safeguarding-children

[safeguarding-children]

Protecting Children: A Whole Guide

Protecting children is everyone’s responsibility – families, communities and institutions. It means all children are safe from harm, neglect and abuse and have what they need for their physical, emotional and psychological well-being. This has become more prominent in recent years with high profile cases of child abuse and neglect and changing laws and guidelines to better protect children.

In this blog we will be using the PAS framework to look at safeguarding children using factual data and real life case studies. We will look at the problem, the agitation or consequences of not dealing with the issue and the solution – what safeguarding looks like in practice.

Problem: The Scale and Speed of Safeguarding

Children are the most vulnerable members of society. They rely on adults for protection, support and guidance but unfortunately many children around the world are abused, neglected and exploited. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child outlines the principles for child protection but many countries are still not implementing these guidelines fully.

Facts and Figures

The World Health Organization (WHO) says up to 1 billion children aged 2-17 have experienced physical, sexual or emotional violence or neglect in the past year alone. In the UK the NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children) estimates one in five children have suffered some form of abuse in their childhood. These statistics show the scale of child maltreatment and why we need to safeguard.

Abuse often happens in places where children should feel safest – their homes, schools or care institutions. Abuse can be physical, emotional or sexual and neglect can manifest in many ways – not providing basic needs or leaving children in unsafe environments. Safeguarding is to prevent these situations from happening and to intervene when they do.

Case Study: Victoria Climbié

A high profile case in the UK that brought child safeguarding to the forefront was that of Victoria Climbié, an 8 year old girl who died in 2000 after months of abuse by her great-aunt and great-aunt’s boyfriend. Despite being seen by multiple health and social care professionals, none of them took the necessary action to protect her. Victoria’s death exposed the failings in the UK’s child protection services and led to a major overhaul of safeguarding policies and procedures including the introduction of the Children Act 2004.

Agitation: The Consequences of Not Safeguarding

Not safeguarding children has far reaching consequences not just for the individual child but for society as a whole. Children who are abused or neglected will face long term challenges including mental health issues, difficulties in forming healthy relationships and problems with educational and career attainment.

Emotional and Psychological Impact

Children not protected from harm will suffer from a range of emotional and psychological issues. These include anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and difficulties with emotional regulation. In many cases the trauma they experience in childhood will follow them into adulthood. Research shows that abused children are more likely to engage in harmful behaviour later in life – substance abuse, self harm and even criminal activity.

Educational Impact

Neglect and abuse also affects a child’s education. Children not safe at home or in their community will miss school or struggle with their work due to stress, anxiety or lack of support. The UK Department for Education found that children who have been abused are more likely to fall behind in their studies and less likely to reach their full potential.

Case Study: Baby P

Another high profile case in the UK is that of Peter Connelly, known as Baby P, who died in 2007 after months of abuse. Like Victoria Climbié, Peter was seen by social services and health professionals but the signs of abuse were not acted upon. His death sparked a public outcry and a renewed focus on child safeguarding. The Baby P case highlighted the devastating consequences of not intervening in time and the need for better safeguarding procedures.

Solution: What Safeguarding Looks Like

Safeguarding requires a multi agency approach where individuals, communities and institutions work together to protect children from harm. This includes clear policies, robust training for professionals who work with children and systems that allow for early identification and intervention in cases of abuse or neglect.

Clear Policies and Legal Frameworks

One of the key elements of safeguarding is having clear, enforceable policies that outline how to identify, report and address cases of abuse or neglect. In the UK the Children Act 1989 and Children Act 2004 provide the legal framework for safeguarding children. The 2004 Act introduced key reforms including the creation of Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) and the requirement for all organisations that work with children to have safeguarding policies in place.

Across the world safeguarding policies now require all adults who work with children – in schools, health settings or social services – to be trained to spot the signs of abuse and act.

Early Intervention

One of the main parts of safeguarding is early identification. Professionals need to be able to spot the signs of abuse or neglect and know when to intervene. This could be physical injuries, changes in behaviour or other warning signs that a child is at risk.

In cases where abuse is suspected immediate action is needed. This could be reporting to a safeguarding lead, contacting social services or even the police in serious cases. Safeguarding frameworks often have a clear “referral pathway” which outlines the steps to take to ensure concerns are addressed quickly and properly.

Multi-Agency Working

Safeguarding relies on collaboration between multiple agencies. This includes schools, healthcare providers, social services, the police and community organisations. Multi-agency working ensures all the relevant professionals are involved in protecting a child and that information is shared to prevent children falling through the gaps.

In the case of Victoria Climbié one of the main failures was a lack of communication between agencies. Different professionals knew parts of Victoria’s situation but didn’t share information properly and as a result missed opportunities to intervene. To address this modern safeguarding protocols stress the importance of a coordinated multi-agency response to suspected abuse.

Support for Children and Families

Safeguarding isn’t just about preventing abuse; it’s also about providing the support for children who have been harmed or are at risk. This means counselling, social work services and educational support to help children recover from trauma and live healthy happy lives.

In many cases support is also needed for families. Abuse and neglect often stems from complex issues such as poverty, mental health problems or substance abuse. By addressing these underlying issues professionals can help create safer environments for children and reduce the risk of future harm.

Case Study: The Children Act 2014

The Children Act 2014 in the UK strengthened the safeguarding framework. This legislation brought in early intervention and multi-agency working. One of its main provisions was the creation of the Child Protection Information Sharing (CP-IS) system which allows healthcare and social care professionals to share information about children at risk. This has already made a big difference in identifying and protecting vulnerable children by not missing information when children move between services.

Conclusion: The Way Forward for Children

Protecting children is everyone’s responsibility. We need to be vigilant, work together and take action. The consequences of not protecting children are devastating, as we’ve seen in cases like Victoria Climbié and Baby P. We need robust policies, early intervention and multi agency working.

With a clear law, professionals trained and systems in place for timely intervention we can work towards a future where all children are safe and have what they need to flourish.

We can learn from the past and improve safeguarding so every child can grow up in a safe place. Protecting children isn’t just a moral obligation – it’s our responsibility.