The investigator contacts the alleged victim(s) to assess the child's immediate safety. After making contact with the child and family, the investigator must gain enough information to assess child safety concerns. Children are considered to be unsafe when any safety threat is present and the only intervention considered sufficient to protect them is removal from that environment.
An assessment of safety also identifies what safeguards that may be required to remediate potentially unsafe conditions. The investigator works with the family to identify the factors that led to the current investigation, and assesses what needs the family might be able to address immediately to alleviate the issues. The investigator can identify safeguards that will alleviate the issues being addressed and investigated. In this case and with the agreement of the family, the investigator creates a safety plan for the family. The plan identifies services and activities that would address the immediate needs of the family and keep the child safely in the home. The investigator considers the allegation disposition (or findings) as well as the family's social support network and other factors to determine whether or not the family is able to address the issues.