Schools are on the frontline when it comes to identifying sexual abuse and most are well aware of their role. However, a recent report and a government consultation document are placing even greater responsibility on to schools for identifying the signs and symptoms.
A report from England’s Children’s Commissioner – entitled Protecting Children From Harm – and proposed changes to the statutory government guidance Keeping Children Safe in Education emphasise the responsibilities of every teacher and the training that they must have. Both documents seem to heighten what should be expected from schools and the level of involvement in assessment and case management that the teacher might have.
The Children’s Commissioner, Anne Longfield, notes in her report that the majority (around two-thirds) of sexual abuse cases take place in the home and children are unlikely to report it.
Children may not even realise that they are being sexually abused and many do not reveal their childhood experiences until they reach adulthood.
Ms Longfield wants schools to have more confidence in making referrals where signs and symptoms are spotted, rather than waiting for a disclosure that may never happen.
She claims that schools operate with a self-referral when they should be more proactive in recognising signs of abuse and improve training to enable this.
The knowledge of staff is a key component in tackling the “tip of the iceberg” that is sexual abuse and the message is that all school staff must be on the alert.
Dealing with disclosure
The Commissioner’s report questions the approach usually taken during a disclosure.
Staff have been trained not to lead the child but to allow them to volunteer information without being questioned. Some of the traditional guidance to school staff seems to be challenged in the Commissioner’s report and some will feel the need to have this area clarified. Just what is construed as “leading the victim” and what is simply seeking clarification?
The report states: “The dynamic which exists on the frontline, whereby professionals are torn between making enquiries and asking ‘leading questions’, was frequently raised by frontline professionals during site visits.
“These issues were also found in evidence submitted through the call for evidence and oral evidence sessions, with one site visit participant stating that ‘disclosure rates go up when you ask’.”
The report refers to four possibilities for “telling”:
- Hidden: a young person actively avoids telling, hides a situation or denies that anything is wrong.
- Signs and symptoms: a young person’s behaviour or presentation demonstrates that they are experiencing problems.
- Prompted telling: a young person tells verbally due to an initial response from a professional to a sign or symptom; or as a result of a young person having built sufficient trust in a professional to talk with them directly.
- Purposeful telling: a young person purposefully approaches someone to tell.
Colin Harris is headteacher at Warren Park Primary School in Havant and first took up the role in April 1991. He is well aware of the complexity and importance of child protection and as the headteacher of an inner city school he has plenty of examples to draw on.
“I would disagree with the idea of an increasing role for schools,” he told Headteacher Update. “In my experience we have always had that.”
Mr Harris and many other headteachers feel that they are already doing all they can to alert services where there are concerns.
However, it isn’t only the Children’s Commissioner who is implying that more needs to be done.
Early help
The need for abuse to be identified at an early stage is reinforced in the Department for Education’s revised draft document Keeping Children Safe in Education. A consultation over the planned revisions to this existing guidance came to a close on February 16 and, if approved, the changes will come into effect in September 2016.
The proposals make it clear that all staff are required to be aware of the early help process and understand their role in identifying emerging problems. They may be called upon to act as a lead professional and share information with other professionals.
This is a role that Mr Harris believes may not suit everyone: “It is not as easy to say ‘let’s train all the staff’ because specific individuals need to be identified who have the resilience and/or personality to be able to deal with this emotionally.”
Mr Harris describes the process in his school, which involves three CPLOs (child protection liaison officers): “Everything is recorded and passed to one of the three. They then involve one other while the third is deliberately kept out of the loop. This is so we have someone to go to for support if needed.”
It is proposed in the draft guidance that the frequency of training is no longer set at two years for the DSL (designated safeguarding lead) and that training should take place “at least” annually.
Although the DFL is there to provide support and give advice, the teacher on the frontline is no longer the instrument for reporting but a key part of the process of support, referral and assessment itself.
The new proposals make it clear that schools must ensure that the child protection policy is not only read but understood and applied by all members of staff.
Time to do the job
Increased dissemination of responsibility throughout the workforce does not mean less for the senior leadership team. Instead their responsibility for ensuring that staff have the means to carry out their responsibilities is increased.
It is emphasised that the DSL should be always available during term time (during school hours) for staff in the school to discuss any safeguarding concerns. A deputy must be available where this is not the case and staff must know who this deputy is.
The headteacher is responsible for ensuring that the DSL has time, funding, training and resources to provide advice and support to other staff.
They must have authority within the school and be able to take part in strategy and inter-agency meetings and assessment or support other staff to do so. Again, there is no assumption that it is only the DSL that takes on this role.
What this means for the senior leadership team
Although, at the time of writing, the proposals have not been finally confirmed, it is likely that we will see the Commissioner’s concerns translated into higher expectations for schools.
As such, it is perhaps worthwhile reviewing the child protection policy and your training and timetable schedules now.
Schools are recognised as being a key context in which all forms of abuse might be recognised and referred. Schools and teachers are vital in the identification of victims in the family environment through the emergence of other difficulties such as non-attendance, poor behaviour or bullying.
Schools must develop systems that enable information to be pulled together to identify those at risk. Not only the DSL, but every member of staff in the school has a role in implementing this system. School leaders must give them the tools to enable them to do this.
The Children’s Commissioner’s recommendations
Altogether the Children’s Commissioner makes 11 recommendations in her report. Those with most direct relevance to schools include:
- There should be compulsory lessons for life to understand healthy and safe relationships and to talk to an appropriate adult if they are worried about abuse.
- All schools should take the necessary steps to implement a whole-school approach to child protection where all school staff can identify the signs and symptoms of abuse and are equipped with the knowledge and support to respond effectively to disclosures of abuse.
- A new role of embedded social worker should be considered.
- All teachers in all schools should be trained and supported in understanding the signs and symptoms of child sexual abuse as part of initial teacher training and on-going CPD.
- From the moment of the initial disclosure children should receive a holistic package of support tailored to their needs, including therapeutic support to help them recover from their experiences.
Keeping Children Safe in Education – summary of the key proposed changes
Emphasise the role that all members of staff have in safeguarding and the fact that it is everyone’s responsibility. All staff must read and understand Part 1 of the guidance.
Greater priority placed on early help within the wider safeguarding system. All staff should:
- Be aware of the early help process.
- Understand their role in identifying emerging problems.
- Understand their role in sharing information and supporting the identification and assessment process.
- Be prepared to act as lead professional in an early help assessment.
- Receive regular refresher training, at appropriate intervals, as and when required (at least annually).
Clarification of the role of the designated safeguarding lead and the cover required for this role. Including that the DSL should have:
- The authority to carry out the role.
- The time, funding, training, resources and support needed to provide advice and support to other staff.
- The time, funding, training and resources to take part in strategy discussions and inter-agency meetings and/or support other staff in doing so.
- Regular training, at appropriate intervals, as and when required (at least annually).
A new section covers online safety and requires that:
- There are appropriate filters and appropriate monitoring systems in place.
- Governors and proprietors are confident that systems are in place.
- The school refers to the National Education Network for guidance on e-security (www.nen.gov.uk).
- Use of mobile technology is included in either the safeguarding or child protection policy.
A new section specifies children with SEND and emphasises:
- That it should not be assumed that indicators of possible abuse such as behaviour, mood and injury relate to the child’s impairment.
- That children with SEN can be more vulnerable to bullying.
- That children with SEN can have additional communication barriers.
Further information
- Draft: Keeping Children Safe in Education: Statutory guidance for schools and colleges, Department for Education consultation proposals: http://bit.ly/1QgEO5L
- Protecting Children From Harm: A critical assessment of child sexual abuse in the family network in England and priorities for action, Office of the Children’s Commissioner, November 2015:
http://bit.ly/244Sk0h - Oral Evidence: The Children’s Commissioner for England, minutes from the Education Select Committee evidence session with the Children’s Commissioner, January 2016: http://bit.ly/1KR6qw0