Transcript GUIDELINE 1. RECEIVING REPORTS

MODULE 5
Best Practice Approaches
Applying a Women-Centred Approach to
Child Protection Investigations
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Module 5 Learning Objectives
Participants will:
•Increase knowledge about Best Practice Approaches
4, 5 & 6.
•Identify the benefits of a women-centred approach
to child protection in cases of violence against women.
•Apply women-centred, strengths-based approach to
a case study using Best Practice Approaches 4, 5 & 6.
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Module 5 Learning Objectives
Participants will:
•Be able to plan and conduct a child protection
investigation while attending to women’s safety.
•Learn how to develop a safety plan with a woman.
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Best Practice Approach 4
Planning and Conducting an Investigation
Develop an initial plan:
 Advise woman to contact support person
 Consult with service provider who has a strong
knowledge about dynamics of violence. Please note:
Unless consent to share information, share only nonidentifying information.
 The police, only if involved in the child protection
investigation and /or for safety reasons
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Best Practice Approach 4
Planning and Conducting an Investigation
To ensure the mother’s and her children’s safety as
much as possible, consider issues such as:
 When and how to contact the mother
 Safest place and time to interview
 Suggestions for a safety plan if required
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Best Practice Approach 4
Planning and Conducting an Investigation
Reminders
 Find out mother’s schedule - how and when to contact her.
 Don’t leave messages with others or on machine.
 Always use call blocker so your number is not displayed.
 Check that it is safe for her to speak to you by asking
questions such as: “Is now a good time to talk?”
 Arrange a meeting where you know the abuser will not be
present – eg. at school
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Best Practice Approach 4
Planning and Conducting an Investigation
Applying an understanding of women’s experience of
abuse in relationships in interviewing the woman can
 enhance the service relationship
 increase the potential for reaching safe solutions
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Best Practice Approach 4
Planning and Conducting an Investigation
 Avoid making inaccurate assessments about the
woman’s behaviour and resultant parenting ability.
 Recognize the woman’s strengths and build on the
strategies that she has used to keep herself and her
children safe.
 Respect the woman’s ability to make choices within the
constraints of child protection practice.
 Share knowledge and information.
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Best Practice Approach 4
Planning and Conducting an Investigation
 Provide services that are accessible from the perspective
of the woman.
 Provide interpretation services that allow safe discussion
about her experiences
 Discuss her concerns and needs for support and safety.
 Ask questions such as: “What assistance do you need to
keep your children safe?” rather than making statements
that imply blame such as: “It’s your responsibility to
keep your children safe from your partner”.
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Best Practice Approach 4
Planning and Conducting an Investigation
Advise the woman of the following for safety purposes:
 when you/police plan to contact family members,
particularly the alleged abuser
 if for any reason the contact is delayed
 after you have made contact with the alleged abuser
 that you will not disclose her and/or her child’s location
to the perpetrator or anyone without her knowledge
and permission
Buchwitz, Rita (2001)
Alternatives to Apprehension: Education, Action and Advocacy
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Best Practice Approach 5
Child’s Immediate Safety
If concern exists about the child or youth’s immediate
safety or safety during the investigation:
 Explain reasons for the concern
 Elicit suggestions for a safety plan for the children
 Develop a safety plan
 Explore issues that might impact upon her options
 Explain interim plan
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Best Practice Approach 6
Determine Child’s Need for Protection
If child or youth needs protection from the abusive
partner:
 when you suspect that caller is the abusive partner
 determine non-violent parent strengths
 work with mother in order to create safe
environment
 separate service plans
 determine past and current services
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Best Practice Approach 6
Determine Child’s Need for Protection
If a determination is made that the child or youth
needs protection from the non-violent partner:
 advise of decision using non-blaming statement
 consider supportive interventions
 non-judgemental words and tone of voice
 ensure that the woman has a safety plan
 non-coercive referral to women’s organizations
 work with mother in order to create safe
environment
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Best Practice Approach 6
Determine Child’s Need for Protection
If a decision is made that the child or youth does not need
protection:
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advise the caller, advocate/service provider, woman
consider voluntary services or referral
offer anti-violence community services
reassure clients that the services are truly voluntary
try to ensure that the mother has a safety plan in place,
or knows who to contact for assistance
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Best Practice Approaches
Identifying Strengths and Safety Strategies
 Many negative societal beliefs and stereotypes exist
about women who are being abused
 Abused women are often judged harshly
 Reframe these negative judgments into
 women’s strengths
 safety strategies
 impacts of abuse, having little personal power and
control
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Best Practice Approaches
Identifying Strengths and Safety Strategies
 Stigma surrounding abused women intensified when
women are mothers
 Can result in blaming mothers for risks or harms to their
children, rather than the abuser being held accountable
 Women subject to intense scrutiny as bad mothers, and
held up to much higher standards.
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Best Practice Approaches
Identifying Strengths and Safety Strategies
 Focus for woman is to reduce the risk of abuse
 May appear to be neglecting her own needs when she is
attending to her partner’s every demand in an effort to
keep herself and her children safe
 Identify and build on strategies the woman is already
using to stay safe
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
 Acknowledge and build on a woman’s strengths and her
own knowledge of her unique situation
 Safety planning documents should not be used as
checklists to be reviewed with a survivor
 Consider language skills, level of income, availability of
transportation, childcare etc.
 Collaborate with anti-violence services, police, crown,
mental health, and others
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
 Violence against women can't be resolved by changes
in the victim's behavior
 No woman has control over her partner's behavior,
dangerous to expect victims to "stop the violence"
 Problem is offender's conduct; his sense of entitlement
to coercive, controlling, terrorist behaviors
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Principles:
 The use of violence is the abuser’s choice
 Abusers must be held accountable for their violence
 Goal is to reduce the risks, not predict the violence
 Women evaluate their risk on a continual basis
 Woman is expert on her life, she owns her safety plan
 No one agency will have all the relevant information
 Sharing of information increases effectiveness, with
women’s consent wherever possible
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Gender Neutrality:
 Minimizing men’s social, economic, legal advantages
 Assuming equal caretaking roles
 Minimizing women’s greater contribution to parenting
 Minimizing woman’s beliefs about her, children’s safety
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Principles when children involved:
 Child’s safety and well-being integrally linked with the
safety of the mother
 Interventions require an understanding of the complex
dynamics of power and control
 Gender inequality operates against women in custody
and access in ways which include:
 less financial stability
 undervaluing women’s role as caretakers
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Before you start:
 Discuss the purpose of safety assessment with the
woman and see if she wishes to take part
 Clarify with the woman that her choices are
paramount.
 Provide emotional support during and after the
safety assessment and planning process
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Should focus on:
 What the woman thinks will be safe strategies
 Securing safe housing
 Respectful support, no labels
 Financial, income assistance, employment services
 Voluntary supportive services
 Parenting groups
 Only if needed
 Provide childcare and transportation
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Should focus on:
 legal advocacy, family law services:
 protection orders
 custody and safe visitation arrangements
 child support
 divorce
 transportation to safety resources
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Critical Situations:
 When she attempts to leave the relationship
 If the abuser becomes aware that she is accessing
support/help
 When she initiates legal actions:
 Divorce
 Custody or access
 Child protection investigation and child removal
 Property settlement
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Best Practice Approaches
Safety Planning
Critical Situations:
 If a stay of proceedings is entered.
 Application for Peace Bond, other protection order
 Application to vary protection order conditions
 When accused is released on interim conditions
 When any papers are served such as
 Restraining Orders
 Notification of Divorce or Separation Proceedings
 When she enters another relationship
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