The Canterbury Children's Team has recently expanded beyond Christchurch Metro to include Mid Canterbury and North Canterbury.  Professionals and practitioners in these districts who have concerns about vulnerable and at risk children, can now refer to the Children's Team.

Referrals are made through the Vulnerable Children's Hub (the Hub) – a contact and triage point for referrers staffed by experienced social workers – by:

- Calling the Hub direct on 0800 367 687

- Completing an online referral by going direct to the site:https://viki.govt.nz

- Canterbury Health Professionals can also make electronic referrals directly to the Hub via ERMS (ERMs: Child Health > Vulnerable Children's Referral). See Community Health Pathways for details.

Dedicated Hub workers will consider the child's situation through conversations with the referrer and from information from government agencies, and advise on the most appropriate referral pathway. That could either be to a universal NGO service provider, the Canterbury Children's Team, a care and protection response, or the Police.

It is always good practice to have the conversation with the family prior to making a referral, however under Section 15 of the Children Young Persons and their Families Act the family's consent is not required to make a referral.

The richer the information provided to the Hub, the better the assessment the Hub can perform, and the more appropriate the referral pathway. An Approved Information Sharing Agreement (AISA) has been developed to assist any concerns with provision of information.

Further information about the Children's Team and making referrals, can be found at:

https://www.mvcot.govt.nz/working-with-children/childrens-teams/contacts-and-referrals/