enquiries and reports on children maltreatment, spouses/cohabitant and child custodial problems. Joint investigation with the police on suspected child maltreatment cases will be carried out when necessary.
• Providing services to children in need of protection from maltreatment, spouses / cohabitants being harmed in domestic violence, perpetrators and other family members mainly through outreaching, investigation, statutory protection, casework and group work services; and referral for supportive services including clinical psychological services, child care services, residential child care services, residential services for victims of domestic violence and family aide service etc.
• Conducting social investigation and submitting report(s) the Court in relation to child custody and access arrangement.
• Launching public education programmes for prevention of domestic violence and protection of child from being harmed/maltreated.

Information of Service Unit

You can obtain more information on the support services to victims of child maltreatment and spouse / cohabitant battering at the website "Support for Victims of Child Abuse, Spouse / Cohabitant Battering and Sexual Violence":

Services for Families with Child Custody Disputes

To safeguard the interests of the children affected by custody / guardianship disputes, the social workers of FCPSUs will submit social investigation reports to the Courts, provide statutory supervision to the children in accordance with the Court Orders and render counselling and other tangible services according to their needs.

The publicity materials related to child custody disputes can be downloaded here:

You can obtain more information on co-parenting and parental responsibilities at the thematic web page "Parenthood Goes On".