Learn how standardized, trauma-informed response strategies can strengthen child abuse investigations and better support vulnerable children and families.
By Laura Newcombe
There currently is no standardized trauma-informed practice guide for responding to child abuse investigations nationwide.
The Canadian Police Knowledge Network (CPKN) hosted Cynthia Ashe, Executive Director, Canadian Child Forensic Interview Practice Association (CCFIPA), to present From Reaction to Response: Standardizing Response Strategies in Child Abuse Investigations on August 11, 2026, as a part of the Network Webinar Series.
Participants were able to gain insights into trauma-informed practices, the evolving role of Child Forensic Interviews, and the importance of standardized response models across agencies and jurisdictions.
“The professionals responding to these tragedies can’t fix it,” Ashe says. “They can’t change it, or take it away, but they have the superpower of helping manage it.”
This session examined the challenges created by fragmented approaches and shared practical, sustainable solutions that support vulnerable children and families while strengthening investigative integrity.
When talking about statements and forensic interviews in a child abuse investigation, Ashe used the analogy of arriving at the scene of a stabbing, finding a knife and proceeding to pick it up with bare hands, wipe it on your pants, and throwing it in a sink full of water.
“That would never happen,” she says. “We want to protect that evidence.”
Ashe went on further to explain how to handle statements and forensic interviews in a trauma-informed way using collaborative response models.
The post-webinar survey showed that 100 per cent of survey respondents learned something new from this webinar.
“The information provided was very functional and can be implemented into my day-to-day work,” one survey respondent said. “I think all front line and applicable specialized sections should have this training.”
To learn more about the training offered by CCFIPA, visit their website at https://ccfipa.ca/.
This webinar will be available to watch on CPKN’s Learning Management System, if you would like to be notified of its availability, please contact communications@cpkn.ca.
