Child Protective Services

The Child Protective Services (CPS) investigates allegations of abuse, neglect, and abandonment generated by calls to the Florida Abuse Hotline. Under authority granted in Florida Statutes, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office is contracted by the Florida Department of Children and Families to conduct these investigations on behalf of that agency.

When abuse reports are received at the Florida Abuse Hotline in Tallahassee they are routed to the appropriate county jurisdiction. In Seminole County, Child Protective Investigators assigned to CPS make initial contact with family and child, review the facts and circumstances, assess whether the allegations are valid or not, and determine what intervention or assistance may be needed.

In the most egregious cases, the investigator will take the child(ren) into protective custody and shelter them until the caregivers can prove to the court they are able to properly care for the child(ren). Only a small percentage of the total number of abuse reports received result in the removal of children from their homes. The protective investigator determines the protective, treatment, and ameliorative services necessary to safeguard and ensure the child's safety, well-being, and development, and then coordinates with Embrace Families of Central Florida or other local service providers to implement those services.

To report child abuse or neglect, call the Florida Abuse Hotline at 1-800-96 ABUSE (962-2873).

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