General Election postal votes
If you have not received your postal vote for the General Election on 4 July 2024, please call us on 01305 838299 so that a replacement can be issued.
If you're worried about the safety or wellbeing of a child or young person who lives in Dorset contact our Children's Advice and Duty Service (ChAD).
When you call us we can talk to you about confidentiality and how we are going to use any information you give us.
Speak to a practitioner today if you have any worries or concerns about a child or young person.
Monday to Friday: 8am to 10pm
Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays: 9am to 10pm
See our adult abuse page for contact details for young people aged 18 to 25.
Find out more about child exploitation and when to report it.
If you're a professional and you're concerned about the safety or wellbeing of a child or young person in the Dorset area contact our professionals' Children's Advice and Duty Service (ChAD):
One of our consultant social workers will talk through your worries and together you'll agree the best way to meet the needs of the child and support their family. We won't ask you to fill out a referral form.
If you're worried about how your child is coping at the moment and need some more support contact our Educational Psychology Service helpline for parents on 01258 474036.
Speak to family support in your locality:
See a map of our localities:
Each locality will have its own SEND team of professionals led by a SEND team manager, with a family worker and provision lead.
The SEND team supporting you will be based on where you live, not where your child goes to school.
The new SEND teams will include family support workers and educational psychologists all working together.
If the child you're concerned about already has a social worker contact your locality.
The Children's Social Care teams provide a statutory social work service. This means they work with children, young people and their families who are considered in need, children who are subject to a plan for protection and a small number of children who are in care.
Social workers have legal child protection duties but they also work proactively to help prevent difficulties starting or repeating.
All our children's social care teams work closely with other professionals and agencies, including:
Contact BCP Council Children's First Response:
Find mental health and wellbeing support for a child or young person.
The following websites are useful for you if you're worried about a child or for children who want to speak to someone:
What to do if you're worried about child sexual abuse.
Find help if you've experienced any form of domestic abuse. This includes:
Visit the PDSCP website for further advice and support if you have concerns about a child.
The PDSCP brings together information for: