Each Child at Risk Response Team consists of one Constable and one Child Welfare Investigator with Children Services. CARRT investigates the following:

• Incidents involving imminent risk to children caused by neglect and/or physical or sexual abuse.
• Incidents involving a caregiver who is unable or unwilling to provide adequate care to any child in their charge.
• Requests for assistance from EPS members and/or Child Welfare investigators involving a child welfare investigation.
• Action requests from Child Welfare that originate from the Crisis Unit or any Neighbourhood Centre in Edmonton.
• Requests for investigation that originate from the Sergeant i/c CARRT.
• Incidents involving the welfare of any child that has been placed with Children Services.

CARRT is available 7 days a week and provides front line service for investigations involving children at risk.

Within the team, the EPS Constable and Child Welfare investigator provide services for children and their caregivers that their respective agencies have access to. One of the main goals of each CARRT investigation is to improve a child’s immediate environment and provide services to the affected families that aim to educate the caregivers and improve their ability to raise their children.

Two decades of service to traumatized children and their families

The Child at Risk Response Team (CARRT) celebrated its 20^th anniversary in November 2015.

Benefits to Child Care Workers/Police Officer partnerships

CARRT was one of the first programs in Canada to pair up police offices and social workers. This ground-breaking program has been emulated many times, by many agencies, including the Calgary Police Service.

Sgt. Gary Willits has been with the unit for eight years.

Willits notes that, “CARRT provides a ‘one-stop’ care model for traumatized children. By having the social workers on-scene, we provide an effective and efficient response. The social worker provides valuable information/resources regarding the children and their families. The police officer is able to provide a safe work environment and deal with any criminal allegations. This collaboration allows the team to explore alternate problem solving solutions when looking at what level of intervention is best..

History of CARRT

EPS Detective Brian Robertson and former social worker Investigator Pamela Thompson were the first members of CARRT.

They recently sat down to share a few stories.

Click here to read their stories and watch their interview.