Guidance
Child Protection Protocol (CPP)
All cases requiring an investigation are responded to jointly with Police and follow the Child Protection Protocol. Our focus is on understanding and addressing the harm impacting the oranga of te tamaiti or rangatahi.Updates made to the Child Protection Protocol
24 September 2026 – The protocol has been updated to:
- include Health New Zealand as a national partner and ensure health impacts are assessed and addressed
- add considerations relating to non-verbal tamariki aged 3 years and under who may have injuries, bruising or exposure to harm, or when adults use children as a form of power and control
- extend the types of harm explicitly covered to include child trafficking, forced labour, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, fraudulent or illicit adoption, online exploitation, and the exploitation of tamariki in the context of family violence
- cover prolonged and intentional concealment of a tamaiti, and strengthen requirements for cross-agency collaboration
- set out the wellbeing responsibilities of Oranga Tamariki more clearly
- provide greater clarity about consent for evidential interviews.
What is the Child Protection Protocol
When a report of concern of potential harm, abuse or neglect may involve a criminal offence, Oranga Tamariki, Police and Health NZ (where applicable) work together to provide a timely, coordinated and effective response.
The Child Protection Protocol: Joint Operating Procedures (CPP) sets out how the 3 agencies work in partnership at a local level so that:
- tamariki and rangatahi are kept safe
- offenders are held to account wherever possible
- child victimisation is reduced
- health impacts are assessed and addressed.
When to follow it
We follow the CPP when we are responding to complaints (Police) or reports of concern (Oranga Tamariki) that allege actions or behaviour that may constitute a criminal offence, and where there is a role for Oranga Tamaraiki and Police. These actions or types of behaviour fall into 3 categories:
- physical abuse
- sexual abuse
- neglect.
The specific definitions of harm that meets the criteria for the CPP process are detailed in the CPP joint operating procedures document.
Child Protection Protocol: Joint Operating Procedures (CPP) (PDF 608 KB)
If it is jointly decided that there is no ongoing role for Police, we still follow our usual process in responding to a report of concern.
Policy: Assessment