Understanding the Development and Impact of Child Advocacy Centres (CACs) (English, HTML)

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Publisher-reported update

2024-02-08

Child Advocacy Centres (CACs) and Child and Youth Advocacy Centres (CYACs) arose out of a need to reduce stress placed on child/youth victims during sexual abuse investigations. Previously, a lack of coordination between social services and the criminal justice system meant victims were interviewed multiple times by different agencies, often by people untrained in child development. CACs have been developed to create a safe place for child victims and their non-offending caregivers. They feature child friendly spaces, a multidisciplinary team approach with police, social services, victim advocates, and medical personnel working together as well as victim advocacy and support. As of 2016, 22 CACs are operating in Canada, and at least seven other sites are currently developing or exploring the model. This study was commissioned by the Department of Justice (Department) to better understand how Canadian CACs are developing and operating; measure client satisfaction with CACs; measure client satisfaction with the criminal justice system’s process and outcomes; and measure how CACs meet the following Federal Victims Strategy (FVS) objectives: increasing access to victim services,…

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