Transcript Introduction to Safeguarding and Child Protection

Introduction to Safeguarding
and Child Protection
Helen Elliott and Barry Rawlings
Welcome !
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Introduction
Housekeeping
Learning Contract
Looking after ourselves
Aims of the session
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To provide an overview of the legal and policy
framework of safeguarding and child
protection
To consider roles and responsibilities of staff
and volunteers in safeguarding
To raise awareness of types of abuse, signs
and symptoms
To provide information about what to do if
you have concerns
Introductory Exercise
Safeguarding Quiz
The National Picture
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Tragedy of child deaths
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Laming Enquiry
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Failures at every level and in every
organisation
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Problems in sharing information
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Soham/Safer Recruitment
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We all have a part to play - Safeguarding
children is everybody’s responsibility
What Do We Mean By
Safeguarding?
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Duty to protect children from
impairment
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Duty to prevent impairment
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Promoting wellbeing
By Working Together
Safeguarding is
everybody’s business!
Children Act 1989 - Education Act 2002 -Children Act 2004
UN Convention of the
Rights of the Child
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42 Articles which state that all rights guaranteed by it
must be available to all children without
discrimination.
Article 19 “Children have the right to be protected
from all forms of violence. They must be kept safe
from harm. They must be given proper care by those
looking after them.”
Article 34 “Children have a right to protection from
sexual exploitation and abuse.”
Article 37 “Children have the right not to be punished
cruelly or in a way that would belittle them.”
Safeguarding Children In Diverse
Communities: Working Together 2010
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Awareness of impact of racism.
Awareness of cultural
misunderstanding or
misinterpretation.
Consider how religious beliefs and
cultural traditions influence values,
attitudes and behaviour, and the
way in which family and community
life is structured and organized.
Cultural and religious factors should
not be regarded as acceptable
explanations for abuse or neglect
and are not acceptable grounds for
inaction if a child is at risk
Guard against myths and
stereotypes.
Fear of being accused of racism
should not stop safeguarding a
child.
Child Protection
The process of protecting individual
children identified as either suffering or
at risk of suffering significant harm as a
result of abuse or neglect
Prevention and Early Intervention (Common
Assessment Framework :CAF )
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For children where there are concerns about welfare
but NOT at risk of significant harm
Practitioners from any agency can carry out a CAF
Common forms and shared language to assess
children when parents consent
Stages of intervention- the CAF
in context
SPECIALIST ASSESSMENTS &
STATUTORY INTERVENTION
Statutory services
(high need)
Targeted support services
(med high need)
(children in care), Children with Child
Protection Plans, Young offenders,
Special Educational Needs (SEN),
complex health & disability
CAF, with Lead Professional
Several agencies involved
Targeted support services
(med low need)
Universal
services (low or no need))
CAF
e.g. Schools and health
visiting, Children’s
Centres, youth work
The Children Act 1989
The legal duty to protect children is governed by this act
which introduced:
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The welfare of the child as paramount
Wishes and feelings of child must be ascertained
Working in partnership with families
Parental responsibility is always retained by parents.
Duty to provide services to families with ‘children in
need’.
L.A. promote the upbringing of children by families
Child in Need (Children Act
1989 s17)
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Unlikely to achieve or maintain, or have
opportunity of achieving a reasonable
standard of health or development without
provision of services
Health or development likely to be
significantly impaired or further impaired
without provision of such services
Disabled
Significant Harm
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Concept of significant harm justifies
compulsory intervention in family life
(S47 Children Act)
Duty to make enquiries where
reasonable cause to suspect child
suffering from significant harm
Definition of Significant
Harm ( Children Act 1989)
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Ill–treatment (including sexual abuse and
physical abuse)
Impairment of health(physical or mental) or
development compared to a similar child
Now includes impairment as a result of
witnessing ill-treatment of another
person(domestic violence) Adoption &
Children Act 2002
Threshold for
Significant Harm
There is no absolute
criteria but London
Procedures give guidance
“Significant harm can be
caused by one traumatic
event or a compilation of
events that interrupt,
change or damage the
child’s physical or
psychological
development.”
It is necessary to consider
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The severity of ill treatment,
the degree and extent of
physical harm,
the duration and frequency of
abuse and neglect,
the extent of pre-meditation
the degree of threat and
coercion, sadism and bizarre or
unusual elements in child
sexual abuse.
To understand significant harm…
 …. It is necessary to consider:
 The nature of harm, in terms of maltreatment or
failure to provide adequate care
 The impact on the child’s health or development
 The child’s development within the context of their
family and wider environment
 Any special needs, such as medical condition,
impairment or disability that may affect the child’s
development and care in the family
 The capacity of parents to meet the child’s needs
 The wider and environmental family context
Categories Of Abuse
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Physical Abuse
Sexual Abuse
Neglect
Emotional Abuse
Exercise: Recognising Abuse
Physical Abuse
Includes
 Shaking
 Hitting
 Burning/scalding
 Female Genital
Mutilation
 Fabricated and
Induced illness
 Drowning
 Suffocating
Possible signs
 Bruises (soft tissue areas )
 Grasp marks
 Bites
 Burns/scalds
 Fractures
 Large number of
differering aged marks
 Failure to seek medical
help/opposite
Sexual Abuse
Includes
 Forcing/enticing child to
take part in sexual
activity
 Contact,penetrative/non
penetrative
 Non contact eg
watching sexual
activity/pornography
 Encouraging
inappropriate sexual
behaviour
Possible signs
 Pregnancy where
father’s identity
concealed
 Genital bruising
 STDs/ UTIs
 Inappropriate
sexualised behaviour
 Child hinting of secrets
 Deliberate self-harm
/anorexia other
disturbance
Neglect
Includes
 Failure to meet physical
needs
 Failure to meet
psychological needs
 Failure to provide food,
shelter, clothing
 Failure to protect from
harm
 Failure to seek medical
care
Possible signs
 Malnutrition
 Dirty/cold environment
 Leaving young child
unattended
 Failure to protect from
physical danger
 Lack of supervision
 Lack of stimulation,
social contact,
education
Emotional Abuse
Includes
 Overly critical parenting
 Causing child to feel
unloved, worthless
 Inappropriate
expectations
 Causing children to feel
frightened
 Witnessing domestic
violence or other forms
of abuse
Possible signs
 Very low self esteem
 High level of anxiety
 Overly compliant/eager
to please
 Fearfulness/appearing
withdrawn
 Behavioural issues
 Self harm
What is your role?
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Recognising indicators of abuse
Recording and acting on concerns, referring to
designated colleague or Manager
Ensuring all communication with parents is
managed professionally and sensitively
If in doubt use consultation line
Making detailed accurate referral reports
Providing information as needed to Children’s
Social Care
Supporting child and family , being sensitive to
stress a referral can bring
Maintain confidentiality of written records
What to do if you have concerns
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Follow procedures
Talk to your manager or designated person
Listen to the child but don’t ask leading
questions
Record full information, who, what, when
Refer any concerns to Police or Children’s
services via named staff
Managing a Disclosure
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Listen carefully, do not interrupt the
child or ask any questions
Reassure the child that they have done
the right thing by telling someone
Do not promise confidentiality
Record the conversation ASAP include
date time, persons present and sign it
Safer Working Practice
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Importance of safer recruitment
Induction and training
Clear expectations re code of conduct
Awareness of role and maintaining
professional boundaries
Minimising risk of allegations
Clear systems to report concerns by children,
staff or parents
Open and transparent culture
Dealing with allegations
against staff or volunteers
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All allegations must be reported
immediately to your designated
person/manager who will refer to the
Local Authority Designated Officer for
threshold discussion
No automatic assumption of guilt but all
cases must be properly investigated
Exercise : Safeguarding
Scenarios
Making a referral
 This is what I am worried about
 This is what I have seen and/or heard: when, who
from and where
 This is what I have done
 What more do I need to do?
 If parents/carers/child are aware of this referral?
 Confirm name of person and next steps
 Who should I speak to if I am not happy with the
outcome
You can expect children’s services to..
 discuss your concerns with you
 decide what action is needed
 agree with you what the child and parents are told, by whom and
when
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If there are concerns about a child’s safety:
check whether the child has a child protection plan
consult with other agencies
take action to ensure the child is safe
involve the police if a crime may have been committed
tell you if they are taking no further action and why
acknowledge your written referral within one working day of receipt
What happens next?
When there is a likelihood of
continuing significant harm
s47 enquiries core
assessment
recognition and referral
child protection conference
initial assessment
child protection plan
strategy discussion
review
What parents worry about ?
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Sexual activity
Drugs
Gangs
Extremism
Discrimination
Dilution of culture and religion
Key Themes in perception
of abuse
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Honour
Respect
Cultural clashes in values
Faith
Mistrust of agencies
Working in Partnership
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Safeguarding agencies need to gain an
understanding of how abuse, in any family, is
understood in regard to Faith and culture. It has
implications for likelihood of harm, risk analysis,
input into what would be an effective protection
plan
Faiths/cultural groups- singularly and inter faith
need to grapple with arguments used to
minimise, deny or justify abuse on the grounds
of Faith.
Sources of Advice
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Barnet Children’s Service Advice and
Consultation Line 020 8359 4336
Local Contact details see handout
CommUNITY Barnet
Muslim Youth Helpline 0808 808 2008
NSPCC 0800 056 0566
Questions ?