Child Advocacy Centers

In New York, report child abuse at the New York State Child Abuse Hotline: 800.342.3720. Call our 24-hour Crime Victims Hotline: 866.689.HELP (4357) to find resources outside New York.

Safe Horizon's Child Advocacy Centers (CACs) are child-friendly, safe spaces that provide prevention, intervention, emotional support, and treatment services to physically and sexually abused children and their families by using a child-focused team approach.

When it opened in 1996, our Jane Barker Brooklyn Child Advocacy Center became the first one in New York City to convene medical, legal, and social resources for abused children in a permanent, child-friendly location. The center is viewed nationwide as a model of the co-located, multidisciplinary team approach toward helping young victims. For over 20 years, Safe Horizon has been at the forefront of establishing state of the art urban Child Advocacy Centers.

Safe Horizon's Child Advocacy Centers work to prevent re-traumatization -- that is, further trauma of the child -- and to ensure that a coordinated investigation is begun immediately. At Safe Horizon's CACs, advocates, the police department, the district attorneys office, medical providers, and the New York City Administration for Children's Services (ACS) collaborate to provide a cooperative and coordinated approach to the investigation of child abuse cases.

Child Advocacy Centers: Partners Combating Child Abuse

Safe Horizon's Child Advocacy Centers offer both healing and justice for child victims of abuse. At our Centers, all the agencies that deal with child abuse cases work together, providing a unique collaboration of efforts on behalf of child victims.

Our multidisciplinary teams at the Child Advocacy Centers represent:

• Safe Horizon
• District Attorneys' Offices in Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, and Manhattan
• The New York City Administration for Children's Services
• The New York Police Department
• Medical Providers and Partnering Hospitals

More Links

Find out where our Child Advocacy Center locations are.

Take a tour of a Child Advocacy Center.

Learn about our Hope Shining campaign to raise awareness about child abuse.