Don't make promises that you can't be sure to keep, e.g. "everything will be all right now". Reassure the child that they did nothing wrong and that you take what is said seriously. Don't promise confidentiality – never agree to keep secrets. You have a duty to report your concerns.
Reassure your child that he/she did nothing wrong and that you believe him/her. Listen and don't make assumptions. Listen more than you talk, and avoid advice giving or problem solving. Don't put words in your child's mouth or assume you know what he/she means or are going to say.
- What should you do if a child comes to you and tells you that they are being abused?
- Listen to what is being said without displaying shock or disbelief.
- Reassure the child, but only so far as is honest and reliable.
- Listen quietly, carefully and patiently.
When a child discloses abuse:
- Stay calm and listen.
- Go slowly.
- Reassure them that they have not done anything wrong.
- Be supportive.
- Gather essential facts.
- Tell what will happen next.
- Report.
- Make notes.
Make sure staff are trained, know how to respond to concerns and keep-up-to-date with policy and practice. Teach children and young people about staying safe in school and online. Maintain an environment where children feel confident to approach any member of staff if they have a worry or problem.
What to say to a child and how to respond
- Listen carefully to what they're saying.
- Give them the tools to talk.
- Let them know they've done the right thing by telling you.
- Tell them it's not their fault.
- Say you'll take them seriously.
- Don't confront the alleged abuser.
- Explain what you'll do next.
A child centred approach means keeping the child in focus when making decisions about their lives and working in partnership with them and their families. Whatever the form of abuse or neglect, practitioners should put the needs of children first when determining what action to take.
Good Practice Guide – Responding to Disclosures
➢ Accept what the person is saying – do not question the person or get them to justify what they are saying – reassure the person that you take what they have said seriously. ➢ Don't 'interview' the person; just listen carefully and calmly to what they are saying.It is a meeting to discuss concerns about the care of your child. Its main purpose is to see whether your child is at risk of harm and, if so, to agree what needs to be done to reduce this risk. The Conference can decide to make your child the subject of a Child Protection Plan.
The 12 rights of the child. 1) Every child has the right to be born well, and to be cared and raised well. 2) Every child has the right to live with a family, who loves, cares and teaches good morals to him or her. 3) Every child has the right to have proper care and importance from other people.
In practice, Safeguarding is the policies and practices that schools and Governing Bodies employ to keep children safe and promote their well-being. Child Protection is a term used to describe the activity that is undertaken to protect specific children who are suffering or likely to suffer significant harm.
The best country for children is Singapore, followed by Slovenia, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Iceland, Italy and South Korea.
The overall aim of the child protection plan is to: ensure the child is safe and prevent them from suffering further harm; promote the child's welfare, health and development; support the family and wider family members to protect and promote the welfare of their child provided it is in the best interests of the child.
Child protection is the protection of children from violence, exploitation, abuse and neglect. Child protection systems are a set of usually government-run services designed to protect children and young people who are underage and to encourage family stability.
Types of abuse:
- Physical abuse.
- Domestic violence or abuse.
- Sexual abuse.
- Psychological or emotional abuse.
- Financial or material abuse.
- Modern slavery.
- Discriminatory abuse.
- Organisational or institutional abuse.
Tip Sheet: Four R's of Prevention. The beginning of the school year is a great time for adults to review their understanding of the Four R's of preventing child sexual abuse—Rules, Read, Respect, and Responsibility—and to get back to the basics of nurturing kids.
There are seven child safe standards:
- Standard 1: Governance and leadership.
- Standard 2: Clear commitment to child safety.
- Standard 3: Code of conduct.
- Standard 4: Human resource practices.
- Standard 5: Responding and reporting.
- Standard 6: Risk management and mitigation.
- Standard 7: Empowering children.
The POCSO Act was passed to strengthen legal provisions for the protection of children below 18 years of age from sexual abuse and exploitation. Under this Act, if any girl under 18 is seeking abortion the service provider is compelled to register a complaint of sexual assault with the police.
They can protect girls and boys from violations such as abuse, sexual exploitation, trafficking and work in hazardous conditions, as well as harmful practices, including child marriage.
Section 31 of the Children Act 1989 – Care Order
The court can create a care order under Section 31(1) (a) of the Children Act, placing a child in the care of a designated local authority, with parental responsibility being shared between the parents and the local authority.Reasonable grounds for a child protection or welfare concern include:
- Evidence, for example an injury or behaviour, that is consistent with abuse and is unlikely to have been caused in any other way.
- Any concern about possible sexual abuse.
- Consistent signs that a child is suffering from emotional or physical neglect.
Beyond parental control (BPC) refers to children or young persons (CYPs) below 16 years old who may be in persistent conflict with their parents, school or other authorities. These CYPs may be displaying serious at-risk behaviours.
Get advice as soon as possible.
If Social Services are getting things wrong, it is better that criticisms are made by the Solicitor, not the parent/grandparent. Get Legal Advice from a Solicitor who is a member of the Law Society Child Law Accreditation Scheme; also known as the Law Society Children Panel.- Introduction.
- Level 1 – Children with No Additional Needs; Universal Services.
- Level 2 – Children with Additional Needs who are Showing Early Signs of Vulnerability.
- Level 3 – Children in Need who Require Statutory or Specialist Services.
- Level 4 – Children who are Suffering or Likely to Suffer Significant Harm.
Under section 47 of the Children Act 1989, where a local authority has reasonable cause to suspect that a child (who lives or is found in their area) is suffering or is likely to suffer significant harm, it has a duty to make such enquiries as it considers necessary to decide whether to take any action to safeguard or
Children in need are defined in law as children who are aged under 18 and: need local authority services to achieve or maintain a reasonable standard of health or development. need local authority services to prevent significant or further harm to health or development.
Each LSCB has produced a document setting out the Thresholds for Children's Social Care intervention. The term 'threshold' refers to the point at which the local authority's Children's Social Care are likely to accept a referral for a child, young person or their family.
The Threshold Stage – there must be sufficient reasons to justify making a care or supervision Order. This can only be passed if the Court agrees that: Things have happened which have already caused significant harm to a child. There is a serious risk that significant harm will be suffered in the future.
