Child Protection Awareness Raising Training For Schools

Child Protection Support Service for Schools
Child Protection Awareness

CPSSS
Raising Training for Schools

Disclaimer
CPSSS
The information provided in this

presentation set is for guidance only and
should not be regarded as a complete and
authoritative interpretation of the law
CPSSS
The working Context

United Nations Convention
on the Rights of the Child
Article 3
CPSSS
Right to have his/her welfare considered

paramount in all decisions taken about
him/her
Article 12
Right to be heard
Article 19
Right to be protected from abuse and neglect
THE CHILDREN (NI)
ORDER 1995
CPSSS
Parental Partnership
responsibility
Paramountcy
Prevention Protection
Sexual Offences (NI) Order
2008 (Implemented February
2009)
Key Changes
CPSSS
 Sets out a whole new series of

offences, with tough sentences, to
protect children and young people
from sexual abuse
 Addresses 21st century challenges

such as internet pornography and
grooming of children for abuse.
Sexual Offences (NI) Order
2008 (Implemented February
2009)
CPSSS
 New criminal offence of abuse of trust

 New offence of meeting a child following
sexual grooming
 Lowers age of consent from 17 to 16 years
of age
 All penetrative sex involving a child under 13
years is regarded as rape and carries a
maximum sentence of life imprisonment
 Sexual activity involving children aged under
13 years should be reported to Social
Services
Social
Networking
Individuals who work with children and
young people should always maintain
CPSSS
appropriate professional boundaries and

not attempt to establish an inappropriate
relationship which might include:
 communication of a personal nature
 inappropriate dialogue through the
internet
 the sending of emails or text messages
of
an inappropriate nature
HUMAN RIGHTS ACT 1998
Article 8: Right to respect for private and family life,
home and correspondence

CPSSS
“Need to
know” Confidentiality regarding
principle information known and
held about a child/family
including written
information
Principal/designated
teachers should decide
who needs to know
DUTY OF CARE
CPSSS
 The primary responsibility for keeping

children safe rests with their parents who
should ensure that they are always safe
from danger in the home and risk from
others
 Schools owe a legal ‘Duty of Care’

towards the young people in their
charge. This is the responsibility they
have in relation to pupils who are
entrusted to them.
CPSSS
Policy
Schools Child Protection
Pastoral Care in
Schools: Child
Protection DENI 1999
All staff need to know:

CPSSS
 How to identify signs and symptoms of

abuse
 The relevant child protection procedures
 How to talk to children about whom there are
concerns
 The designated and deputy designated
teachers and their role in child
protection
Duties Under the
Education and Libraries
(NI) Order 2003
CPSSS
Duty on Governors to safeguard

and promote the welfare of
children.
Article 18
Duty on Governors to determine measures to
be taken with a view to protecting pupils from
abuse in school or otherwise and to prepare a
written statement of these measures that is
available to parents. This ‘policy’ should be
reviewed annually.
Duties Under the
Education and Libraries
(NI) Order 2003
CPSSS
Article 19
Duty on Governors to consult with registered
pupils on the principles reflected in the
school’s discipline policy
CPSSS
Signs and Symptoms

‘Co-operating to
Protect Children’
CPSSS
“Children may be abused by a parent,

a sibling or other relative, a carer, an
acquaintance or a stranger, who may
be an adult or young person. The
abuse may be the result of a deliberate
act or of a failure on the part of a
parent or carer to act or to provide
proper care, or both.”
WHAT IS CHILD ABUSE?
Exercise 1
CPSSS
What in your opinion

constitutes child abuse?
WHAT IS CHILD ABUSE?
Four Categories:
CPSSS
 Physical
 Sexual
 Emotional
 Neglect
Definition of Physical
Abuse
 Physical abuse is the deliberate physical
CPSSS
injury to a child, or the wilful or neglectful

failure to prevent physical injury or
suffering
 This may include hitting, shaking, throwing,

poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning,
suffocation, confinement to a room or cot,
or inappropriate giving drugs to control
behaviour
ACPC Regional Child Protection Policy and Procedures

Definition of Sexual
Abuse
 Sexual abuse involves forcing or
enticing a child to take part in sexual

CPSSS
activities. The activities may involve

physical contact, including penetrative
or non- penetrative acts
 They may include non contact activities

such as involving children in looking at,
or in the production of, pornographic
material or watching sexual activities, or
encouraging children to behave in
sexually inappropriate ways
Definition of Emotional
Abuse
 Emotional abuse is the persistent
CPSSS
emotional ill-treatment of a child such

as to cause severe and persistent
adverse effects on a child’s emotional
development
 It may involve conveying to a child

that he is worthless or unloved,
inadequate, or valued only insofar as he
meets the needs of another person
Definition of Emotional
Abuse (cont’d)
 It may involve causing a child to feel
frightened or in danger, or the exploitation
CPSSS
or corruption of a child
 Some level of emotional abuse is involved

in all types of ill treatment of a child,
though it may occur alone
 Domestic violence, adult mental health

problems and parental substance misuse
may expose a child to emotional harm
Definition of Neglect
Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a
child’s physical, emotional and/or
psychological needs, likely to cause
CPSSS
significant harm
It may involve a parent or carer failing to
provide adequate food, shelter and
clothing, failing to protect a child form
physical harm or danger, failing to ensure
access to medical care or treatment, lack
of stimulation or lack of supervision
It may also include non- organic failure to
thrive
CPSSS
“The first step in recognising abuse

is the ability to entertain the
possibility of abuse taking place”
S.Sgroi 1982
Definition of children in
need
The Children (NI) Order 1995 (Article17) states

CPSSS
that a child shall be taken to be in need if:
 he is unlikely to achieve or maintain, or to

have the opportunity of achieving or
maintaining, a reasonable standard of health
or development without the provision for him
of services by an authority under this Part;
Definition of children in need
cont’d
 his health or development is likely

CPSSS
to be significantly impaired, or
further impaired without the
provision for him of such services;
or
 he is disabled, and ‘family’, in

relation to such a child, includes any
person who has parental
responsibility for the child and any
other person with whom he has
Who are children in need?
Children who:
CPSSS
 are considered to be failing at school

 have offended
 are experiencing behavioural difficulties
 are in need of protection
 are experiencing ill-health, either physical or
psychological
 are having difficulty accessing services
 are homeless
 are unaccompanied and seeking asylum
Who are children in need?
Children who:
CPSSS
 are exposed to domestic violence

 are misusing substances
 are teenage parents
 are carers
 are disabled
CPSSS
Roles & Responsibilities

Role of Designated
Teacher
 To discuss child protection concerns with
CPSSS
school/support staff and maintain accurate

records
 To share policy with the parents
 To participate in child protection training
 To raise awareness in child protection with
all school staff
 To refer to Social Services or PSNI
 To notify the ELB designated officer
 To keep the school principal informed
Role of Designated
Teacher
 To notify the Chair of Board of Governors
CPSSS
when allegation is against Principal

 To take the lead in the development of the
school’s child protection policy
 To promote a child protection ethos within
the school
 To provide written report to Governors on
child protection issues
 To train all school staff
 To include information about the
preventative curriculum
Your School’s ‘Safeguarding
team’
 Principal
 Designated Teacher
 Deputy Designated Teacher
 Designated person on Board of
Governors
Key issues in Child
Abuse
 Be open to the possibility that it exists
and may be a factor in a child’s life
CPSSS
 Many forms of abuse may not show

physical signs
 Children communicate/indicate that
they are suffering abuse through
–Behaviour
–Attitude
–Drawing
–Via friends
Key issues in Child
Abuse – (cont’d)
CPSSS
 All staff must follow child protection

procedures {DENI 99/10} rather than allowing
a fear of over-reacting to inhibit their duty to
report/refer
 Dealing with child protection disclosures does

raise anxieties
remember
 It is rare for children to make false allegations
about abuse
HOW TO RESPOND
Complaint made or concern observed

CPSSS
Tell the Designated Teacher
DT will tell the Principal
If appropriate referral to
SSD/PSNI
CPSSS You are not being asked to
unearth or
investigate
Child Abuse
but to pass on your concern

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Principal/DT will notify ELB and CCMS

CPSSS
If in doubt about referral DT can

contact SSD/ELB/CCMS for advice
DT will tell complainant what he/she

has done
Dealing with
Disclosure
Do Don’t
 Stay calm
CPSSS
 Panic
 Listen  Promise to keep secrets
 Accept  Ask leading questions
 Reassure  Make the child repeat
the story unnecessarily
 Explain what you are going
to do  Delay
 Record accurately  Start to investigate
 Seek support for yourself  Do nothing
Always…
 Put the welfare of the child first

CPSSS
 Treat all young people equally with respect and

dignity
 Maintain appropriate distance with young people
 Keep a written record of any inappropriate body
contact with a child
 Report without delay any accusations made
against you or your colleagues
Never….
 Engage in rough, physical or sexually provocative games with

children including horseplay
CPSSS
 Allow or engage in any form of inappropriate touching

 Allow children to use foul, sexualised or discriminatory
language unchallenged
 Make sexualised suggestive comments to children even in fun
 Reduce a child to tears as a form of control
Never….
 Allow allegations made by a child to go unrecorded or

not acted upon
CPSSS
 Undertake personal care of children (There may be

exceptions to this)
 Invite or allow children to stay with you at your home
 Share mobile phone details with children ~ yours or
theirs
 Send text messages to children
 Take photographs/videos of children
CPSSS Being alone with Pupils
 Ensure that adults/children are close by
 Leave door open/adult can sit in view
 Avoid taking children on their own in your

car
Best Practice in Recording and
Why? Record-keeping
 Not relying on memory
CPSSS
 Good communication
 Evidence
 School procedures
 Professional duty/accountability – it is your protection under
your “duty to care”
When?
 As soon as possible
 Note date and time if it is some time after
Allegations against a
member of staff
CPSSS
 Staff who have behaved inappropriately or not

acted in the best interest of the child may be
subject to the: schools/Education and Library
Board/CCMS disciplinary procedures
 Where it is alleged that a member of staff has

abused a child they may be subject to an
investigation by Social Services and/or Police
Allegations against a
member of staff (cont’d)
CPSSS
 Consideration may be given to suspension

on a precautionary basis pending the
outcome of the investigation
 Disciplinary procedures may then be

initiated as a recommendation of the child
protection investigation
EVERYBODY’S
RESPONSIBILITY
THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST

AND ATTENDANCE

Child Protection Awareness Raising Training For Schools

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Child Protection Support Service for Schools

Child Protection Awareness

Raising Training for Schools

The information provided in this

The working Context

Right to have his/her welfare considered

 Sets out a whole new series of

 Addresses 21st century challenges

 New criminal offence of abuse of trust

appropriate professional boundaries and

home and correspondence

 The primary responsibility for keeping

 Schools owe a legal ‘Duty of Care’

All staff need to know:

 How to identify signs and symptoms of

Duty on Governors to safeguard

Signs and Symptoms

“Children may be abused by a parent,

What in your opinion

injury to a child, or the wilful or neglectful

 This may include hitting, shaking, throwing,

ACPC Regional Child Protection Policy and Procedures

enticing a child to take part in sexual

activities. The activities may involve

 They may include non contact activities

emotional ill-treatment of a child such

 It may involve conveying to a child

 Some level of emotional abuse is involved

 Domestic violence, adult mental health

“The first step in recognising abuse

The Children (NI) Order 1995 (Article17) states

that a child shall be taken to be in need if:

 he is unlikely to achieve or maintain, or to

 his health or development is likely

 he is disabled, and ‘family’, in

 are considered to be failing at school

 are exposed to domestic violence

Roles & Responsibilities

school/support staff and maintain accurate

when allegation is against Principal

 Many forms of abuse may not show

 All staff must follow child protection

 Dealing with child protection disclosures does

Complaint made or concern observed

Tell the Designated Teacher

DT will tell the Principal

but to pass on your concern

Principal/DT will notify ELB and CCMS

If in doubt about referral DT can

DT will tell complainant what he/she

 Put the welfare of the child first

 Treat all young people equally with respect and

 Engage in rough, physical or sexually provocative games with

 Allow or engage in any form of inappropriate touching

 Allow allegations made by a child to go unrecorded or

 Undertake personal care of children (There may be

 Ensure that adults/children are close by

 Leave door open/adult can sit in view

 Avoid taking children on their own in your

 Staff who have behaved inappropriately or not

 Where it is alleged that a member of staff has

 Consideration may be given to suspension

 Disciplinary procedures may then be