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Social Work vocabulary · Child Protection and Safeguarding

Mandatory reporting

Meaning in social work, with examples

nounCommon term

In social work, mandatory reporting means: A legal duty for certain professionals, such as teachers, doctors and social workers, to report suspected abuse or neglect to the authorities.

In Turkish: zorunlu bildirim, ihbar yükümlülüğü, bildirim zorunluluğu

How it is used

The rules differ by country and state: who must report, what must be reported and to whom. In the US the professionals covered are called mandated reporters. Failing to report can lead to disciplinary or legal consequences.

Example sentences

  1. All school staff receive training on mandatory reporting at the start of the year.

  2. Mandatory reporting laws vary from state to state across the US.

Common collocations

  • mandatory reporting laws
  • mandated reporter
  • mandatory reporting duty
  • duty to report
  • disclosureThe moment when a person, often a child, tells someone that they have been harmed or abused; also the release of information to another person or agency.
  • child protectionThe work of identifying children who are suffering, or are likely to suffer, abuse or neglect and taking action to keep them safe.
  • confidentialityThe duty to keep information about clients private and to share it only with their consent or when there is a clear professional or legal reason.
  • abuseTreatment that causes someone physical, emotional, sexual or financial harm, usually by a person they know, trust or depend on.

More terms: Child Protection and Safeguarding

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