How to contact us for advice

Find out more

Telephone Handler
Close form

Our advice service

We provide advice to parents, grandparents, relatives, friends and kinship carers who are involved with children’s services in England or need their help. We can help you understand processes and options when social workers or courts are making decisions about your child’s welfare.

Our advice service is free, independent and confidential.

Telephone Handler

By phone or email

To speak to an adviser, please call our free and confidential advice line 0808 801 0366 (Monday to Friday 9.30am to 3pm, excluding Bank Holidays). For Textphone dial 18001 followed by the advice line number. Or you can ask us a question via email using our advice enquiry form.

Discuss on our forums

Our online advice forums are an anonymous space where parents and kinship carers (also known as family and friends carers) can get legal and practical advice, build a support network and learn from other people’s experiences.

Advice on our website

Our get help and advice section describes the processes that you and your family are likely to go through, so that you know what to expect. Our webchat service can help you find the information and advice on our website which will help you understand the law and your rights.

Exit
Family Rights Group
Cover Your Tracks
Generic filters
Exact matches only

When might emotional abuse occur? What might it involve?

Emotional abuse can occur on its own. But may be experienced as part of other types of abuse. Such as physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect and exploitation.

Examples of what emotional abuse may involve include:

  • Putting a child down. Making them feel they are useless or not loved
  • Not giving a child the space to express their views
  • Silencing a child, or ‘making fun’ of them
  • Expecting a child to do things that are too much for their age
  • Over-protecting a child. Preventing a child from taking part in normal social activities
  • Exposing a child to the ill-treatment of someone else. Such as seeing or hearing domestic abuse
  • Causing a child to feel frightened or in danger at home.

Children of any age can suffer emotional abuse. And the person responsible for the abuse may be an adult or a child. They may live in the child’s home or live elsewhere.

Emotional abuse can be deliberate. But it can also happen where families are struggling or overwhelmed. Or where parents or carers don’t have the information or help they need to understand or meet their child’s needs.

People pie chart

Our funding means we can currently only help 4 in 10 people

Your donation will help more families access expert legal advice and support from Family Rights Group.

Donate Now