The rights of parents contacted by the ministry

If a child protection worker calls you or comes to your home because of a complaint about your parenting or concerns about your child's health or safety, you have the right to information about:

• the nature of any complaint against you,
• what the ministry is allowed to do,
• what steps the Ministry of Children and Family Development has taken and will take, and
• any actions, decisions, or reports that deal with you or your children — limited only by the confidentiality rights of the person who complained.

You also have the right to fair and respectful treatment. This includes:

• The opportunity to respond to concerns raised by the ministry
• The opportunity to respond to incorrect or malicious information in your file
• Getting your responses to any complaint against you included in your file
• Access to the advice of a lawyer
• The option of having an advocate or support person attend your interview(s) with the ministry
• The opportunity to be involved in planning how to deal with any problem raised in a complaint
• Confidentiality in certain areas and a clear explanation of what information will and won't remain confidential
• Services in your own language (where available), or an interpreter for meetings in English if you won't understand or be able to explain your side of the story without one
• Respect for your religious and cultural beliefs and practices

You don't, however, have a right to know the name of the person who made the complaint about you. Ministry staff must keep this information confidential (private).

For more information about parents' general rights, see Your rights as a parent.

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