A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK FOR SCHOOLS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

During the preparation of this Handbook advice and support was received from a number of individuals and agencies notably David Settle, ACPC Development Worker, Members of CAPE (Child Abuse and Protection in Education) and other members of the Durham ACPC member agencies, especially those in the Education Department and Social Services. The help and support of colleagues in schools – those involved in the initial 30 schools survey, those who have been involved in commenting upon the text of the Handbook and those working to produce the self-review practice guide – their help is also gratefully acknowledged.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 CONTENTS

Page

1. INTRODUCTION.

2. THE ROLE OF THE LEA

3. THE IMMEDIATE RESPONSE GUIDE - A QUICK REFERENCE TO MAKING A REFERRAL

 A Disclosure.

 The Signs and Symptoms of Abuse.

 How to Make a Referral.

 When to Make a Referral.

 To Whom to Make a Referral.

 An Allegation Against a Member of Staff.

 The Next Steps

- supporting the child - the strategy meeting - feedback.

4. MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS WITHIN SCHOOL

 Staff Structures and the Delegation of Responsibility.

 Procedures for Responding to Disclosures and Possible Evidence of Abuse.

 The Decision Making Process

- to refer or not to refer - Child Protection or Children in Need - signs and symptoms of abuse - keeping records - monitoring children who may be abused - the importance of good record keeping and monitoring - building on past experience.

 The Referral Process

- making a referral - the process - communications with parents/carers about a referral - the strategy discussion.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Page

 The Initial Child Protection Conference

- the procedure - the report to the Child Protection Conference.

 The Monitoring Meeting.

 The Key Worker.

 The Core Group.

 The Core Assessment.

 The Review Child Protection Conference.

 The Child Protection Register.

5. INTER-AGENCY WORKING

 Investing in Professional Partnerships.

 Dene House Comprehensive School - A Model.

 Coundon Primary School - A Model.

6. THE SCHOOL CHILD PROTECTION POLICY AND GOOD PRACTICE GUIDANCE

 Policy Development.

 Policy Dissemination.

 Policy into Practice

- the characteristics of good child protection practice in school - the characteristics of poor child protection practice in school.

 Policy Review.

 Self-Review in Child Protection.

 The Role of Governors.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Page

7. THE SAFE SCHOOL

 The Physical Environment.  The Recruitment of Staff and Volunteers

- safe recruitment procedures - recruitment of supply staff and short notice appointments - teachers employed by staffing agencies - student placements - recruitment of volunteers and appropriate supervision - occasional volunteers - staff employed by contractors - confidentiality.

 Professional Conduct

- private interviews - physical contact or ‘touch’ - physical contact involved in teaching elements of the Curriculum - children with special educational needs - guidelines for good practice in intimate care - physical control of pupils.

 Using the Curriculum to Protect Children.

 Approaches to Bullying or Peer Abuse.

 Approaches to Drug Misuse.

8. SCHOOL VALUES AND CULTURE

 The Listening School - Children, Families and Staff - key factors - children speaking and adults listening to disclosures

* children having difficulty in telling what is happening * gender issues * issues of ethnicity * issues of disability * adults listening to disclosures.

 The Welcoming School - Children, Families and Staff.

 The Supporting School - what children may be feeling - assessing the needs of an abused child and supporting the child - supporting staff.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Page

9. THE SCHOOL CONTEXT

 The Nature of the Local Community

- understanding the nature of domestic violence in the community and the impact on child abuse - understanding the nature of mental health problems in the community and the impact on child abuse - understanding the nature of substance misuse in the community and the impact on child abuse.

10. CONFIDENTIALITY

 Between Agencies.

 At Disclosure.

 With Parents.

 ‘Need to Know’.

 Communication with School.

 A Child Protection File.

 About a Child’s Sexual Activity.

 Governors.

 Child Protection Conference Reports.

 Volunteers.

 Domestic Violence.

11. KNOWING THE NETWORK.

12. TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

 Basic Training for All Staff.

 Training for the Designated Teacher.

13. CONCLUSION.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 APPENDICES

Page

1. Focused Questions which may be asked when making a Referral.

2. Confirmation of Referral Form.

3. A Child Protection File - A Model - Cestria Primary School.

4. Report for Initial Child Protection Conference - A Model.

5. A Child Protection Plan - A Model.

6. Report for Review Child Protection Conference - A Model.

7. Self-Review Inventory - A Model.

8. List of Those Requiring Police Clearance.

9. Volunteers - Child Protection Declaration.

10. Further Advice on Allegations Concerning Staff.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 INTRODUCTION

In March, 1998, research was undertaken by David Settle, ACPC Development Worker, into the Child Protection arrangements in 39 Durham schools. The remit for the research was:

 to produce an accurate report of the needs of a range of schools regarding child abuse, child protection and child protection practice in County Durham schools;

 to produce an outline specification of the guidance required in Durham schools to assist them:

- to protect the needs of children subject to abuse; - to seek advice in an acceptable and appropriate way at times when they have unsubstantiated concerns; and - to develop their practice to fulfil the requirements of the published Area Child Protection Committee procedures;

 to identify the need for other materials or proposed actions pertinent to the arrangements for effective child protection in Durham schools; and

 to produce an indication of the current position of the baseline of child protection practice in Durham schools.

The detailed findings of the survey can be found in the Review report (available from Pupil Services, Education Department). In brief, it is noted that there is a consistent desire on the part of those responsible for Child Protection in Durham schools to fulfil their responsibilities in order to protect children from abuse and significant harm. There is a consistently expressed view of the importance of listening to children actively and with sensitivity, and that schools should develop an ethos where it is safe for children and young people to speak out about issues which are sensitive, which hurt them or cause concern.

The survey revealed that schools, especially nursery and primary schools, wish to develop good working relationships with parents, and feel that in some cases the need to work within procedures can jeopardise that relationship, which they perceive as a trusting relationship that especially supports children in need or those subject to abuse.

The survey also revealed a range of experience in dealing with allegations of abuse including physical and sexual abuse, mainly emanating from the home setting, but also including instances of alleged abuse by staff. Many school staff recognise that they are dealing constantly with children and young people in need, which presents a wider challenge to their schools, and within the children in need group there is a smaller group presenting with possible instances of abuse.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 1 - MAY 2002 Professional relationships are recognised as being vital to the process of supporting children. In some cases these relationships were good, founded on an investment of time and sound communication and mutual understanding of the roles each party plays. In other cases, relationships lack trust and mutual respect and this is a cause for concern.

The findings also demonstrated some variation on the school’s identification of training needs, and in the approach to record keeping and monitoring strategies.

The participation in Child Protection Conference and core group activities was recognised as important whilst also recognising the time consuming nature of full preparation for such meetings. The participation of other parties in such groups was very varied and the findings were that all parties should demonstrate responsibility in this field.

Whilst the ACPC procedures were found to be clear and readily accessible by Head Teachers and Designated Teachers, the view of those interviewed was that they would welcome clear and practical guidance to help them deal effectively with Child Protection matters.

This Handbook is an attempt to give that clear and practical guidance. The specification generated by the research has been broadly followed, as a response to the needs generated by the findings.

Within the Handbook there are two sections - the first, a “Quick Reference Guide” which gives direct information about making a referral and which makes reference to the location of more detailed information available in the main text. The second, fuller section, not only expands upon procedures but also encompasses guidance on developing a ‘Child Protecting School’ including a model for reviewing a school’s practice.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 2 - MAY 2002 THE ROLE OF THE LEA

The LEA has a responsibility to promote good practice both in terms of protecting children and securing good outcomes for children. In this connection the LEA is a contributing member of the Durham Area Child Protection Committee and has agreed to work within the procedures produced by the ACPC. This means that schools and other education services have a duty to adhere to and follow the procedures.

The LEA promotes the latest guidance from the DfEE (Circular 10/95) and significant guidance on protection of children - Circular 9/93 - the Protection of Children: Disclosure of Criminal Background of Those with Access to Children and Circular 11/95 - Misconduct of Teachers and Workers with Children and Young Persons.

From Circular 10/95 the LEA:

 has a senior officer with responsibility for Child Protection within the LEA;  provides training (Child Protection) for schools and other educational services;  ensures that there is a Designated Teacher in all LEA schools aware of the responsibilities of that role;  liaises with other agencies in matters relating to Child Protection;  accepts that the role of school, and other LEA staff is to identify and inform, and not to investigate - the investigating agencies being Social Services and the Police;  receives copies of all referrals made by schools.

The LEA has drawn up the LEA Child Protection Policy and offers guidance and support for staff and schools through the Pupil Services Unit at County Hall.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 3 - MAY 2002 THE IMMEDIATE RESPONSE

A QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE TO RECEIVING DISCLOSURES AND MAKING REFERRALS

This section is designed to help staff focus their responses and direct the appropriate action in the event of the need to make a referral.

Remember: Advice is available from the Pupil Services Child Protection Team (0191-3833277/3302/4450) or the Team Manager (Children and Families) of the local Social Services Office (see Page 108).

The Decision to Make a Referral

This will follow concerns raised by adults, other children and/or the child.

A DISCLOSURE

Important points on receiving disclosures:

 Listen carefully to what is said.  Ask only open questions such as:

How did that happen? What was happening at the time? Anything else you want to tell me?

and only ask questions to the point at which it is apparent that abuse has occurred or to clarify points, however, do not stop the person from continuing to speak if he/she wishes to do so.

 Do not ask any questions which may be considered as suggesting what might have happened, or who has perpetrated the abuse.

 Do not force the child/person to repeat what he/she has said in front of another person.

 Do not promise to keep the information secret; breaking a child’s confidence would be inappropriate, therefore, it is better to say that you might have to tell someone if what is said is very important.

 Note briefly the details using the child’s words where possible. Date and time and sign your record.

 Further guidance on listening to disclosures appears on Page 22 of this guide.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 4 - MAY 2002 Child abuse concerns should be referred immediately to the designated teacher or Head Teacher. However, should neither be available, the school’s procedures should allow for an individual member of staff to make a referral. The referral should not be delayed because, for example, the designated teacher is out of school.

THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF ABUSE

ACPC Procedures in Section 4.2 detail the signs and symptoms of abuse, and these should be referred to as a guide to the decision making process. For convenience they are reproduced below.

It should be remembered that, especially in cases of sexual abuse, there may be no outward signs or symptoms, and in fact the child may appear totally normal in the safe environment offered by the school.

Remember that it is not a school’s responsibility to decide whether the abuse is physical, emotional, sexual or neglect. The fact that abuse has taken place or that there is the suspicion of abuse should cause a referral to be made.

Further guidance on signs and symptoms can also be found at Page 26 of this Handbook.

Common Characteristics of Abuse Situations

Certain characteristics have been frequently noted in child abuse situations and whereas child abuse can occur in any situation, a high concentration of these should raise awareness regarding possible risk. These include:

 parental history of deprivation/abuse/rejection;  history of unstable and damaging adult relationships;  history of drug, alcohol or substance abuse;  history of mental illness;  violence, in or out of the home, including self-harm;  socially isolated;  previous concerns about the care of this, or any other, child;  bonding impeded;  expectation that the child will meet parents’ needs;  perception of the child as ‘difficult’, or blaming the child;  jealousy and rivalry in relation to the child;  unusual possessiveness towards a child, evidence of a ‘special’ relationship;  not allowing the child to mix normally with peers;  delay in seeking treatment for child;  conflicting explanations or no explanations for injuries;  inappropriate response to a child’s condition;  resistance to professional intervention by way of overt hostility or passive lack of co-operation;  lies and deceit in dealings with professionals;  blocking access to the child;  reluctance of child to undress in certain situations (e.g. school P.E.).

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 5 - MAY 2002 Some Possible Signs of Physical Abuse

(a) Physical

 Any bruising on a baby.  Fractures on a baby.  Bruises and scratches to face and head.  Two black eyes at once.  Torn upper lip frenulum.  Fingertip bruising on front and back of chest (gripping)  Finger or hand marks on any part of the body.  Bite marks or pinch marks on any part of the body.  Ligature marks on either neck, arms or legs.  Cigarette burns.  Linear or shaped burns or bruises (e.g. iron/radiator).  ‘Non-cascade’ scalds.  Head injury. May be no outward sign of injury.  Poisoning.  Untreated injuries.  Bald patches.  Frozen watchfulness.

(b) Emotional

 Fearful.  Withdrawn.

(c) Behavioural

 Withdrawal from physical contact.  Flinching at sudden movements.  Fear of returning home.  Fear of medical help.  Chronic running away.  Aggressive behaviour.

(d) Indirect

 Delay in seeking advice/treatment.  Lack of adequate explanation for injuries.  Injuries of different ages.  Lack of concern by parent/carer.  Arms/legs covered in hot weather.  Admission of punishment which appears excessive.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 6 - MAY 2002 Some Possible Signs of Neglect and Failure to Thrive

(a) Physical

 Unkempt appearance, poor personal hygiene.  Poor skin condition.  Drop through growth/weight percentiles.  Small stature (where not familial).  Repeated accidents.  Accidental self-poisoning.  Pot belly.  Dry sparse hair.  Severe nappy rash.  Swelling of hands.  Extremities - pink, mottled, cold.  Emaciation.

(b) Emotional

 Low self-esteem.  Withdrawn or attention seeking.

(c) Behavioural

 Frequent lateness/non-attendance at school.  Destructive tendencies.  Neurotic behaviour (e.g. rocking, hair twisting, thumb-sucking).  Chronic running away.  Compulsive stealing.  Scavenging of food and clothes.  Always hungry.

(d) Indirect

 Constant tiredness.  Untreated medical problems.  No social relationships.

Some Possible Signs of Emotional or Psychological Abuse and Emotional Deprivation

(a) Physical

 Physical, mental or emotional development delay.  Mental or emotional disturbance.  Speech disorder.  Enuresis/Encopresis (bedwetting/soiling).

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 7 - MAY 2002 (b) Emotional

 Fear of new situations.  Inappropriate emotional responses to stressful situations.  Fear of parents being contacted.

(c) Behavioural

 Over reaction to mistakes.  Neurotic behaviour (e.g. rocking, hair twisting, thumb-sucking).  Fear of parents being contacted.  Extremes of passivity or aggression.  Compulsive stealing.  Scavenging food or clothes.  Chronic running away.

(d) Indirect

 Admission of punishment which seems excessive.  Self-mutilation.  Drug or solvent abuse.

Some Possible Signs of Child Sexual Abuse

(a) Physical (there are no physical signs in the majority of cases)

 Disclosure - always treat what the child says seriously.  Soreness or bleeding or injury to genital or anal region.  Vaginal discharge - vaginal warts.  Enuresis (bedwetting), particularly when previously dry.  Encopresis (soiling).  Sexually transmitted disease.  Persistent headache and/or abdominal pain without obvious cause.

(b) Emotional

 Depressed.  Anxious.  Gender identity difficulties.

(c) Behavioural

 Withdrawn and unhappy or insecure and ‘clingy’.  Promiscuous.  Affection seeking.  Poor academic performance - truancy.  Sleep disturbances - nightmares.  Sexualised play.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 8 - MAY 2002  Inappropriate/explicit sexual knowledge/behaviour for age.  Inappropriate masturbation - exposing themselves.  Running away.  Obsessive washing.  Fear of a particular person/place.  Cry hysterically when nappy changed or undressed.  Say of themselves that they are bad or wicked.  Poor concentration.

(d) Indirect  Pregnancy.  Anorexia.  Attempted suicide/self-mutilation.  Alcohol/drug/solvent or other substance abuse.  Criminal offences.  Prostitution.  Unexplained large sums of money/gifts.  Produce drawings of sex organs.

HOW TO MAKE A REFERRAL

A referral should be made the same working day as a disclosure is made and should be made as early as possible in the day to allow further checks to be made.

A direct referral should be made from the school to the Social Services Office in the area where the child or children in question reside. Advice can be sought from Pupil Services - Child Protection Team if necessary.

Start your referral by stating that you wish to make a Child Protection referral.

It is important to have appropriate information to hand when making a referral:  child’s full name;  date of birth;  home address and telephone number;  parents/carers name;  child’s G.P. (if possible);  details of the reason for the referral - the context and time - the sequence of events/concerns - the child’s actual words, if possible - any previous concerns leading up to this referral (if appropriate);  your name;  position;  school name and address;  school telephone number.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 9 - MAY 2002 It is also important that you take the name of the person to whom you made the referral, at which office and note the date and time of the referral.

Focused questions which may be asked as you make the referral appear on Page 117-9. These questions are likely to be used in referrals for both Child Protection and Children in Need, though you may not be able to respond to all of them.

If you have initially contacted Social Services for advice (usually via the Team Manager or a Social Worker experienced in Child Protection) you may be asked to re- dial to make the referral through the appropriate channel, via the Assessment and Information Team. Be prepared to re-tell the details and the reasons again.

Once you have completed giving your information you should be asked to listen to what the person taking the referral has noted. This gives you the opportunity to clarify any points.

Clarify with Social Services what, if any, contact will need to be made to the parents by the school. General advice is that the school should not contact parents unless and until advised to do so by Social Services (except where a child may need hospital treatment). (See Page 37 of this Handbook.) If a child needs to go to hospital it is important that you relate your Child Protection concerns to the hospital. This should ensure that an appropriate paediatrician sees the child.

Send confirmation in writing of the referral - by fax, if possible - to Social Services Office using the form on Page 121, with a copy to the Child Protection Team, Pupil Services Unit, Education Department, County Hall, Durham DH1 5UJ.

Keep all rough notes and sign with date and time, together with a copy of the written confirmation of the referral in the child’s Child Protection File. Where there is more than one child involved, ensure a copy is located in each child’s Child Protection File. (For further advice on records and Child Protection Files see Page 31 and 123-6.)

WHEN TO MAKE A REFERRAL

A referral should be made as soon as possible after concerns have been raised, but in any case the same working day. It is helpful if referrals can be made as early as possible in the day, since this allows Social Services to make their initial checks with other agencies that working day, prior to any strategy meeting which may be called.

If the referral has to be made after the appropriate Social Services Office is closed, use the out-of-hours number, or should the child be seriously at risk after hours ring the Police, whose powers of seeking immediate safety for the child are greater.

The referral should be made by telephone in the first instance and followed up in writing. If the Social Services telephone line is constantly busy, and you have a fax machine, use it to inform the Duty Officer - Child Protection that you have a Child Protection referral to make. Mark the fax ‘URGENT’ - but continue to try to phone.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 10 - MAY 2002 TO WHOM TO MAKE A REFERRAL - THE CONTACT POINTS

Social Services

Referrals should be made to the Assessment and Information Teams at the following offices:

Town Social Services Social Services Telephone Number Fax Number

Barnard Castle 01833-690690 01833-631167

Bishop Auckland 01388-454800 01388-454840

Chester-le-Street 0191-3831010 0191-3836217

Consett 01207-290990 01207-506740

Crook 01388-763331 01388-766281

Darlington 01325-346200 01325-346474

Durham 0191-3831010 0191-3836108

Newton Aycliffe 01325-314466 01325-301023

Peterlee 0191-5186000 0191-5864130

Seaham 0191-5186000 0191-5814875

Spennymoor 01388-424200 01388-424242

Stanley 01207-290990 01207-290374

Out-of-Hours Duty Team: 01740-657796

Addresses of each locality office and the name of the Team Manager appear in the section ‘Knowing the Network’ on Page 107 of this Handbook.

Police

Although most referrals are made to Social Services, the Police can also be a route for referral. A referral to the Police would most likely be made where children are at risk, e.g. if going home to an abusive household at the end of a school day when Social Services are unavailable. For phone numbers see Page 109.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 11 - MAY 2002 Education

Pupil Services Child Protection Team

Jane Stout - Pupil Casework Officer 0191-3833277 Ken Flynn - Pupil Services Officer 0191-3834450 Graeme Plews - Operations Manger 0191-3833115

The Pupil Services Team offers advice and guidance on Child Protection matters, and will, as needs arise, make referrals to Social Services. The Team also offers training for schools, designated teachers and Head Teachers and other related education services.

WHERE AN ALLEGATION IS MADE AGAINST A MEMBER OF STAFF OR THE HEAD TEACHER (*More detailed advice appears on Page 147.)

The disclosure should be received as would any disclosure.

In the same way, the incident/allegation should not be investigated. This would include not seeking witness statements from other children nor asking the member of staff for his/her account of the incident, nor even informing him/her that an allegation has been made.

The referral should be made to the Social Services locality office where the child resides.

Suspension should be considered in line with the agreed disciplinary procedures, and, except in serious cases, should await any recommendation as an outcome of the strategy meeting. The reasons for suspension would be:

 where there are grounds for doubt as to the suitability of the employee to continue to work;  where suspension is necessary to allow the conduct of the investigation to proceed unimpeded.

The latter is the most usual reason for suspension.

Advice may be sought initially from the LEA Child Protection Team - see above.

THE NEXT STEPS

Supporting the Child

Making a disclosure can be an emotional experience for the child. The child therefore should be re-assured that he/she has done the right thing to tell, and could be offered the choice of returning to class or withdrawing from class for a space of time. However, he/she should not be told, for example, that everything will be alright.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 12 - MAY 2002 The person to whom the child has disclosed could create for the child further opportunities for discussion and re-assurance. This person may also need support since receiving a disclosure can also be an emotional experience. However, confidentiality must be retained (further advice on this see Page 103 of this Handbook).

The Strategy Discussion

Following a referral there is likely to be a strategy discussion which decides the next strategy. As the referrer, the member of school staff may be invited to attend.

The strategy meeting is attended by a member of the local Police Child Protection Team, a Social Worker and is chaired by a Social Services Team Manager and should take place within 2 working days of the referral, often the same day.

If the allegation is made against a member of staff it is usual for the Head Teacher and a member of the LEA Child Protection Team to be invited.

Because of the possibility of disciplinary action or subsequent appeal, it is not appropriate for the Chair or Vice-Chair to attend a strategy meeting involving a member of the school staff.

The strategy meeting allows for all information about the allegation to be shared and a decision is taken as to the next stage - to take no further action under the procedures or to undertake a joint Police and Social Services investigation, including conducting interviews or for a separate Police or Social Services investigation to be conducted, for example.

Should a joint investigation be undertaken an additional strategy meeting may be called to consider what further action should be taken in the light of the information gained.

For further information about the strategy meeting refer to Section 6.2 of the ACPC procedures and Page 37 of this Handbook.

After the strategy meeting school staff may become involved in:

 Initial Child Protection Conference (see Page 39).  Core Group (see Page 42 and Core Assessment Page 43).  Review Child Protection Conference (see Page 48).

All such procedures are multi-agency where contributions for all agencies are considered and where all agencies contribute to the decisions.

Feedback from the Referral

Under the procedures the referrer should be given feedback from Social Services. This helps the school support the child and allows evaluation of procedures. Should feedback not be forthcoming, contact should be made to the Social Services Office to whom the referral was made.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 13 - MAY 2002 The Importance of Following Procedures

It is vital that procedures are followed carefully by all agencies involved in Child Protection. Issues will be raised with schools where procedures have not been followed.

It is always possible to seek further advice from the LEA and from Social Services Team Managers.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 14 - MAY 2002 MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS WITHIN SCHOOL

Staff Structures and the Delegation of Responsibility

DfEE Circular 10/95 sets out clearly the Role of Education in Child Protection and in particular makes reference to the need for each school to have a Designated Teacher. Schools should also contribute to the prevention of abuse by following local ACPC procedures, liaising with other agencies and undertaking training. It is useful if the co-ordinating of such matters were via the Designated Teacher.

All staff need to know who carries particular responsibility for child protection matters in school, and what that responsibility involves.

It is equally important that all staff know that every adult in a school carries a degree of delegated responsibility for child protection, since a child or young person may make a disclosure to anyone, and any member of staff may be witness to actions which are indicative of abuse. All staff should therefore be appropriately trained in receiving a disclosure, the signs and symptoms of abuse and the in-school procedures to follow.

The Designated Teacher should be a senior member of staff who demonstrates empathy with children who might be subject to abuse, who has good listening skills and who has the respect of other staff. The person should also accept the level of integrity and confidentiality required of such a post.

Whilst the Designated Teacher should co-ordinate all matters relating to Child Protection in school, it is essential that the Head Teacher and other Senior Managers are fully aware of the ACPC Procedures and what might constitute abuse. This will be particularly relevant where there is a complaint/allegation made against a member of staff.

The outline responsibilities of the role of the Designated Teacher are given below. The roles and responsibilities of other people involved in school appear in the LEA Child Protection Policy and in the Draft Model Child Protection Policy for Schools (available on the Intranet or from Pupil Services Unit).

Role of the Designated Teacher

Responsibilities:

 Being fully conversant with the Area Child Protection Committee child protection procedures.  Enacting those procedures when cases of abuse are reported.  Ensuring that all staff are aware of their responsibilities in connection with child protection issues and child abuse cases, and that they remain alert to those responsibilities.  Liaising with Social Services and other agencies in individual cases, and on general issues in connection with child protection.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 15 - MAY 2002  Ensuring that all written procedures are readily available and are correctly followed in cases of actual and suspected abuse.  Being responsible for ensuring that relevant staff training takes place including the induction of new staff and that he/she is trained appropriately for the role of designated teacher.  Ensuring that the school is represented when appropriate at child protection conferences, and that those representing the school are aware of the procedures and requirements of the conference in terms of reports.  Attending strategy meetings where appropriate.  In conjunction with the Head Teacher, ensuring that those arrangements emanating from the child protection conference which relate to the school are carried out fully.  Ensuring that information on individual cases is passed to people who ‘need to know’, but that it is passed only to those people.  Ensuring that appropriate records are kept securely.  Working with the Head Teacher or other curriculum leaders on areas where there may be input on child protection into curriculum areas.  Supporting any staff involved in reporting child abuse cases.  Liaising with receiving schools on transfer to ensure necessary information and documentation is correctly exchanged.  Liaising with the Head Teacher on monitoring and reviewing the policy.  Sending copies of Child Protection referrals to LEA.

Entitlements:

 Appropriate support from the Head Teacher and Governors and other staff in child protection issues.  Appropriate regular training to enable him/her to be aware of current child protection issues.  Access to support from other agencies e.g. Social Services and LEA, involved in child protection issues.  A policy framework for management of and guidance of child protection issues in school.  An understanding that all partners will carry out their role in line with ACPC procedures.

Procedures for Responding to Disclosures and Possible Evidence of Abuse

It is essential that all staff have clear guidance on what they should and should not do if a child or young person makes a disclosure or if they observe something which indicates the possibility of abuse. The following guidance should be made clear to all staff, and the approach revisited regularly as part of training.

Receive

 Listen to the child. If you are shocked by what they tell you, try not to show it. Take what they say seriously. Children rarely lie about abuse and to be disbelieved adds to the traumatic nature of disclosing. Children may retract what they have said, if they meet with revulsion or disbelief.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 16 - MAY 2002  Accept what the child says. Be careful not to burden them with guilt by asking ‘Why didn’t you tell me before?’

Re-assure

 Stay calm and re-assure the child that they have done the right thing in talking to you. It’s essential to be honest with the child, so don’t make promises you may not be able to keep, like ‘I’ll stay with you’ or ‘Everything will be all right now’.

 Don’t promise confidentiality: you have a duty to refer a child who is at risk. For example, you could say: ‘Some things are so important that I might have to tell them to someone else.’ Be prepared that the child may say no more at this stage - but be alert for future attempts to disclose. Record this incident and pass to Designated Teacher.

 Try to alleviate any feelings of guilt that the child displays. For example, you could say: ‘You’re not to blame’ or ‘You’re not alone, you’re not the only one this sort of thing has happened to’.

 Acknowledge how hard it must have been for the child to tell you what happened.

 Empathise with the child - don’t tell them what they should be feeling.

React

 React to the child only as far as is necessary for you to establish whether or not you need to refer this matter; but do not ‘interrogate’ them for full details.

 Do not ask ‘leading’ questions such as: ‘What did he do next?’ (this assumes that he did!) or ‘Did he touch your private parts?’ Such questions may invalidate your evidence (and the child’s) in any later prosecution in court. Instead ask open questions like ‘Anything else to tell me?’, ‘Yes?’ or ‘And...?’

 Do not criticise the perpetrator: the child may love him/her and reconciliation may be possible.

 Do not ask the child to repeat everything to another member of staff.

 Explain what you have to do next and to whom you have to talk.

 Inform the Designated Teacher for child protection.

 Try to see the matter through yourself and keep in contact with the child.

 Ensure that if a Social Services interview is to follow, the child has a ‘support person’ present if they wish (possibly yourself).

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 17 - MAY 2002 Record

 Make some very brief notes at the time on any paper which comes to hand and write them up as soon as possible.

 Do not destroy your original notes in case they are required by a court.

 Record the date, time, place, any noticeable non-verbal behaviour and the words used by the child. If the child uses their family’s own private sexual words, record the actual words used, rather than translating them into ‘proper’ words.

 Draw a diagram to indicate the position of any bruising - use the outline available.

 Be objective in your recording: include statements and observable things, rather than your interpretations or assumptions.

Support

 Make sure that you continue to support the child, providing time and a safe space throughout the process of investigation and afterwards.

 Get some support for yourself, without disclosing confidential information about the child to colleagues. Receiving a disclosure can be an emotional experience.

(After Anne Schonveld CEDC)

Good practice would suggest that whenever information is reported following an observation or disclosure, checks should be run on the procedure adopted. Where this is found to be correct the adult concerned should receive positive feedback. Where it is found not to comply with their procedures, the adult concerned must have their knowledge and understanding updated immediately.

THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS

To Refer or Not to Refer - Child Protection or Children in Need

Some cases of abuse are more clear-cut than others when it comes to making a referral. A child’s clear disclosure or significant bruising would leave no doubt; however, where the case is less clear, there is a natural concern by staff to make sure that they protect a child from possible abuse whilst at the same time not invoking the considerable weight of the Child Protection procedures and the possible associated waste of resources for unfounded allegations. Additionally, staff are fully aware of the disruption and disturbance caused to families and to those against whom unfounded allegations have been made. It is clear that referrals and registration under Child Protection procedures should never be made with a view to securing much needed resources for children in need.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 18 - MAY 2002 Recent guidance (Working Together to Safeguard Children (1999)) and the Social Services revised procedures for ‘Children in Need’ (January, 2000) help in effectively distinguishing a child subject to abuse from a child in need.

However, the need for school staff to differentiate clearly between children in need and child protection has been reduced since under the new procedures all children in need and child protection referrals will be channelled through the Assessment and Information Team in each Social Services locality office. Staff in this team assess the problem on the basis of the information given by the referrer. It is, therefore, vital that the information is as clear and accurate as possible, and that it is followed up in writing (see Page 121 for confirmation of Referral Form). Designated teachers referring a Child Protection case to Social Services should however state clearly that he/she believes it to be a Child Protection referral, if that is the case.

This does not ease the difficulty of deciding the threshold of abuse, and the appropriate time to refer. The following are offered as some key areas:

Recognition of Abuse

Abuse is a complex issue which may include aspects of physical symptoms, behavioural characteristics and background factors. In trying to recognise abuse it should be remembered that there will always be a multi-agency approach, and individual teachers/Head Teachers should feel part of that multi-agency approach rather than a sense of working alone. It is important to share concerns about the welfare of a child with multi-agency colleagues, and to seek advice whenever there is a child protection concern.

Information on Sources of Advice is available on Page 107 (Knowing the Network).

A Child’s Disclosure

A child’s disclosure of abuse should always be taken seriously, and dealt with as seriously as would a statement by an adult. Should it be discovered that a false allegation has been made, this could be a sign of a disturbed family environment and an indication that a child needs help.

A child’s behaviour, relationships with adults and peers, general demeanour and pattern of attendance can all be points to help in assessing the possibility of abuse. In cases where there is sexual knowledge or behaviour beyond a child’s years, the possibility of sexual abuse cannot be ruled out.

Concerns Expressed by Adults, Other Than School Staff Adults will often contact the school rather than any other agency to express concerns about a child’s welfare. These should always be taken seriously. It is not the school’s role to assess the veracity of such concerns. Offers of confidentiality or an expectation that having handed the information to the school that that is as far as the information will go, should not be given. There is a duty on education staff to pass such information on.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 19 - MAY 2002 Similarly, neither confidentiality nor promises of “no further action” be offered to adults who inform the school about abuse which they may have inflicted upon a child - e.g. to explain a child’s absence due to an injury.

Signs and Symptoms of Abuse

The common characteristics of abuse situations are given in the Area Child Protection Procedures at Section 4.2. It should be recognised that:

 abuse is not always the result of conscious, pre-meditated acts by the parent/carer or other adult, although it may be;  individual signs are difficult to judge; clusters of signs may be more important than any one sign;  signs and symptoms may also relate to more than one category;  the school may only have part of the picture; other agencies may have other information which adds to an overall picture of abuse.

Abuse is categorised into four main areas:

Physical Emotional Neglect Sexual.

In the section which follows additional advice is given to help in making the decision to refer; however, it must be stressed that advice can always be sought from Social Services or the Education Department.

Neglect

Neglect can affect adversely a child’s physical and emotional development. There are occasions when neglect is associated with physical abuse, and in such cases the consequences for the child can be tragic.

As far as possible it is important to make judgements against objective criteria such as growth milestones and appropriate weight. However, since neglect is defined as “the persistent or severe neglect of a child, or the failure to protect a child from exposure, including cold and starvation, or extreme failure to carry out important aspects of care, resulting in the significant impairment of the child’s health or development, including non-organic failure to thrive”, there will be many contributing factors.

Non-organic failure to thrive is applied to babies and children who fail to develop appropriately or who drop away from growth centiles which have already been achieved. Such lack of development can be due to parental inexperience in child care, poor caring knowledge, an inability to understand or accept guidance, lack of care or feelings of hostility towards the child.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 20 - MAY 2002 Neglect may be an added consequence of poverty as much as lack of care. Children may have an inappropriate diet or may be left unsupervised in dangerous situations, or indeed be supervising a dangerous situation are the obvious examples of links between poverty or neglect. Similarly, some children who become carers may be in need of protection.

Parents/carers neglecting their children also may fail to pay sufficient attention to a child’s medical concerns including immunisations. This could put a child at significant risk.

However, the belief that the neglected child is always a ‘waif’ should be countered by the fact that some materially well-off and over-weight children, can also be neglected.

Physical Abuse

Bruising: Bruising is an inevitable part of life for an active child. Children usually run and fall forwards, leaving bruises on the front of the body - hands, knees, shins, forehead. A fall downstairs may result in single or multiple bruising.

Unprotected areas - the head, back and neck and limbs are vulnerable to both accidental and inflicted bruising. Bruising on children who are less mobile should always be a cause for concern.

The most common areas of the body where children are struck are:

head, ears, cheeks, mouth, chest, upper arms, stomach, thighs and buttocks.

Bruising to the lips, gums, genital or rectal area, neck or buttocks should arouse particular suspicion.

Finger mark bruising, bruising to the ears, grasp marks and outline marks (e.g. caused by a belt or strap) require considerable force.

Black eyes: Two black eyes are rarely accidental and in some cases a single black eye can be a cause for concern.

Accidental black eyes are often accompanied by bruises to other parts of the face e.g. the forehead or the bridge of the nose.

‘Easy bruising’: Claims of easy bruising are seldom correct. Hospital tests can be used to check if necessary.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 21 - MAY 2002 Bites and Bites and scratches are common in childhood, scratches: including those from pets. Human bite marks are usually a circle of two discontinuous, semi-circles, corresponding to the upper and lower teeth. The central area is not usually bruised, but may be swollen. ‘Love bites’ to a child may be signs of sexual abuse.

Lesions and cuts: A torn frenulum (the web of skin joining the upper gum and upper lip) is usually the result of force, which may require specialist investigation.

A beating with an object may result in a series of marks.

Burns and scalds: Scalds and burns are common accidents in children. Non-accidental burns are characterised by their regular outlines and their location. Immersion in scalding water to the level of the liquid often produces a clear linear scald. Scalds to the buttocks and groin are rarely accidental. A child does not sit in scalding water without also scalding his/her feet. Accidental burns and scalds e.g. a child pulling a pan of boiling water over himself should lead to questions about the amount of supervision and protection of the child and should raise the issue of neglect. Cigarette burns - children can sustain very superficial burns by accident if parents smoke. Deliberate burning is characterised by a circular punched-out area of skin loss. Frozen Whilst difficult to describe in words this outward sign watchfulness: may suggest physical harm. Young people who Self-harm includes a range of risk-taking behaviours: self-harm: substance, alcohol and drug use, eating disorders, compulsive sexual behaviour and deliberate self-harm. This latter category includes self-injurious behaviours, for example, self-mutilation, overdosing, self-poisoning, which may result in injury or death. Very often a range of behaviours go together. They may be linked with various forms of social disadvantage or may be a short-term feature of adolescent development and the level of risk-taking which is part of the process. Staff should try to differentiate risk-taking activities and responses to fashion from those which suggest concerns for emotional, mental and physical health. These are likely to require multi-disciplinary assessment and follow up support. Some may require psychiatric referral, for example, concern for Anorexia, Munchausen’s Syndrome by proxy or the possibility of Clinical Depression.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 22 - MAY 2002 Emotional Abuse

Emotional abuse can occur throughout the range of social groupings. Children who appear depressed or withdrawn, who have difficulty making and keeping friends or appear passive and apathetic may be having to deal with hostility or rejection.

Emotional neglect is the basic failure to respond to a child’s fears or worries. Emotional abuse is an active form of harm involving the deliberate frightening, bullying or scape-goating of a child.

Children who are given responsibilities beyond their years, which preclude their own social activities, may also be deemed to be suffering emotional abuse.

Munchausen’s This is an unusual form of abuse which provides a way Syndrome by proxy for a disturbed parent to gain attention. By inventing or Inflicted Illness symptoms, repeated medical attention can be obtained. Syndrome Additionally, parents may administer unnecessary drugs to their children.

Sexual Abuse

Only a proportion of victims of sexual abuse will present any forensic or medical evidence of abuse. Children will most obviously show behavioural or emotional symptoms - which could be interpreted as symptoms of other abuse. Thus, particularly if there have been sudden changes with no apparent explanation, then the possibility of sexual abuse must be considered.

Teenage pregnancy, especially where the girl refused to identify the father or seems vague about her pregnancy, may suggest abuse. Sexually transmitted diseases are also a possible sign.

Bruising, lacerations, bites or scratches to the inner thigh, breasts, genitals or anal region are all causes for serious concern.

Sexual abuse Where bullying or harassment involves sexual assault, between children: advice should be sought on whether or not child protection procedures should be followed.

Some minor incidents may be part of normal development, complaints or observations involving fondling/touching of breasts/genitalia or of indecent exposure should be referred.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 23 - MAY 2002 A checklist is given below to help clarify thoughts on the sexual behaviour displayed.

Power differential - was there a difference in age, size, status, strength, intellect, knowledge, mobility, level of sexual development?

With peer group - generally, is the young person a leader, how does the young person control others around them in school?

The incident of concern.

Where did the behaviour occur? (Publicly/secretively/always in the same place, particularly chosen because it lacked supervision.)

Is this the first time this behaviour has been observed?

If observed previously, was the same child/children involved?

Is there any other information/rumour concerning this child/children/family?

Has any Child Protection referral been made concerning family/siblings?

Is there any significant information about the family? (Domestic violence, video watching, changes in family composition, significant events involving changes in Carer, i.e. death/birth.)

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 24 - MAY 2002 Who observed the behaviour/incident?

What was seen?

What was heard?

Any interventions made?

Reaction from children at the time. (Verbal/non-verbal.)

If group behaviour observed, is one child the leader/instigator?

Who needs to know about this behaviour now? (Parents/Carers/Social Services.)

Keeping Records

Schools are well practised at keeping records. It is important that systems should be practical and that the reasons for keeping records and what should be recorded are clear.

 Records are kept for a variety of reasons:

- to provide information upon which others may act; - to provide evidence which may protect a child; - to act in line with agreed procedures; - to ensure the school can make informed decisions; - to safeguard the person writing the record who may be a teacher, other school staff, other LEA staff in regular contact with the child and others.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 25 - MAY 2002  Schools need to record when there are concerns about:

- marks on a child’s body; - unusual or different behaviour; - mood changes; - puzzling stories; - a disclosure (which may have to be passed on as a referral); - information from others; - the welfare of the child.

There may also be a request from another agency.

 Children subject to abuse over a period of time may demonstrate changes in behaviour, demeanour and approach to education. On children giving cause for concern, it would be appropriate for schools to record:

- patterns of attendance and related absences; - changes in mood and behaviour; - changes in approach to lessons and achievement; - relationships with friends, other peers and adults; - particular statements and demeanour; - changes in home circumstances or family circumstances; - injuries, marks past and present.

 Records used for monitoring purposes should be reviewed regularly, so that the frequency of information stored and patterns can be identified. Such records are useful additional information in cases which are referred for other reasons.

 To ensure accuracy and clarity it is advised that records should:

- be written within 24 hours of any incident or concern being noticed; - be accurate and include a chronology of events; - be factual; - be descriptive stating the content; - not make assumptions; - be signed, dated and timed; - be part of a process, not the task itself.

 Retention and transfer of records:

- pupil academic records should be passed on to the next school, and after that records should be kept indefinitely at the final school. Child Protection files should be kept with the child’s academic file once the child has left school; - informal teachers’ notes, the content of which would appear as part of the report to Conference for Child Protection matters should be kept for some time to allow any questions regarding the accuracy of the Education report to have appropriate background evidence.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 26 - MAY 2002  Where teachers have kept a diary-type record of a child it should be passed on to the Designated Teacher of the new school, in a reasonable form. This would enable the new school to use this previous information should the need arise.

 Informal notes made by teachers may be passed between schools, should they be considered of a serious nature.

 Child Protection files should only be passed from Designated Teacher to Designated Teacher, in confidence.

An example of good practice appears as Appendix 3 on Page 123. The Child Protection file is chosen to be of one colour for all children recorded and that colour is used only for Child Protection information. A similar format could be adopted for recording concerns about a child for whom there has been no referral to Social Services. A file should also contain any minutes of meetings relevant to the child and copies of reports to Child Protection Conferences.

Monitoring Children Who May Be Abused

Occasions will arise whereby there are concerns about a child, which individually do not constitute abuse, but collectively over a period of time, may do so. It is important that these concerns are noted at the time giving details of:

Name Date of Birth/Class Incident/Concern Context Others Present

Signed ...... Dated ...... Time ......

Such monitoring notes should be kept in a separate file for each child concerned and then kept in a locked filing cabinet, separately from the child’s other records. This file would become the child’s Child Protection File should the case go further.

It is, however, most important that the monitoring notes are reviewed regularly. Writing a monitoring note is not an end in itself. Such notes should be used to collate an overall picture of a child’s situation which may or may not result in a referral being made. Using the Children and Families Assessment Grid from the Children in Need procedures may help in coming to a conclusion as to whether or not the monitoring information is building to a picture of mild, moderate or serious concern. Should the concerns appear serious it may be that ‘child abuse’ as opposed to a ‘child in need’ will be the outcome of the referral. The Assessment Grid refers to a series of indicators; it is not a checklist in which each indication has to be obvious, similarly there may be other indicators not noted.

A copy of the Grid is on Page 34. However, the Grid should be read in conjunction with the full ‘Children in Need’ procedures - available separately.

A résumé of the monitoring information should accompany the written confirmation of any referral.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 27 - MAY 2002 Children in Need Assessment Grid

Environmental Health Education Identity Family/Social Emotional/Behavioural

Insufficient heating, facilities and Child has serious illness, Challenging behaviour in school Confused about self and Poor relationship with Insecure M furniture medical condition or disability situation parents/carers Poor Concentration I Overcrowded living and sleeping Feeding problems/Diet poor Lack of age appropriate social Poor Peer Relationships Inconsistent parenting/behaviour L arrangements Poor Attendance (approximately skills management Preventative health measures 20% unauthorised attendance) Unkempt/uncared for D not taken (e.g. immunisation, Experiences of bullying dental checks, vision and Parental support/interest lacking Lack of family support networks hearing) Not appropriately dressed for Numerous changes of school weather or social situations Not registered with GP

Subject to infestation Frequently attends GP/hospital/ Lack of stimulation/learning Low self-esteem Inappropriate Peer Child involved in or at risk of M frequent periods of materials in home Relationships involvement in criminal activities Home in poor repair illness/accidents Parents are highly critical and O At risk of permanent exclusion show little affection Inappropriate Social Behaviour Self harming D Lack of basic amenities Missed appointments/not receiving treatments Non attendance (50% over 6 Infrequent contact or Mental health difficulties E Hazards for young children months period) acrimonious relationships with R Services refused non-custodial parent Challenging/inappropriate Parents have no contact with behaviour (e.g. sexual) A Experimental substance misuse child’s school and condone Socially isolated T (young person) absence Domestic violence in home E Hidden pregnancy Learning difficulties not addressed

Serious neglect of primary Failure to thrive Deprived of Stimulation/learning Scapegoated/rejected by Frequent changes of primary Traumatised S needs (food, safety, basic care) opportunities parents carers Global development delay Mental illness/suicidal/eating E Homeless Global developmental delay Constantly Dangerous/abusive disorder R Special needs not met undermined/denigrated Drug paraphernalia accessible Permanently excluded from Young child left alone Running away I to child Unexplained injury school Rejected by peers O Child shows no sign of Child’s behaviour beyond Faeces and food left on surfaces Malnourishment Parents hostile to Education Damaged identity attachment to primary carer parents/ carers control U and floors S No ante-natal care Parents encourage absence Child embarrassed or ashamed No long term stable relationship Abusive/violent behaviour Essential supplies disconnected to form relationships with at least one adult (verbal or physical) Pregnant Intravenous drug user Significant underachievement in Problematic substance misuse all areas at school Child has no peer relationships Severe physical punishment (parent) in home or whilst caring Previous death or permanent for child health impairment of a child of 100% non-attendance Child has inappropriate the family responsibilities

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 28 - MAY 2002 The Importance of Good Record Keeping and Monitoring - Building on Past Experience

The value of clear detailed records in individual cases are essential elements of good practice. However, such records are also useful in building up a body of knowledge and experience which, if used to monitor and evaluate practice, can also be used to make better judgements and inform future practice. Such evaluation should be shared with senior management. It goes without saying that no school should find its child protection (and children in need) practice reliant upon memory recall of long- standing members of staff, or subject to the vagaries of staff turnover.

It would be very beneficial for comprehensive schools and feeder primary schools to liaise over the incidence of child abuse and children in need. For example, if a primary school has a high record of referrals for child protection and the comprehensive has a very low record by comparison, questions might be raised about the efficacy of the comprehensive school’s awareness of child protection matters.

Written records are essential if professionals other than those there at the time are to learn from past experience and inform their own judgements. This is particularly relevant for newly appointed Head Teachers when they are faced with decisions involving children and their families. Access to clear and accurate past records are vital to helping towards making appropriate decisions.

On a different but similar note, it is helpful for incumbent Designated Teachers to hold a file of contacts, report formats and additional information on good practice accessible to an alternative Designated Teacher or indeed his/her successor.

THE REFERRAL PROCESS

Making a Referral - The Process

 A referral should be made as soon as possible but in any case the same working day, as the disclosure or the information received. To allow for initial checks to be made the earlier in the day the referral is made the better.

 Prior to making a referral, advice may be sought from the Education Department:

- Jean McCalman/Jane Stout Pupil Casework Officer 0191-3833277 - Russell Lee, Principal Education Welfare Officer 0191-3833302 - Derek Sayer, Pupil Casework Officer 0191-3834450

or Social Services:

- the Team Manager, Child Protection in the relevant locality.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 29 - MAY 2002

JANUARY, 2000 But seeking advice should not delay making a referral within the appropriate time limit; neither should a referral not be made just because of a failure to meet the time limit.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 29 - MAY 2002

JANUARY, 2000  The referral should be made by telephone to the relevant Social Services locality office. The referral will be received by a member of the Assessment and Information Team who will require basic information about the child, the referrer and the reason for the referral. The form on Page 121 sets out the details required when making a referral. Key phone numbers appear below. Focused questions which may be asked when making a referral appear on Page 117-9.

 Where there are concerns for the safety of the child going home and when the disclosure has been late in the afternoon a referral should be made to the Police, who have more immediate powers of safeguarding a child.

 Where a child has been monitored, information from that process should be given as part of the referral and a résumé sent with the confirmation of the referral.

In giving the details of the reason for the referral it is important to have a correct chronology of events with dates and times, what happened, wherever possible using the child’s words, and the context of the incident or the disclosure.

Town Social Services Social Services Police Telephone Fax

Barnard Castle 01833-690690 01833-631167 01833-637328 Bishop Auckland 01388-454800 01388-454840 01388-603566 Chester-le-Street 0191-3831010 0191-3836217 0191-3884311 Consett 01207-290990 01207-506740 01207-504204 Crook 01388-763331 01388-766281 01388-603566 Darlington 01325-346200 01325-346474 01325-467681 Durham 0191-3831010 0191-3836108 0191-3864222 Newton Aycliffe 01325-314466 01325-301023 01325-314401 Peterlee 0191-5186000 0191-5864130 0191-5862621 Seaham 0191-5186000 0191-5814875 0191-5812255 Spennymoor 01388-424200 01388-424242 01388-814411 Stanley 01207-290990 01207-290374 01207-232144

Out of hours Duty Team: 01740-657796

 The referral should be followed up in writing within 2 working days using the form on Page 121. A copy should be sent or faxed to the relevant Social Services locality office - the sooner the better.

A second copy should be sent marked “Confidential” to:

Child Protection,

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 30 - MAY 2002

JANUARY, 2000 Pupil Services, Education Department, County Hall, Durham DH1 5UJ.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 30 - MAY 2002

JANUARY, 2000 A third copy should be placed on the child’s Child Protection File and kept locked, separate from the child’s academic record. This information should not be disclosed to parents, others - staff may be informed but only on a ‘need to know’ basis.

Communications with Parents/Carers about a Referral

 Staff and Head Teacher must not take it upon themselves automatically to contact parents, but should clarify this at referral.

 At the point of referral to Social Services, the Designated Teacher should arrange with the Duty Social Worker when to expect feedback. Once the Strategy meeting has taken place future action will become clearer, but it would be useful for the Social Worker to be aware of the school’s needs regarding talking to parents, e.g. when the child is taken to school the following day, or collected at the end of school that day.

 Where children are taken to hospital by school staff parents will need to be informed.

 Informing Social Services without informing parents/carers first can obviously create tensions especially if the school has previously had good/reasonable relations with a parent; it is therefore important that parents/carers are aware of the stance the school takes on Child Protection, and are knowledgeable about the school policy.

 Where a complaint of a Child Protection nature has been received at County Hall, the Head Teacher would normally be contacted before a referral is made by a member of the Education Department’s Child Protection Team. This will allow the Head Teacher to be part of the decision’s making process and help give greater context to the referral. However, where the Head Teacher/Deputy Head Teacher is unavailable then the referral cannot be delayed indefinitely and the Head Teacher would be informed after the referral had been made.

 The Strategy meeting should follow within two working days. The Head Teacher/Designated Teacher as referrer would normally be invited to attend the Strategy meeting at which a decision as to how to proceed will be determined (see below).

 The ACPC procedures state that the referrer should receive feedback as to the outcome of an inquiry or investigation. This is vital information to help schools deal further with an incident which may be “on hold” pending the investigation, or to evaluate the school’s practice in child protection. Should feedback not be received, it is important to seek that information from the Social Worker involved or his/her Team Manager. Should there be difficulty in obtaining this information, contact should be made with the Education Department’s Child Protection Team at County Hall named on Page 35.  See Section 5 ACPC Procedures for further reference.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 31 - MAY 2002 The Strategy Discussion

 Full information about strategy discussions is given in Section 6.2 of the ACPC procedures and should be read in conjunction with this section.

 The strategy discussion looks at the available information and considers it from a Child Protection, criminal or disciplinary standpoint (in the case of an allegation against a member of staff). There may be a decision to take no further action by Police and Social Services at this point. This could mean that the allegation would then need to be considered from a school’s disciplinary position if necessary, should the allegation be against a member of staff.

 Strategy discussions are usually chaired by the Team Manager - Child Protection. Also present will be a Social Worker from the Child Protection Team, a member of the Police Child Protection Team and the professional making the referral. In some cases other professionals who know the circumstances well may also be invited. Where an allegation is made against a member of staff, it is usual for a member of the LEA’s Child Protection Team based in Pupil Services Unit (see Page 35) to be present.

 Because of the possibility of disciplinary action or subsequent appeal it is not appropriate for the Chair of Governors nor Vice-Chair to be present, where a strategy meeting is held to consider an allegation against a member of staff.

 The Strategy Discussion should consider the available information and make decisions about:

(a) whether child is at risk of significant harm and the need for immediate protection;

(b) whether there will be an investigation under the procedures.

Should the answer to either of the above points be affirmative then agreement must be reached on who will investigate.

(c) the need for medical examination;

(d) communication with parents/those with parental responsibility;

(e) the process of the investigation:

- the need to interview the child - consent for interview - interviewing witnesses - interviewing the alleged abuser - securing any other evidence - parallel proceedings - advice about legal rights - possible need for expert or independent advice;

(f) roles and responsibilities of the investigating team;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 32 - MAY 2002 (g) timescales of intervention;

(h) need for child protection conference.

It may not be possible to cover all of these areas at an initial strategy discussion, as more information may be required. A further meeting may be called.

 It is important for the professional attending the Strategy Discussion to take what information is available with them and to contribute to the discussion. Of course this does not mean that there should have been an investigation conducted by the school. But knowledge of the people involved, previous concerns, knowledge of the context of the incident/reason for the referral will always help in contributing to the appropriate decision.

 Where the allegation concerns a member of staff, the outcome of a Strategy Discussion may be the recommendation to suspend a member of staff, and unless there are serious concerns about the safety of children it is advisable to await the outcome of the Strategy meeting before suspending that member of staff. (More detailed advice regarding allegations made against members of staff and Head Teachers appears as Appendix 10 on Page 147).

 Consideration about suspension of staff would take into account: - the seriousness of the allegations; - the risk of harm to pupils; - contamination of evidence; - the welfare of the person concerned.  Suspension of staff would be considered where: - there are grounds for doubt as to the suitability of the employee to continue to work; - where suspension may assist in the completion of investigation.

 At the end of the Strategy Discussion a record of the meeting and the way forward will be circulated and signed by each person attending (Form ACPC1). The record should be read and amendments made at that time before signing. Each member of the meeting receives a copy. This should be kept in the child’s Child Protection file.

 If the person referring is unable to attend the meeting, he/she should be advised of the outcome of the Strategy discussion. This outcome should be recorded and placed in the child’s Child Protection file.

 The outcome of the Strategy discussion may be an Initial Child Protection Conference, which would be held within 15 days of the referral being made and to which a school representative would be invited and a report required.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 33 - MAY 2002 THE INITIAL CHILD PROTECTION CONFERENCE

The Procedure

 Child Protection Conferences are considered in Section 7 of the ACPC procedures.

 The purpose of the Initial Child Protection Conference is:

‘to bring together family members and professionals from the agencies which are concerned with child care and child protection, to share and evaluate the information gathered during the investigation, to make decisions about the levels of risk to the child(ren), to decide on the need for registration and to make plans for the further.’

(Working Together)

Such a conference called within 15 working days of the referral is held where there is an indication that there may be outstanding child protection concerns which require a decision about further action under the child protection procedures. A report will be required prior to the meeting (Appendix 4 on Page 127 gives an outline of an appropriate format and content).

 The Child Protection Conference should be seen as a very potent ‘tool’ in safeguarding the future of the child. All agency representatives will feel jointly responsible for the outcome and it is therefore essential that the approach to attendance and written contributions are totally professional. It is the responsibility of the Chair of the Conference to ensure that everyone is able to express their views fully.

 It is important that schools have, as part of their policy, decided who should represent the school at such conferences - class teacher, Head of Year, Head Teacher, Designated Teacher.

 The representative should:

- be knowledgeable about the child so that they can contribute fully to the discussion, and towards making decisions regarding the need for registration and determining a child protection plan; - be able to commit the school to continue the work and resources involved in supporting the child, and monitoring the child’s welfare; - know the Child Protection procedures, especially procedures of the conference and the roles of the various partners; know what to expect and how best to contribute; - understand the vital role which teachers are able to make, not only from their close knowledge of the child under discussion, but also from their wide experience of children generally; - have the degree of responsibility to agreeing to participants further in safeguarding the child, and to the level of that participation (see Core Group Page 42);

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 34 - MAY 2002 - contribute to the risk assessment on the basis of specialist knowledge and/or past experience; - have confidence in their role, and thus be able to state and hold the school’s view with confidence; - try not to become emotionally involved, and stick to the facts.

 The Child Protection Conference can be daunting for all staff, most especially for inexperienced staff. Tensions can include:

- pressures on time; - cost/resource implications for the school; - conflict of perspective between agencies; - the attendance of parents/carers at the conference; - the need to come to the ‘right’ outcome for the child.

 Staff should be aware that parents/carers and sometimes children will be present throughout the Conference unless this is against the child’s interest. However, this should not prevent or hamper staff giving a clear picture of “the child in school” being presented.

 The report should be prepared for the Conference and submitted to the Chair by the requested date. The report should be shared with the parents/carers at least two days prior to the Conference. If parents/carers do not take up the offer to meet to share the report, the Chairperson of the Conference should be informed. The parents/carers should not be given a copy of the report neither should the report be sent out to the parents/carers as an alternative to sharing it with them. Although there are sometimes worries about sharing reports in advance, it is believed to be a better approach than surprising parents/carers with the content during the Conference, when there will be many other people present.

 Where a report contains confidential information this matter should be brought to the attention of the Chairperson prior to the Conference and prior to the meeting with parents. Any information which satisfies the confidentiality criteria, should be presented as a separate addendum to the main body of the report.

 At the end of the Conference, reports and minutes are circulated according to the attached schedule.

At Conference Take Away Receive with from Conference Minutes Chair    Investigating Social Worker    Core Group Members    Child (subject to age appropriateness)  X X

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 35 - MAY 2002 At Conference Take Away Receive with from Conference Minutes Parents (or their solicitors)  X X Foster Carers  X X County Solicitors    Police  X Only if requested Other Invitees  X 

The Report to the Child Protection Conference

 Although Child Protection Conferences are frequently called at relatively short notice, it is vital that the report is a professional document which refers to:

- all aspects of a child’s school life, with greater emphasis placed on the child’s interaction with others, rather than subject by subject academic achievement; - contains objective facts about incidents and evidence and does not reflect personal opinion; - details of how the school has worked and might continue to work with the child and his/her family.

 An appropriate format is shown in Appendix 4 on page 127.

 Access to a circulation of reports (which are not as a confidential addendum) is strictly laid down by ACPC procedures in Section 7.15. There should be no circumstances when this ACPC procedure is not adhered to. It is vital to remember that the report from professionals remains as the confidential property of the agency of that professional.

The Monitoring Meeting (ACPC Procedures 7.19)

This is a meeting which must take place one month after the initial Child Protection Conference. The meeting takes place between the Key Worker and Chair of the Conference.

Education input might be necessary if the school staff were part of the Core Group, since the meeting effectively is to monitor whether the Protection Plan identified by the Conference has been put into practice.

The Key Worker (ACPC Procedures 7.20)

The Key Worker, a Social Worker, who will have been identified at the Child Protection Conference, has a role to co-ordinate the various agencies’ contributions to the Protection Plan, thus acting as a focal point for communication between agencies.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 36 - MAY 2002 The Core Group (ACPC Procedures 7.21) The Core Group is central to the protection of children. It consists of a number of professionals who should develop and carry out the work in respect of the Protection Plan, and who should also jointly carry out the comprehensive assessment for a child whose name has been placed on the Child Protection Register. The membership of the Core Group is decided upon at the Initial Child Protection Conference. The initial meeting of the Core Group should take place within one week of the Conference to finalise the details of the Protection Plan and obtain written agreement with parents. The Core Group then takes on responsibility for the implementation of the Plan. The Group should meet at agreed intervals to share and evaluate progress of the multi-agency work, and may also review membership of the Group. An outline framework for a Child Protection Plan appears on page 131. Because school staff are closely involved with children on a daily basis, they are frequently involved in Core Group work. It is important, therefore, that procedures are already in place, as part of the implementation of the school’s policy, for monitoring and supporting children, as well as appropriate means for identifying a child’s needs. Communication between the member of the Core Group should be open and clear and individuals within the Core Group have specific responsibility to inform the Key Worker of any changes of circumstances for the child which become known to them, and to inform the Key Worker of any difficulties being experienced in carrying out the responsibilities allocated. The Core Group should be seen as a pro-active group able to work with the child and/or family in helping to protect the child further. Its purpose is not merely to review progress, although this is an important function.

The Core Assessment A Core Assessment is carried out following the decision to put a child’s name on the Child Protection Register. A consistent framework for making such an assessment is needed and an Assessment Framework has been produced by the Department of Health (1999). The framework is based on the need to gain a thorough understanding of:  the development needs of children;  the capacity of parents or caregivers to respond appropriately to those needs;  the impact of wider family and environmental factors on parenting capacity and the child; and has been represented in the form of a triangle or pyramid, with the child’s welfare at the centre. This is to emphasise that all assessment activity and subsequent planning and provision of services must focus on ensuring that the child’s welfare is safeguarded and promoted. The Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and Their Families is a comprehensive document. Reproduced below are the assessment framework ‘triangle’ and explanations of the child’s Development Needs, Parenting Capacity and Family and Environmental Factors. Fuller details of the process are available in the full document.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 37 - MAY 2002 ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK

Health Basic Care

Education Ensuring Safety

Emotional & Emotional Warmth Behavioural Development

Identity Stimulation

Family & CHILD Social Relationships Guidance & Boundaries Safeguarding & Promoting Social Presentation Welfare Stability Selfcare Skills R C I F I E H W & F n n a a m e o o t c i F e m d m s m u o p u g e o s m i i l m n l l r o r u i y y n a

c e y r F ’ u g t s t c H m i i n a o o

e i S i m s n e n s t y o t n i i o n l c t y r g i y a l

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 38 - MAY 2002 FAMILY AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS Family History and Functioning Child’s inheritance includes both genetic and psycho-social factors. Family functioning is influenced by who is living in the household and how they are related to the child; significant changes in family/household composition; history of childhood experiences of parents; chronology of significant life events and their meaning to family members; nature of family functioning, including sibling relationships and its impact on the child; parental strengths and difficulties, including those of an absent parent; the relationship between separated parents.

Wider Family Who are considered to be members of the wider family by the child and the parents? This includes related and non-related persons and absent wider family. What is their role and importance to the child and parents and in precisely what way?

Housing Does the accommodation have basic amenities and facilities appropriate to the age and development of the child and other resident members? Includes the interior and exterior of the accommodation and immediate surroundings. Basic amenities include water, heating, sanitation, cooking facilities, sleeping arrangements and cleanliness, hygiene and safety and their impact on the child’s upbringing.

Employment Who is working in the household, their pattern of work and any changes? What impact does this have on the child? How is work or absence of work viewed by family members? How does it affect their relationship with the child? Includes children’s experience of work and its impact on them.

Income Income available over a sustained period of time. Sufficiency of income to meet the family’s needs. The way resources available to the family are used. Are there financial difficulties which affect the child?

Family’s Social Integration Exploration of the wider context of the local neighbourhood and community and its impact on the child and parents. Includes the degree of the family’s integration or isolation, their peer groups, friendship and social networks and the importance attached to them.

Community Resources Describes all facilities and services in the neighbourhood, including universal services of primary health care, day care and schools. Includes availability, accessibility and standard of resources and impact on the family.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 39 - MAY 2002 DIMENSIONS OF PARENTING CAPACITY Basic Care Providing for the child’s physical needs and appropriate medical and dental care. Includes provision of food, liquid, warmth, shelter, clean and appropriate clothing and adequate personal hygiene. Ensuring Safety Ensuring the child is adequately protected from harm or danger. Includes protection from significant harm or danger and from contact with unsafe adults/other children and from self-harm. Recognition of hazards and danger both in the home and elsewhere. Emotional Warmth Ensuring the child’s emotional needs are met and giving the child a sense of being specially valued. Includes ensuring the child’s requirements for secure, stable and affectionate relationships with significant adults, with appropriate sensitivity and responsiveness to the child’s needs. Appropriate physical contact, comfort and cuddling sufficient to demonstrate warm regard, praise and encouragement. Stimulation Promoting child’s learning and intellectual development through encouragement and cognitive stimulation and promoting social opportunities. Includes facilitating the child’s cognitive development and potential through inter- action, communication, talking and responding to the child’s language and questions, encouraging and joining the child’s play and promoting educational opportunities. Enabling the child to experience success and ensuring school attendance or equivalent opportunity. Facilitating child to meet challenges of life. Guidance and Boundaries Enabling the child to regulate their own emotions and behaviour. The key parental tasks are demonstrating and modelling appropriate behaviour and control of emotions and inter-actions with others, and guidance which involves setting boundaries, so that the child is able to develop an internal model of moral values and conscience, and social behaviour appropriate for the society within which they will grow up. The aim is to enable the child to grow into an autonomous adult, holding their own values and able to demonstrate appropriate behaviour with others rather than having to be dependent on rules outside themselves. This includes not over protecting children from exploratory and learning experiences. Includes social problem-solving, anger management, consideration for others and effective discipline and shaping of behaviour.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 40 - MAY 2002 DIMENSIONS OF CHILD’S DEVELOPMENTAL NEEDS Health Includes growth and development as well as physical and mental well-being. Genetic factors may also need to be considered. Involves receiving appropriate health care when ill, an adequate and nutritious diet, exercise, immunisations where appropriate and developmental checks, dental and optical care and, for older children, appropriate advice and information on issues that have an impact on health, including sex education and substance misuse. Education Covers all areas of a child’s cognitive development which begins from birth. Includes opportunities for play and inter-action with other children; access to books; to acquire a range of skills and interests; to experience success and achievement. Involves an adult interested in educational activities, progress and achievements, who takes account of the child’s starting point and any special educational needs. Emotional and Behavioural Development Concerns the appropriateness of response demonstrated in feelings and actions by a child, initially to parents and caregivers and, as the child grows older, to others beyond the family. Includes nature and quality of early attachments, characteristics of temperament, adaptation to change, response to stress and degree of appropriate self-control. Identity Concerns the child’s growing sense of self as a separate and valued person. Includes how a child views himself and his abilities, feelings of belonging and acceptance by the family and wider society and strength of a positive sense of individuality. Family and Social Relationships Development of empathy and the capacity to place self in someone else’s shoes. Includes a stable and affectionate relationship with parents or care-givers, good relationships with siblings, increasing importance of age appropriate friendships with peers and other significant persons in the child’s life and response of family to these relationships. Social Presentation Concerns child’s growing understanding of the way in which appearance and behaviour are perceived by the outside world and the impression being created. Includes appropriateness of dress for age, gender, culture and religion, cleanliness and personal hygiene and availability of advice from parents or caregivers about presentation in different settings. Self-Care Skills Concerns the acquisition by a child of both practical and emotional competencies required for increasing independence. Includes early practical skills of dressing and feeding, opportunities to gain confidence and practical skills to undertake activities away from the family and independent living skills as older children. Includes encouragement to acquire social problem-solving approaches. Special attention should be given to the impact of disability and other vulnerabilities on the development of self-care skills.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 41 - MAY 2002 The Review Child Protection Conference

A review meeting should be held at least every six months. The meeting is held to look at the working of the Child Protection Plan which was put in place to eliminate or minimise the risk of child abuse and to ensure that the child’s needs are being met. The date for the meeting is usually set at the Initial Child Protection Conference.

School staff invited should produce a report which demonstrates how the child has progressed in the period since the previous Conference. Information will be sought on whether there are continuing concerns, what specific actions the school has undertaken in supporting the child, and what the outcomes are.

School staff should also be willing to make suggestions/recommendations for future involvement. At every Review Child Protection Conference consideration will be given as to whether de-registration would be appropriate. The person attending the Conference on behalf of the school would be expected to contribute constructively to the discussions about that decision, and to contribute to the decision. Criteria for De-registration are given in Section 8.8 of the ACPC procedures. A suggested format for a report for a Review Child Protection Conference is given in Appendix 6 on page 133.

The Child Protection Register (Section 8.2 of ACPC Procedures)

A child’s name will only be placed on the Child Protection Register following the decision of the Initial Child Protection Conference. The Conference will have been satisfied that the child is suffering or is likely to suffer significant harm, which requires a Child Protection Plan.

One of the following requirements needs to be satisfied:

(a) there must be one or more identifiable incidents which can be described as having adversely affected the child. These may be acts of commission or omission and can be either physical, sexual, emotional or neglectful. It is important to identify a specific occasion or occasions when the incident occurred. Professional judgement is that further incidents are likely; or (b) the professional involved believes that the child is likely to suffer significant harm, based on the findings of the investigation which has taken place, or on research evidence.

(DoH - Working Together 1991)

If possible, the Conference should establish a cause of harm or likelihood of harm - Physical, Neglect, Emotional Abuse or Sexual Abuse. The child may be registered under one or more categories.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 42 - MAY 2002 The purpose of the Register is:

(a) to record all children in County Durham who are, or who have been, on the Register;

(b) to provide an accessible information resource;

(c) to provide a range of management information against which some practice, performance and adherence to procedure, can be reviewed.

Schools should inform the key worker immediately should a child on the Child Protection Register move from their school. Conversely if a child on the Child Protection Register moves into a school, the school should inform the local Social Services Child Protection Team.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 43 - MAY 2002

JANUARY, 2000 INTER-AGENCY WORKING

The good practice guidance which was generated as a result of the ‘Review of the Child Protection Arrangements in 39 Durham Schools’ and which is given on Page 61 encourages schools to share their perceptions of the difficulties they face with the people whom they believe are the source of those difficulties. This should not be in a spirit of criticism, but rather as a request to develop better ways of working.

The main features of good inter-agency co-operation are:

 establishing clear and agreed definitions of the functions and tasks of each agency and each worker, so that each knows their own role and recognises and understands the roles of the others;

 identifying individuals within agencies who are willing and able to make tackling child abuse a major commitment and to act as a representative for their agency and a link person with other agencies;

 ensuring that there are regular, well organised channels of communication between the different agencies, both on a case-by-case basis and more generally;

 overcoming ignorance and prejudice about each other’s training, functions and ways of working (for example, by setting up joint training schemes and regular inter-professional discussion groups);

 agreeing common goals and common terminology whilst respecting differences in values and specialist language;

 promoting opportunities for individuals to build up long-standing links with others in the different agencies, at all levels from grassroots workers to senior management;

 making sure that all professionals involved in child abuse work are fully informed about local arrangements for inter-professional co-operation, and are kept up-to-date with new developments.

It may be that ultimately joint guidance from the Education and Social Services Departments should be available which would set out basic and consistent quality standards for their inter-agency working practices.

Quality standards may be one way of improving inter-agency working. Investing in Professional Partnerships will also improve working relationships.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 44 - MAY 2002 Investing in Professional Partnerships

It is only through face to face contact and solving problems together that individuals from different backgrounds learn about each other’s work and develop mutual regard and recognition.

The benefits of good multi-agency working

 A coherent approach is developed.  Differing viewpoints can produce a fairer evaluation of a situation.  Working together can provide people with a supportive network.  Inter-professional dialogue can provide checks and balances in situations where adults and children could become stereotyped as villains and victims.  It meets the legal requirement of the Children Act 1989.

Barriers to effective co-operation

 Low morale can affect workers’ motivation, energy and commitment to working together.  As numbers of contacts increase, stress levels can rise.  There may not be enough time to develop good working relationships.  Workers have misunderstandings and misconceptions about the roles of others.  There may be differences in status between agencies.  Agencies may have different priorities and different philosophies underpinning their practice.  They may have different management structures.  There may not be enough resources (for training, for example).  Professional defences may get in the way of the child always being the central concern.  Workers may lack confidence in their own role and their own position in society.

How to overcome the barriers

 Multi-agency training should take place regularly, be attended by representatives of all agencies and allow local networks to work together.  Informal contacts should be fostered outside a time of crisis.  All staff need to be aware that effective inter-agency working should not exclude the family.

Effectiveness will depend crucially upon the values, attitudes, decision-making processes, organisational integration, professional co-ordination, social position, economic strength and environmental adaptation of each group.

There are several examples within the County of good working practices which bring people from various agencies together, however, all share the same ultimate aim, that of protecting children from abuse and supporting those suffering from abuse, and encouraging a network of professional guidance and support.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 45 - MAY 2002 Dene House Comprehensive School, Peterlee - A Model

Multi-agency meetings are held on a monthly basis. The school has links with the PIEL/LAC project and multi-agency links were seen as important to co-ordinate agency support.

Personnel involved:

Deputy Head Teacher - Chair Social Services Representative Education Welfare Officer School Nurse Behaviour Support Teacher Educational Psychologist Police Representative PIEL Representative SEN Co-ordinator Year Co-ordinators for Each Year Group (5).

Pupils discussed (i.e. the agenda for the meeting):

Criteria for consideration are those pupils who:

- are not responding to current intervention via staged procedures - are socially isolated - are uncared for - are truanting - are considered a ‘nomad’ child - have previous exclusion(s) - are anxious/depressed - are under-achieving - are a danger to himself/herself and/or others - show behaviour problems - are involved in crime - have a medical concern - are abused - have problems at home.

The pattern for the meetings:

- meetings are monthly (dates set one term ahead) and last for 2 hours - agenda is set by the Year Co-ordinators and SENCO - other agency representatives can notify concerns - referral sheets (see page 55) completed and act as agenda information - agenda circulated one week before meeting, to allow preparation - minutes identify agreed action, and by whom, and are circulated within one week of meeting to ensure agreed action followed up. (Copied to SENCO, pupil files.)

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 46 - MAY 2002 Format of meeting:

- Year Co-ordinators present background to a case - preparation from circulated agenda information allows appropriate discussion - Action Plan decided upon, especially those responsible for ensuring action taken - difficulties anticipated e.g. problematic home/school liaison and solutions offered.

Monitoring:

- via follow-up discussions at successive meetings - termly overviews via Action/Outcome sheets via Year Co-ordinator (see page 57) - termly audit of referrals by year group and by gender, undertaken by Deputy Head.

Year 6/Year 7 Transfers:

- during June the agenda concentrates on Year 6 transfer pupils. Primary Heads are aware of the criteria used. SENCO and Year Co-ordinator undertake visits to feeder schools to discuss individual pupils prior to the meeting.

Outcomes:

- individual pupils have needs considered - inter-agency action is planned and monitored - routines established for allowing individual difficulties to be addressed and resources appropriately directed.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 47 - MAY 2002 Referral

Name: Date of Birth: Year/Group: Stage Procedure: Family Information:

Reason for Referral:

Previous Strategies:

Known Medical History:

Behaviour and Number of Fixed Term Exclusions ...... Attendance: Attendance (% attendance) ......

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 48 - MAY 2002 Additional Information:

Action Planning

Date Action Who By When Outcomes

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 49 - MAY 2002 Year 7

Dene House Comprehensive School

Pupils Monitoring Active Other Satisfactor No On-going Conclude Intervention y Chang d e Pupil A    Pupil B    Pupil C    Pupil D   Pupil E     Pupil F   

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 50 - MAY 2002 Coundon Primary School - Multi-Agency Group - A Model

The group came together as a response to the school’s perceived need to share information on an informal basis, about families and children for whom there may be a joint concern.

Constituent members:

 Education Welfare Officer.  Social Services personnel.  Police representative.  School Nurse.  Drugs Education Officer (Police).  Health Visitor (occasional).  Head Teacher/Designated Teacher - Child Protection.

The starting point for each meeting is the latest monthly print-out of 80% and less attendance at school as this seemed to correlate with families causing concern.

Child Protection matters are discussed but no confidentiality is breached - information and general advice given and shared is on an informal basis - no written agenda is prepared and no minutes taken.

If an issue emerges which needs action, it is processed through formal channels, as required by the ACPC.

The group generally meets half-termly and all have found the exchanges beneficial.

The working relationships build up have been particularly useful and personnel changes could be seen to enhance this rather than detract from it.

To fulfil the requirements of Circular 10/95 and the responsibilities for multi-agency working, all school staff need to be aware of the processes and management arrangements needed to help to protect children from abuse. School staff also need to come to an understanding that schools can offer children a great deal in terms of preventative strategies, a secure environment and a caring ethos promoting respect and understanding for each other and for themselves.

For a school to encompass all these aspects there needs to be a detailed Child Protection Policy which promotes good practice in an child protecting school.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 51 - MAY 2002 THE SCHOOL CHILD PROTECTION POLICY AND GOOD PRACTICE GUIDANCE

POLICY DEVELOPMENT

Each school will have its own format for devising and disseminating policy and for ensuring good practice and outcomes from that policy. In this respect the Child Protection Policy is no different from other policies. However, the Child Protection Policy must take account of the Area Child Protection Committee (ACPC) Procedures and have regard to the LEA Child Protection Policy.

The school’s Child Protection Policy, by its very nature, needs a multi-agency approach and it would be good practice to ensure, through consultation and contribution, that representatives of the various agencies within a school’s locality are given the opportunity to support and respond to the school’s policy development, dissemination and review.

The school’s Child Protection Policy cannot nor should not stand alone, but should form an integral part of a related set of policies and guidance on, for example:

 staff recruitment policy and induction arrangements  health and safety  anti-bullying  behaviour and discipline  physical control of pupils  physical contact with pupils  personal, social and health education  spiritual, moral, social and cultural  special educational needs  sex education  drugs education  pastoral care policy.

Within each policy there should be reference made to the implications of that policy for, and its implementation on, good child protection practice. Similarly, a school’s Child Protection Policy should acknowledge the role which the implementation of those policies may have in helping to protect children and helping children to protect themselves.

As part of the LEA support for schools in Child Protection matters a Draft Model Child Protection Policy for Schools can be found on the Intranet or from Pupil Services Unit. In creating this draft policy guide advice was sought from other agencies - Social Services in particular.

A policy statement summarising the main aims and objectives of the Child Protection Policy should be created alongside the full policy, and the policy statement made readily available to others, for whom the full policy may be too detailed.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 52 - MAY 2002 POLICY DISSEMINATION

 All members of staff teaching and non-teaching, should have a copy of the full policy. The policy statement should form part of the Staff Handbook.

 All newly appointed staff, teaching and non-teaching should have their attention drawn to the Child Protection Policy in their Handbook, and its content and implementation should form an integral part of their induction.

 All parents/carers should know about the Child Protection Policy and its importance for school staff and children. It is advisable that the dissemination of the Child Protection Policy Statement should be included as part of a wider briefing for parents/carers on the work of the school.

 All members of the inter-agency group within which a school operates should also receive a copy of the policy statement. The development and subsequent review of the policy statement should be part of that group’s annual work programme.

 All other adults who provide services for the pupils, or who come into contact with the children in school, should receive a copy of the policy statement and time should be taken to explain in detail the implications that the policy has for their work. This will affect youth workers, community workers, school nurses, school doctors, educational psychologists, members of the Inspection and Advisory Service, advisory and support staff and any adult, including parents/carers who may come to work in school, accompany school trips or residential visits in a voluntary capacity.

 The school brochure should contain a statement about the school’s stance on Child Protection. Probably the most suitable location would be a section where Health and Safety matters are dealt with. A statement could be added in the context of:

“We aim to keep our children in as safe as environment as possible. To this end we have a door entry system …… and appropriate supervision arrangements. We try to encourage our children to protect themselves by raising self-esteem and encouraging positive and assertive behaviour …… The school takes its responsibilities for Child Protection seriously and will work within the appropriate procedures and with other agencies in carrying out those responsibilities.”

POLICY INTO PRACTICE

Within this Handbook advice is given on good child protection practice. Guidance on effective management of the school’s practice, as well as maximising the contribution schools can make to multi-agency conferences and groups, should be given as guidance to the implementation of a school’s own policy.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 53 - MAY 2002 The information in this section is drawn from a number of schools which took part in the research conducted by David Settle, ACPC Development Worker in March 1998. No one school demonstrated all of these features, but a significant number had developed many of them. This represents a sound foundation on which development and improvement for all schools could be based.

The Characteristics of Good Child Protection Practice in School

It should be noted that the order in which the points appear is not significant.

1. The Head Teacher and/or the designated teacher demonstrates:

 a clear sense of awareness and understanding of the lives of children and young people in need;  an acceptance of the unavoidable responsibility to respond to these needs;  a personal commitment to the human rights of the children and young people in their school; and  clear, personal leadership.

2. These schools work to provide a range of opportunities for pupils to talk to adults in confidence, and seek to demonstrate that they will be listened to actively. This may include such arrangements as:

 the designation of times and locations when named staff will be available;  ready access to the school nurse or school counsellor;  the use of circle time in tutorial settings or class groups; and  the designation of student review tutors.

3. These schools attempt to make parents/carers of pupils:

 feel welcome in school;  feel sufficiently confident to speak to the Head Teacher or a member of staff about the concerns they have for their children or their families;  know that they will not be judged;  know that they will be listened to actively; and  know they will be helped to cope if a possible solution lies within the scope of the school.

4. There is a clear connection established between the day-to-day requirement to help children and young people whose home circumstances leave them under- nourished, unclean, unhealthy or generally neglected; and, the need for non- judgemental understanding and care on the one hand, and alertness and vigilance on the other.

5. There is an understanding of the factors which can operate within families against the interest of children and young people, such as repeated exposure to a climate in which there is domestic violence, substance abuse, poverty or mental ill-health.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 54 - MAY 2002 6. The staff have the knowledge and skills:

 to identify signs which may characterise physical, sexual or psychological abuse of children and young people;  to be alert to these signs; and  to be sufficiently self-confident to act on their observations.

7. The staff know:

 to whom they should report their observations;  that they will be listened to;  that action will be taken; and  that they will be kept informed of the outcomes.

8. The Head Teacher and/or the designated teacher:

 is a good listener;  knows the pupils and staff in their school very well;  had the calm control not to over-react;  has a systematic approach to the analysis of the presented facts;  has established procedures for the collection of further information, if required.

9. The Head Teacher and/or the designated teacher has well established professional relationships with a wide network of colleagues from across the whole spectrum of agencies involved in work with children and young people in need and those subject to abuse.

10. There is regular and structured contact between the school and representatives from the other agencies. This may amount to monthly meetings, each time involving a social worker, an education welfare officer, the school nurse, a representative from the local Police, possibly an educational psychologist, the Head Teacher and/or the designated teacher and, in the case of secondary schools, other school staff, usually drawn from the year heads, form tutors and the Special Needs Co-ordinator.

11. Multi-agency meetings take place, usually in school:

 they focus on specific cases of children and young people in need and/or alleged abuse;  they concentrate on practical actions in response to the perceived needs of the children, young people and their families;  they act as a forum for information exchange and lead to the further development of skills, knowledge and understanding;  they generate levels of mutual trust and respect; and  they enable sound judgement to underpin difficult decisions which can then be taken with added confidence.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 55 - MAY 2002 12. The Head Teacher and/or the designated teacher:

 has ready access to informal advice from child protection officers within the local Social Services’ office and from LEA child protection officers;  can discuss with confidence a disclosure; and  knows that action will not be taken without their prior knowledge, having been part of the decision-making process.

13. Though the feeling of pressure to do the right thing is always present, there is a greater sense of clarity and understanding of the threshold between a child or young person in need and a child or young person subject to abuse and, therefore, greater confidence to refer or not to refer a matter of concern to the local Child Protection Office.

14. There is a sense of realistic expectation about what can be delivered and what cannot be delivered by social workers; though this does not prevent frustration.

15. There is a policy which:

 has been developed with the staff;  is part of a wider set of related policies which might include such subjects as anti-bullying, behaviour management, physical contact with, and control of, pupils; and  relates to the school’s personal, social and health education curriculum and is in line with Curriculum 2000.

16. The school policy:

 is published in the staff Handbook;  is reviewed and updated annually; and  is an integral part of the induction programme for staff new to the school, both teaching and non-teaching.

17. Child protection is one of the recurring elements in the staff INSET programme. Within the programme:

 there is information for everyone at the level of basic awareness and ability to recognise possible signs of physical, sexual and psychological abuse;  there is more in-depth training provided for staff designated with pastoral management and/or child protection responsibilities; and  at times the training involves local Child Protection Officers from Social Sevices and/or local Police Officers from the Children and Family Service Branch.

18. There is a clear and effective pastoral management structure which:

 takes account of the needs of all children in the school; and  is geared to responding to the particular needs of those children, young people and families known to be experiencing greatest difficulties.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 56 - MAY 2002 19. During a child abuse investigation involving a child in the school communications with staff are well managed. Information is given to all staff at the level of generalisation and they are requested to be alert to any child or young person showing unusual behaviour or distress. Staff who work directly with the child are given additional information in strict confidence on a ‘need to know’ basis to enable them to support the child well to be alert continuously to their needs.

20. The school has arrangements for communicating with all families about its policies and practice in response to children and young people in need and concerns or allegations about the abuse of young people.

21. Parent/carers of pupils are told that the school will always put the interests of children and young people first in circumstances where there is real concern about significant neglect, significant harm or abuse or a likelihood of these circumstances developing.

Included with this information for parents/carers is a clear statement that this may mean that the school will refer its concerns to the local Child Protection Team and the Police.

22. In the case of residential schools the processes of recruitment and selection highlight:

 the school’s approach to children and young people in need and those children known to require protection;  the school’s values, principles and beliefs with regard to the rights of children and young people away from home;  the standards to which staff will be expected to work; and  the contribution they will be expected to make to the maintenance and development of a safe, ordered, supportive and nurturing environment for children and young people.

23. The school is part of a local cluster or network which understands the need for a concerted approach to the handling of sensitive matters, such as the work with children in need or children subject to abuse.

Consideration is given to the use of joint initiatives so that developments which may raise questions of concern or be perceived as ‘threatening’ by some parents are seen to be part of a coherent and planned undertaking by all schools.

24. The Head Teacher and/or the designated teacher keep good records which are well maintained, clearly designated, thoroughly protected and readily retrievable.

25. In these schools the transfer of pupil information as they move between schools involves personal contact between the Head Teachers and/or the designated teachers to ensure that appropriate and relevant confidential information is shared and understood by the receiving school.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 57 - MAY 2002 26. Allegations against staff are treated with the same fairness and equality of justice, using the same processes as when dealing with any other form of disclosure or allegation of abuse.

27. The Head Teachers and/or the designated teachers take seriously their preparations for case conferences and support their unavoidable and time- consuming involvement in core group activities.

The Characteristics of Poor Child Protection Practice in Schools

1. In these schools there may be a tendency to believe that it has not happened here and, therefore, it will not happen here. This is not to imply that previous disclosures have been ignored or signs of possible abuse have been missed. The point is made in order to reinforce the need for all schools:

 to be alert to the changing circumstances in the lives of children and young people;  to ensure that staff have the basic skills, knowledge and understanding to recognise a child subject to neglect, significant harm or abuse; and  to emphasise that staff need the self-confidence to speak out if they observe signs of significant harm or abuse, or hear a child’s disclosure, even if the circumstances in which the school is situated may lead to an assumption that all the children within it are safe from neglect, significant harm or abuse.

2. In these schools there may be a tendency to believe that the systems are working well; everyone does know, understand and have the skills to act correctly in response to a disclosure; and that the children and young people do have the confidence to speak out, and do feel that they will be listened to. But these are actually assumptions because attempts have not been made to collect the evidence that these circumstances do actually exist.

3. These schools do not have working arrangements with their local child protection officers which gives them the confidence to make referrals in the sure knowledge that they will manage the ensuing situation together.

POLICY REVIEW

The Child Protection Policy should be subject to annual review to assess:

 the effectiveness of their child protection arrangements;  the extent to which it is aligned to the policy statement;  the current validity of the policy statement.

In undertaking the review, which ideally should be as part of a school’s general arrangements for self-review, schools should be aware of:

 new legislation and Government guidance;  the changing population of families in school and the social and economic circumstances in which they live their lives;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 58 - MAY 2002  staff turnover and the need to ensure consistency of knowledge, skills and understanding.

Evidence in support of the school review process should be gathered from all interested parties, especially those involved directly in the recent past.

The findings from the review should be used to further develop good practice and amendments should be made to the school’s published guidance.

A SELF-REVIEW INVENTORY FOR CHILD PROTECTION

Schools are encouraged to conduct self-review as part of the process of becoming a “self-improving school” and the LEA is working with schools to develop that review process. In terms of Child Protection, an inventory has been collated to help schools review their practice in this important area.

The inventory will help schools identify strengths and weaknesses and thus will enable a school to prioritise the areas for development and for staff training to be incorporated into the school’s Development Plan.

A possible self-review inventory for Child Protection will be found as Appendix 7 on Pages 135-139.

As part of the self-review process the views of children play a vital role. When considering Child Protection and a children’s sense of safety and well-being in school, their views are similarly vital. A methodology of listening to children has been piloted within the County and details can be obtained from Pupil Services.

THE ROLE OF GOVERNORS IN CHILD PROTECTION

Governors are accountable for the employment of staff, for the priorities of the budget and for the overall welfare of the children in school. Whilst individually these responsibilities may have some impact on child protection, collectively they demonstrate the importance of the Governors’ role in helping to protect children by ensuring the appointment of appropriate people, providing appropriate resources and keeping children safe and giving them the skills to keep themselves safe.

Governors need to be aware of the significance of a school’s role in child protection. A high percentage of referrals are made by school staff, which results from the unique position they hold in the lives of children in terms of daily contact, trust and regular monitoring. Schools are also well placed to work with parents in supporting children and caring for them.

There will be an awareness amongst Governors of the socio-economic setting of the school. Whilst it is generally accepted that there will be more cases of physical abuse and neglect in areas where poverty and deprivation predominate, there will be cases of all types of abuse in all socio-economic settings. Staff working in schools where there are significant number of children on the Child Protection Register or living in abusive situations will find themselves under greater stress and pressure of even more work as a result of the need to support children and work with other agencies.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 59 - MAY 2002 Nominated Governor

There has been a recommendation by the Council of Local Education Authorities (CLEA) that there should be a nominated Governor with responsibility for child protection. Because of the implications regarding possible allegations against members of staff the nominated Governor should be the Chair or, in his/her absence, the Vice-Chair.

The duties of the nominated Governor would be:

 to develop a working relationship with Head Teacher/Designated Teacher;  to ensure that child protection policies and procedures are in place and are reviewed regularly;  to ensure an annual item appears on the agenda of Governors’ meetings which would cover the school’s implementation of the policy, the place of child protection in the Curriculum and training needs and outcomes;  to attend appropriate training;  to liaise with the Head Teacher regarding allegations against members of staff and to oversee procedures in relation to any allegations against the Head Teacher, including possible attendance at strategy meetings.

Budgetary Considerations

Governors have responsibility for the overall management of the budget and working with the Head Teacher to set its priorities.

In schools where there is a significant input from staff into multi-agency work, for example attending case conferences and core groups, Governors may wish to consider an allocation for supply cover to reduce stress in allowing teachers to attend such meetings.

Within the training budget it is important that the designated teacher receives initial training – currently Levels 2 and 3 of the LEA training – and that whole staff has awareness raising training. Training should be reviewed regularly.

It may be that counselling skills in teachers would enable more children to feel secure and supported and consideration should be given to encouraging training for such skills.

Health and Safety

Governors also have overall responsibility for Health and Safety matters, and child protection should be seen clearly as an issue for Health and Safety. The school’s risk assessment should demonstrate that child protection has been considered and Governors may need to give thought to any budgetary considerations emanating from the risk assessment.

The overall responsibility of Governors in ensuring that the school may become a ‘child protecting’ school emanates from the sense of promising safety which Governors can help engender by working with the Head Teacher and staff to an appropriate ethos of care and respect for individuals.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 60 - MAY 2002 That ethos should emanate from a willingness to listen actively to children, to welcome and work with parents and other professionals, to support children and adults and to promote the overall safety of children and adults within and beyond the school’s own boundaries.

Governors, many of whom will be local to the school, can help towards informing the actions of the school in child protection by making the school aware of the nature of the school’s context, and understanding the impact this context may have on the implementation of the school’s Child Protection policy.

Schools can and do make a difference in the way they relate to their pupils, parents and the local community. The values which they uphold and practice can offer a great deal towards the sense of security and well-being which is nurtured in children and which is responded to by parents and others. However, that sense of security, whilst not totally inviolable, can be further enhanced by undertaking actions which promote a safe school from the aspects of personnel, the physical environment and preventative work with children and adults.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 61 - MAY 2002 THE SAFE SCHOOL

The safe school is a school which takes a preventative approach to all aspects of possible harm. The physical aspects of preventing harm - associated with the site and buildings - and the appointment of appropriate staff are two aspects; but there is much which can be done to give children the skills to protect themselves and to deal with the more insidious factors which might affect a child’s sense of safety, the most prominent amongst these are bullying and substance misuse.

Good child protection practice should therefore address all these issues.

The Safe School: The Physical Environment

Under the Health and Safety Legislation schools are responsible for conducting risk assessments of the school site and premises. The principle of a risk assessment is:

 to reduce risk of harm;  to identify areas of risk;  to establish what can be done to reduce the level of risk through existing controls;  to assess the level of risk posed when existing controls are in place;  to establish what, if anything, can be done further (which might involve expenditure);  to re-assess the level of risk should the proposed controls be put in place;  to prioritise the action necessary.

(See Guidance in LEA Health and Safety Policy)

The school should therefore conduct its risk assessment with a view to protecting children from abuse, in particular:

 access to the site from unacceptable visitors and the strategies in place for supervision;  areas where it is difficult for supervision or other abuse to take place and thus where bullying may take place;  the vulnerability of particular children who may be at risk from abduction.

The school should also recognise areas within the school where staff become vulnerable to allegation. For example, there may be dangers which may arise from private interviews with individual children and young people.

The Safe School: Recruitment of Staff and Volunteers

The protection of children is the responsibility of all adults, and whilst the vast majority of adults do not abuse children, those who do, select and plan opportunities to access children.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 62 - MAY 2002 People who do not abuse children find it difficult to believe that they may be working alongside a person who might abuse, and others may indeed believe that a child’s behaviour contributes to their being abused. Conversely, some adults cannot believe that they may be accused of abuse, nor that children can misinterpret an adult’s action. Occasionally, false allegations of abuse are made.

Safe Recruitment Procedures

Governors have responsibility for the appointment of staff. All people having significant access to children must be the subject of a Police check - thus teaching staff, ancillary and support staff and school office and cleaning staff must be cleared by Police check before taking up post. A complete list of those requiring Police clearance is listed as Appendix 8 on Page 141.

A Police check is carried out by the LEA on behalf of the Governors. The nominated person at County Hall is John Bowman, Finance and Staffing Manager, to whom all queries in connection with Police checking should be addressed. Full details of the procedures to be carried out can be obtained from the Finance and Staffing Manager.

Detailed DfEE guidance is given in:

Circular 9/93 - The Protection of Children: Disclosure of Criminal Background of Those with Access to Children. Circular 11/95 - Misconduct of Teachers and Workers with Children and Young Persons.

It has to be realised that some people who abuse children do not have a Police record; they may have been acquitted of a charge, or have never been accused or found out. Vigilance is therefore required and a Code of Practice for staff having suspicions about a colleague’s practice should form part of the school’s preventative action.

Recruitment of Supply Staff and Short Notice Appointments

It is essential that the protection of children is maintained as a priority even in difficult circumstances. Current advice regarding the employment of short-term contract staff is that where the appointment involved is a temporary one then, due to the urgency in finding replacements to cover sickness and the like, it is accepted that there is a need to be flexible in our approach. In order to overcome the unacceptable delays which could arise in connection with the appointment of temporary replacements for staff it is suggested that:

 Form EPC1 (Revised) should be completed and certified by the successful applicant and sent to John Bowman, Finance and Staffing Manager, via the school under confidential cover, marked “EPC1”;  if the applicant has not been previously referred to John Bowman for a criminal record check and cleared within the previous 6 months then any appointment should be on a short-term basis only. It is essential that in such circumstances where the results of a check are awaited the temporary employee is supervised so far as is possible.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 64 - MAY 2002 Head Teachers may contact Finance and Staffing Section to check whether or not a person has been Police checked by this LEA.

Teachers Employed by Staffing Agencies

By agreement the LEA is undertaking criminal record checks on behalf of some supply staff agencies.

However, it is important that Head Teachers wishing to use supply agencies should confirm that all teachers placed with them are Police cleared and that all appropriate checks relating to qualifications, health and barring have been carried out.

Student Placements

The LEA has agreed to arrange criminal record checks to be undertaken, on an individual request basis, on behalf of placements arranged by Action Community College, Bishop Auckland college, Darlington Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form Centre, Darlington College of Technology, Derwentside College, East Durham and Houghall Community College, New College Durham, Ushaw College and Durham University.

It is important that schools should ensure that the arrangements which pertain when processing supply teacher placements are also applied to college/university students placements.

Recruitment of Volunteers and Appropriate Supervision

Volunteers can have an important and beneficial role in supporting the work of teachers, both in the formal situation in the classroom, in the informal situations of raising funds and supporting events and those situations beyond the school day, in supporting clubs and sports activities. Volunteers may also be involved, for example, on administrative tasks, which would not normally bring them into direct contact with children, although on school premises. These latter should be considered with the same procedures as those for whom access to children is known.

It is important that steps are taken to ensure that no unsuitable volunteer has access to children. It is well known that schools are recognised as attractive centres to those who wish to abuse children in a systematic way.

A volunteer is recognised in DfEE guidance as a person who comes into school on a regular weekly basis or is involved in overnight school visits.

Schools may wish to consider the access which less frequent, but regular, volunteers have to children and the need to follow the guidance outlined below.

Many of the volunteers offering to help in school will be well known to the school staff for example, parents or friends of staff. Others may not be well known and may volunteer for a variety of reasons, for example, they may have skills to share, or be thinking of teaching as a career. It is important that schools accept volunteers without feeling under any obligation. The needs of the school should take priority over the

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 64 - MAY 2002 needs of the individual volunteer. What is essential is that all volunteers need to be considered and scrutinised in the same way, whether they are known or unknown. Volunteers should therefore be asked to provide information about themselves.

A minimum of information should contain:

 personal details - name, address, telephone number and relationship with any child in school or member of staff;  details of qualifications and previous work with children;  declarations of any: - convictions of criminal offences including cautions - investigation by Social Services for child protection or if children have ever been removed from their care;  agreement to a Police check being carried out;  proof of identity for those totally unknown to the school.

Schools may wish to interview volunteers to further assess their suitability for working with children. A sample declaration and form appear as Appendix 9 on Page 143.

Schools should be very clear that the tasks are worthwhile, that the volunteer can carry out the tasks and that he/she is a suitable person to have access to children. Conversely, staff should not feel under any obligation to accept a volunteer into their classroom.

As general guidance it is recommended that:

 volunteers should not have unsupervised access to children, nor should they be in areas where they cannot be fully seen by the supervising teacher;  the volunteer’s role is to support staff in carrying out their duties;  volunteers should not be given tasks beyond their capabilities and therefore where they may feel under pressure;  volunteers should not be asked to undertake tasks which involves the intimate care of children, including accompanying children to the toilet;  staff supervising volunteers should make themselves available to discuss difficulties, offer advice and further support;  volunteers should not be placed in any position of sole responsibility, whether this is for children or premises/equipment;  volunteers should not have the opportunity to feel that they are in charge and thus in a position of power, which may then be abused;  volunteers should not have access to children’s records, except for example where a child has a medical condition of which all adults working with him/her are aware. In which case parental agreement should be sought;  volunteers should receive training for the tasks they are asked to do;  the school should consider a time limit on the period of a volunteer’s work with the school, enabling new volunteers to be brought in and also avoiding the monopoly (and therefore power) position of a particular volunteer. For long- term work an induction period might be considered;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 65 - MAY 2002  volunteers should have a direct ‘line manager’ to whom they can turn when needing advice, but also who can supervise and advise on practice;  in larger schools particularly, school staff may not recognise genuine volunteers as opposed to an unauthorised person. A badge or visitor’s pass would be recommended as part of a security system.

Where volunteers offer to coach sporting activities schools must be satisfied as to the skills and competence of the volunteer to work in the sport. This may include current qualifications through the recognised sport’s governing body. The volunteers must also demonstrate competence in working with and relating to children and adhere to the school’s Code of Practice in terms of gamesmanship and good practice.

If volunteers are to work effectively within a school they should be given the appropriate information. They should therefore be made aware of:

 the school’s behaviour policy including the system of rewards and sanctions (and whether they have a role within this);  the school’s child protection policy (including the name of the designated teacher);  the school’s health and safety policy.

Occasional Volunteers

Concerns are often expressed about the use of volunteers on an infrequent basis. Such volunteers may, for example, offer to help with the class Christmas party or on a class visit, but at no other time and therefore Police checking would be inappropriate.

Suggested good practice is that a letter, which goes out to parents to finalise arrangements, names those people who have volunteered to accompany the visit, for example. This practice may alert any parent with concerns to inform the Head Teacher.

Staff Employed by Contractors (e.g. Catering, Cleaning, School Maintenance, Transport)

The LEA will conduct the necessary checks with contractors engaged by the LEA in schools. This includes drivers and escorts on home-to-school transport.

Where contractors are engaged by schools, both existing or new staff employed by the contractor need to be checked. Full details of the individuals’ surnames, forenames and dates of birth should be sent to John Bowman, Finance and Staffing Manager. Head Teachers should take all reasonable steps to ensure that the details given are accurate.

Confidentiality

Absolute confidentiality must be maintained in respect of all information passed to Head Teachers by successful applicants regarding their convictions. Such information should not be divulged to anyone else, including other members of staff.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 66 - MAY 2002 The Safe School: Professional Conduct

Because of the vulnerability of teachers and others to misplaced allegations as a consequence of their close professional relationships with children it would be advisable for schools to have a written Code of Conduct to help individuals maintain high and appropriate standards in terms of relationships with children and young people.

Private Interviews

There will be occasions when confidential interviews with individual children will need to take place and in such cases:

 it is advisable that such interviews should take place in a room with visual access, or with the door open. Alternatively, a room or area which is likely to be frequented by others would be appropriate;  if the above are not appropriate, another adult should know that an interview is underway, or should be present or nearby;  the use of “Engaged” signs or lights is not advisable;  schools should have very clear guidance for areas such a photographic darkrooms and other such areas to cover particular specific needs of the school.

Physical Contact or Touch

 Staff should be made aware that any physical contact with a child or young person may be misconstrued by the child, colleague or other observer. For example, placing a hand on the arm or shoulder of an angry child could lead to adverse reaction or repeatedly touching an individual child in a similar way may be interpreted as evidence of a more intimate contact or relationship.

 Staff should regularly re-appraise their teaching style and contact to ensure that they give no doubt about their intentions in the minds of pupils, colleagues and parents/carers.

 When a distressed child needs comfort and re-assurance, it is appropriate to give comfort for example by placing an arm around the shoulders; however, staff must use their discretion to ensure that what is normal and natural remains so, and does not become unnecessary and unjustified contact. It would be helpful to record such incidents and the action taken.

 When giving younger children or children with SEN encouragement or help such physical contact should be restricted to the minimum necessary to re- assure the child. For some children and young people with profound or multi- impairment, physical contact is sometimes the only approach which will stimulate any learning response. However, staff should still retain professionalism in their approach.

 Schools should make themselves aware of the cultural difficulties presented by touch for some children and families in their community.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 67 - MAY 2002  Agreed procedures for the administration of medicines should be carefully followed and each administration should be logged, dated and signed by the person responsible. Similarly, any administration of first-aid should be logged with details of treatment undertaken.

 Children with special educational needs, especially those requiring complex or repeated physical handling should have a prescribed handling policy and staff dealing with them should have specific training (see section below).

 It is not appropriate for children to be physically searched, or asked to remove clothing in order to conduct a search for lost or stolen items.

 There should be a clear statement and understanding that corporal punishment is illegal, and that no child should be held or restrained as a form of punishment.

Physical Contact Involved in Teaching Elements of the Curriculum

Some areas of the curriculum may involve the teacher making physical contact with a child in the course of their teaching.

Examples include:

 showing a pupil how to use a piece of apparatus or equipment in Technology;  demonstrating an activity or exercise in games and P.E.

At all times staff should be aware of the limits of “appropriate contact” and the possibility of such contact being misinterpreted by a pupil. Good practice might suggest the member of staff asks the child if he/she would be happy to be held or supported.

Some Sports Governing Bodies give technical advice on physical contact in coaching.

Assisting a child at a computer is an area which can be easily misinterpreted if, for example, the member of staff leans over the child, thereby touching the child with different parts of the body. Good practice would suggest that the child is asked to stand up whilst the member of staff sits at the computer to demonstrate.

Children with Special Educational Needs

Children with special educational needs are particularly vulnerable to abuse, especially to sexual abuse. The vulnerability is enhanced because disability is often linked with attitudes that encourage devaluation, underprivileged status, rejection and discrimination.

Thus within the social context children with disabilities may well be seen as appropriate targets by those who wish to abuse children, as well as being at risk from those lacking the knowledge that their practices are abusive. Such children have a

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 68 - MAY 2002 high dependency on adults, of which there may be many individuals associated closely with each child. That dependency may be within the physical context which means that children find themselves in more intimate situations with adults, and because of this inhibitions on both sides may be reduced. In addition, children with disabilities may become at risk of accidental and early sexualisation through insensitive medical attention, which in turn may lead to inappropriate behaviour which could be wrongly interpreted by adults. Furthermore, children with specific learning disabilities may well suffer because their apparent immaturity does not match their physical maturity.

Communication is of course a major issue for children with special educational needs. Many children in mainstream schools have difficulty in disclosing abuse because they do not have the language, or are unused to expressing emotions verbally. The resultant behaviour difficulties may well be wrongly attributed. However, for a child with disabilities the difficulties of communication are increased and the opportunities for alternative approaches to encouraging communication are more restricted. The difficulties are further exacerbated by a more limited understanding of what is appropriate behaviour on behalf of the child, and a possible unwillingness on the part of adults to accept that young people with disabilities need suitable sex education as part of the overall personal and social development of the child.

It is important therefore that children with disabilities have good role models to follow in all aspects of behaviour, that they come to know respect for them as individuals and that some preventative approaches are given to them to use, rather than necessarily always being in the domain of the adults.

A school which takes child protection seriously will also pay particular attention to monitoring individual children. This should relate to the more obvious physical signs of abuse as well as behaviour patterns and changes.

Good child protection strategies would also include giving clear guidance on such areas as intimate care, and given below is an extract from the Guidance on Good Practice and Intimate Care, produced by Chailey Heritage School (part of South Downs Health).

“All of the children we work with have the right to be safe and to be treated with dignity and respect, as set out in the Chailey Heritage Charter. These guidelines are designed to safeguard both children and staff, and apply to every member of staff involved with the intimate care of children at Chailey Heritage. They aim to support good practice in intimate care.

Children with disabilities can be very vulnerable. All staff involved with their intimate care need to be sensitive to the child’s individual needs. Staff also need to be aware that some adults may use intimate care as an opportunity to abuse children, and to bear in mind that some care tasks or treatments could be open to possible misinterpretation. False allegations of sexual abuse are extremely rare, but certain basic guidelines will safeguard both children and staff. Everyone is safer if expectations are clear and approaches are consistent as far as possible. If you cannot work within these guidelines for any reason, talk with your manager or another senior person.

1. Treat every child with dignity and respect and ensure privacy appropriate to the child’s age and situation

Privacy is an important issue. Much intimate care is carried out by one staff member alone with one child. This practice is actively supported unless the child prefers two people or the task

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 69 - MAY 2002 requires two people. Having people working alone does in some ways increase the opportunity for possible abuse. However, this is balanced by the loss of privacy and lack of trust implied if two people have to be present - quite apart from the practical difficulties. So, staff are supported in carrying out the intimate care of children alone unless the task requires the presence of two people, or the child prefers two people.

2. Involve the child as far as possible in their own intimate care

Try to avoid doing things for a child that he/she can do alone and if a child is able to help, ensure they are given the chance to do so. Support the child in doing all that they can for themselves. If a child is fully dependent on you, talk with them about what you are doing and give them choices where possible.

3. Be responsive to a child’s reactions

Check your practice by asking the child, particularly a child you haven’t previously cared for, e.g. “Is it OK to do it this way?”. “Can you wash there?” How does mummy do this?”. If a child expresses dislike of a certain person carrying out their intimate care, try and find out why.

4. Make sure practice in intimate care is as consistent as possible

Line managers have responsibility for ensuring their staff have a consistent approach. This doesn’t mean that everyone has to do things in an identical fashion, but it is important that approaches aren’t markedly different between different staff.

5. Never do something unless you know how to do it

If you are not sure how to do something, ASK. If you need to be shown more than once, ask again. Certain intimate care or treatment procedures, such as rectal examinations, must only be carried out by nursing or medical staff. Other procedures, such as giving rectal valium, suppositories or intermittent catheterisation must only be carried out by staff who have been formally trained and assessed as competent.

6. If you are concerned, report it

If during the intimate care of a child you accidentally hurt them, or the child seems unusually sore or tender in the genital area, or appears to be sexually aroused by your actions, or misunderstands or misinterprets something, or has a very emotional reaction without apparent cause; report any such incident as soon as possible to another person working with you and make a brief written note of it in the child’s diary sheet, medical notes or school accident book. Some of these could be cause for concern about the child, or alternatively the child or another adult might possible misconstrue something you have done.

7. Encourage the child to have a positive image of their own body

Confident, assertive children who feel their body belongs to them are less vulnerable to sexual abuse. The approach you take to a child’s intimate care can convey lots of messages to them about what their body is “worth”. This includes the basics like privacy and dignity. Also, your attitude to the child’s intimate care is important. Keeping in mind the child’s age, routine care should be enjoyable, relaxed and fun. Playing games with children, tickling and cuddling as part of a child’s care is actively encouraged as long as the child’s right to say no is respected.”

We must accept the fact that disabled children are more likely to be abused, sometimes by the professionals around them, sometimes by their family, and the fact that the abuse is less likely to be reported or investigated. However, children with special needs are more likely to be protected if adults are alert to:

 the difficulties of communication;  the increased vulnerability;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 70 - MAY 2002  the increased sexuality and the need for sex education;  the need for preventative approaches for the child as well as for the adults involved.

Physical Control of Pupils

Schools should have agreed a policy and guidance on the physical control of pupils, following guidance in DfEE Circular 9/94 and the LEA Policy and Guidance on the Physical Control of Pupils. Governors and staff should be clear about the need to follow such guidance, whilst realising that this is a very complex issue.

In brief, the school’s policy should outline the occasions when restraint may be used and the boundaries the policy sets, i.e.

 to prevent a child committing an offence;  to prevent a child injuring themselves or others;  where there is the likelihood of serious damage to property;  in cases of disruptive behaviour;  to prevent a child absconding.

Physical control should only be used:

 rarely and exceptionally;  as a last resort;  where other action would likely fail;  with the minimum amount of force required.

It is important that staff are aware that physical control should:

 be used only if the circumstances warrant it;  be such that the degree of force is in proportion to the circumstances at its minimum level;  not be used automatically;  not be used as discipline;  consider the pupil’s age, sex, understanding and any disabilities.

The child needs to be:

 told what will happen;  communicated with throughout the incident.

Staff should:

 consider the need for help before and during the incident;  consider all other strategies first;  have agreed procedures.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 71 - MAY 2002 Staff should not, for example:

 hold a pupil around the neck, by the collar or restrict breathing;  slap, punch or kick;  use any implement;  throw any object;  twist or force limbs against a joint;  trip;  hold or pull by the hair or ear;  hold a pupil in a way which might be considered indecent.

De-escalation strategies should be used as a priority so that physical control is used infrequently and as a final resort.

A copy of the LEA Policy and Guidance on the Physical Control of Pupils will be available on the Intranet or from Pupil Services Unit.

The Safe School: Using the Curriculum to Protect Children

Schools and other educational establishments can help to protect children not only by having alert staff and sound management systems, but also through the curriculum. Young people can be given the information about what constitutes abuse, the skills and attitudes needed to resist abuse, together with preparing young people for adulthood and the responsibilities of parenthood.

A useful exercise in promoting the use of the curriculum would be to examine the content, skills, knowledge and understanding of a particular curriculum area for themes/activities which would help a child to protect themselves - be that, for example, giving the child the necessary information about inappropriate actions of others, the vocabulary to express their emotions, the rules for keeping safe and information about people who can help them.

Areas to consider may include what the school offers to pupils in terms of how they:

 gain an understanding of human relationships and development through the life cycle;  help promote good parenting through teaching about child development and childcare;  build up self-esteem by experiencing a positive learning environment where they are encouraged and offered opportunities to succeed;  learn to solve problems and deal with a range of challenging situations;  develop in a supportive environment where everyone is valued and respected;  are able to express emotions and feelings, and deal respectfully with the emotions and feelings of others.

The collected information could be collated to stress the importance of the school’s Child Protection Curriculum as part of the whole School Policy on Child Protection.

As an example, using the Personal, Social and Health Education and Citizenship guidance.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 72 - MAY 2002 The aim of the PSHE curriculum and Citizenship curriculum is to enable schools to:  promote their pupils’ personal and social development, including their health and well-being effectively;  develop pupils’ knowledge and understanding of their role and responsibilities as active citizens in a modern democracy; and  equip them with the values, skills and knowledge to deal with the difficult moral and social questions they face.

Through the proposed guidance there are constantly running themes which promote good child protecting practice such as: Key Stage 1 1(b) To recognise, name and manage their feelings. 4(e) To recognise that there are different forms of teasing and bullying, that bullying is wrong and how to seek help in resisting bullying. Key Stage 2 2(d) That there are different kinds of duties, responsibilities and rights at home, at school and in the community and that these can sometimes conflict with each other. 3(c) As they approach puberty, about body changes. 4(c) About different types of relationships among friends and families and to develop skills needed to be effective in relationships.

Key Stage 3 1(d) To recognise the stages of emotions associated with loss or change in relations to death, divorce, separation and new family members and manage the strength of their feelings in different situations. 2(g) To demonstrate personally effective ways of resisting pressure which threatens their own safety and well-being. 3(c) To understand some of the cultural norms in society, including the range of lifestyles and relationships. Key Stage 4 3(d) To be able to talk about relationships and feelings. 3(f) About good parenting, its value to family life ...... 2(b) The health risks associated with alcohol and drug use, early sexual activity and pregnancy ...... How a school teaches such areas is obviously a matter for in-school strategies; however, staff should all be aware of the importance of the child protecting aspect of their curriculum work. Other policies to be considered might be the school’s policies on: Sex Education Special Educational Needs * Equal Opportunities Drugs Education Religious Education Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural Development * Although by no means inferring that all children with special educational needs are abused, there are significant cross references between the signs and symptoms of abuse and the characteristics of a child with special educational needs, and it may be that a child, for whom there are unspecified ‘gut feeling’ concerns, is worthy of monitoring by a school.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 73 - MAY 2002 The Safe School: Approaches to Bullying or Peer Abuse

It is now clearly recognised that bullying, child on child abuse or peer abuse can have a damaging impact on both victims and perpetrators.

Bullying is usually linked with secrecy and threat, even if it is perpetrated openly. It can be physical, emotional or sexual in nature and thus will manifest itself with the same signs and symptoms of other forms of child abuse - i.e. feelings of fear, misery, loneliness, isolation, powerlessness and hopelessness as well as the physical signs - in the victim, and a sense of power and control in the perpetrator.

It flourishes in environments where there is a culture of intolerance to ‘difference’ and an acceptance of violence as a means of ‘punishing’ those who do not conform. Peer pressure to conform exacerbates the emotional difficulties of the victim in terms of a sense of rejection and social isolation.

It is vital that all staff are aware of the need to create a safe environment and to be constant and consistent in their vigilance in dealing with bullying situations - both for the benefit of the victim and the bully.

Research (Olwens 1987, Lane 1989) demonstrates that there is an increased incident of alcohol abuse, domestic violence and violent crime in later life, where children have bullied, and increased likelihood of depression and low esteem in those who have been bullied. Anti-bullying policies should therefore aim to create a safe environment where everyone feels a sense of responsibility to address bullying issues. Such an environment would depend upon such principles as:  an acceptance that bullying exists and is harmful;  the belief that the problem is solvable;  a genuine commitment to pursue resolutions;  having a policy which has practical strategies. In dealing with bullying situations it is important that strategies and practices which could, in themselves, be deemed bullying/abusive are not used.

Bullying situations should therefore be given similar priority to those cases involving abuse:  action should be taken and should be seen to be taken;  priority should be given to the child’s immediate safety, in particular assessing the risk of further peer abuse;  establishing the facts, by listening calmly to the child;  following the school’s established practice and procedures;  in cases of serious abuse consideration of involving other agencies, including the Police; however, the victims needs should be seen as paramount. Where the bullying/peer abuse is of a sexual nature it is advisable to go through the Child Protection procedures. This is particularly important since work with adult abusers has demonstrated that some began abusing as young people and many were abused themselves. Thus in order to prevent future abuse early referral is essential, to allow early intervention by supportive agencies.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 74 - MAY 2002 As with all policies, the school’s anti-bullying policy should be reviewed regularly for its effectiveness in preventing bullying and for dealing with those cases which do arise. In addition, the system a school may have to offer support to a victim of bullying, especially access to a supportive member of staff whom the child has chosen, would be transferable to the support system for the abused child.

The Safe School: Approaches to Drug Misuse

The LEA Policy Statement on Action to Combat Drug Misuse makes clear that all young people are entitled to a curriculum which explores drug-related issues at a stage appropriate to their development and takes account of the particular circumstances and culture of the groups and communities to which they belong. This includes those young people with special educational needs.

Any realistic programme of drug prevention which seeks to address needs across all phases of education must acknowledge the complementary nature of:

Primary Prevention: which seeks to discourage experimentation or delay the onset of drug misuse.

Secondary Prevention: which seeks to reduce the harm associated with drug misuse.

In line with the LEA policy, schools (and the Community Education Service) should:

 raise the awareness of all young people to the risks involved in using drugs in a society which tolerates a wide variety of legitimate (though damaging) drug use;

 assist young people to respond to drug-related situations with the knowledge, confidence and skills necessary to make decisions which will be conducive to their emotional, social and physical well-being;

 reach out to, and support, those young people who are in situations involving the problematic use of drugs by themselves or others close to them.

In viewing the school’s policy and practice in drugs education from the standpoint of child protection and child abuse, consideration needs to be given to the vulnerable position which young people find themselves in when involved with drugs:

 dependency may lead to young people turning to crime and prostitution to feed their habit;

 paedophiles and other abusers may use drugs to gain access to young people;

 conversely young people involved in drugs may approach such people unknowingly;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 75 - MAY 2002  young people need to understand that using drugs may lead them to use behaviours which would encourage others to abuse them, e.g. creating anger in a parent leading to physical abuse or behave in a sexually provocative way leading to sexual abuse;

 mechanisms need to be in place within school to support young people involved in drugs;

 schools should decide on confidentiality and a ‘need to know’ basis in connection with drugs;

 schools should ensure that all staff have knowledge about the sources of information about drugs, their effects and the most appropriate ways to respond to a range of incidents; however, school staff should not search children if they suspect they are in possession of drugs.

Conversely using drugs may lead to aggressive behaviour inflicting physical and emotional abuse on others both adults and children.

To be effective in their understanding of drugs and their effects, schools should work with other agencies in their area, to acknowledge the seriousness of the local problem and to develop a consistency of approach in dealing with and managing incidents.

‘The Safe School’ is an easily stated maxim, however, to implement the concept in full, all those adults in school should be aware of the far reaching implications across the whole range of strategies needed to generate good practice and safe practice for all. It pervades the physical environment, sound recruitment practice, professional conduct and promotes safer strategies for children to employ, to ensure a safer environment and their own individual safety. For a school to become more safe will depend upon the ethos and values made obvious in the school’s relationships with all members of its community.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 76 - MAY 2002 SCHOOL VALUES AND CULTURE

THE LISTENING SCHOOL - CHILDREN, FAMILIES AND STAFF

Key Factors

A key aspect of schools as social institutions is the extent to which all those within the community which the school influences feel that they matter in the eyes of those who they perceive as having power and influence over them. An important indicator for pupils, parents/carers and staff is that they feel they are listened to actively and that they can be confident to speak, even when what they need to say is difficult. In the context of children in need and children subject to abuse, this set of circumstances is crucial to their future well-being.

In practical terms this means that the Head Teacher and Senior Managers need to be assured that the school for which they take responsibility does have those characteristics of a listening school. This will necessitate an active process: tacit assumptions are inadequate.

Steps which can be taken include:

 designated staff, known and accepted for their listening skills and powers of empathy, available at specified times and locations when they are free from all other duties, to listen, in confidence, to a pupil, a parent or a member of staff;  regular statements by the Head Teacher, other senior staff, class teachers, form tutors and year heads reminding pupils of the school’s policy and practice as a listening school;  the collection of feedback from those who use the services of the listening school and use of this information to inform future developments;  creation of school councils and other fora in which pupils can participate actively on behalf of each other for the purposes of school improvement;  use of group working methods in pastoral settings where a climate of trust can be developed in order to explore issues which as the effectiveness of the listening school;  a review of the curriculum to give children the skills and language to become active listeners and to make disclosing more easy to achieve;  to define clearly the characteristics of a listening school and consider the implications for all staff;  to offer training in counselling to those who are identified as key people for children and adults;  to develop a peer support structure.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 77 - MAY 2002 Children Speaking and Adults Listening to Disclosures

Staff need to be aware of the reasons why children cannot tell about abuse, particularly about sexual abuse. Knowing about some of the reasons why children cannot tell may help staff in trying to open channels to discussion on such topics. School staff, however, should not insist or pressurise a child. Helping children by raising self-esteem and appropriate knowledge and offering active listening may be the limits of school intervention.

Children may have difficulty in telling about what is happening for a wide range of reasons:

 children are too young to use language (Finkelhor et al, 1988);  children may have a language disability;  children use language but do not have the necessary vocabulary;  children often do not have adult permission to tell about sexual abuse;  children are taught to obey parents/adults (Peake and Rouf, 1988);  children who cannot trust a parent/familiar adult do not know to whom they can go;  black children and other minority communities not only have to cope with racism but often dealing with the feelings of their communities. ‘Coming out’ could mean further isolation and stigmatisation for the families;  children who are abused by peers or staff in residential setting may not know where else to go (Peake, 1996);  children may well have told or think they have told;  some children say they do not remember.

Children are subject to actual or implied threats not to tell:

 children may witness violence in the home;  children may be subject to threats of violence;  children may well not tell the other parent/carer or significant adult because of specific threats;  the threats which silence a child can be implicit;  children silenced by racism (Roud, 1996);  the abuser’s strategies to bribe the children may also serve to silence them;  children believe that their acquiescence and silence protects siblings from abuse;  children deduce that sexual abuse is socially reprehensible;  the alternatives to being abused are unknown;  the alternatives to being abused are known.

Children may be unable to recognise the abusive experience as abuse, having been tricked or bribed into acquiescence:

 the child may only have ever known abuse;  when several children are abused and aware of each other’s abuse, confusion about abuse happens;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 78 - MAY 2002  the abusive experience may be all the children receive to respond to their need to be held and cuddled;  children may well love their abuser and be reluctant to betray him/her;  children may well have the position of ‘favoured’ child emotionally and/or materially.

(ADAPTED FROM TURNING POINTS, NSPCC)

Additionally, there are issues around gender, ethnicity and disability of which staff need to be aware.

Gender Issues

There are some differences between girls and boys in being unable to tell about sexual abuse.

Boys can’t tell because:

 the male ethic of self-reliance suggests that men should be able to rebuff an assault, and if they don’t they are often ashamed to talk about it;

 the absence of teaching directed specifically at boys about the nature of sexual assault and strategies for being able to seek help and to tell, leaves them vulnerable and unsure what they should do if they are victims;

 the stigma of abuse and the implications for the boys’ sexuality. Boys frequently express shame at not being dominant, and quite wrongly see their abuse as an indication that they are homosexual. Society’s homophobic attitudes serve to exacerbate adolescent boys’ confusion;

 the effect of perceived agency roles influences reporting. There has been a lack of awareness of the extent to which boys are also subjected to sexual abuse and this has led to professional disbelief;

 for both boys and girls the power of the paedophile lobby is often underestimated. Many of those promoting adult-child sexual contacts are far from the stereotype of the isolated odd individual, they are intelligent with positions of responsibility, and often they are part of considerable networks of like-minded and influential people.

(Peake, 1989)

Girls can’t tell because:

 complex social factors associated with inequality of girls and boys in our society. Pressures from society, especially the media, on girls/women to be attractive and available can underpin a wrong assumption that girls invite abuse;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 79 - MAY 2002  given the majority of assaults are committed by men, girls will find it harder to tell while most positions of power and responsibility are held by men;

 girls are socialised as passive objects and available to men; girls will inevitably believe their complaints will not be taken seriously (Kelly, 1993);

 the power of the ‘she asked for it - look at how she dresses’ lobby, acts as a powerful silencer.

(Peake, 1989)

Issues of Ethnicity

There are also ways in which children from different ethnic/cultural groups are additionally silenced:

 their daily experiences will show them that their presence may be viewed at best with ambivalence, and, at worst, with hostility and violence;

 racist incidents, coupled with the more insidious effects of institutional racism, combine to leave groups with no alternative but to build barriers around themselves;

 a black girl or boy can’t tell because it makes them more vulnerable, and they may perhaps feel that they are not only letting down their family by talking about abuse but are also letting down their ethnic/cultural group or community and providing a further basis for racism.

Consideration needs to be given to the sensitive use of interpreters in situations where the family use English as a second language.

Issues of Disability

Disabled children can’t tell because:

 they may not have the vocabulary, words, signs or symbols for body parts or sexual or intimate contact on their communication system;

 they may find it hard to distinguish different touches (safe or unsafe) although retrospective research conducted with adults abused as children confirms that this is less likely to be true than is thought;

 they may have primary dependency needs, such as feeding, dressing, medication and toileting, on the person who is abusing them;

 disabled children are taught from early on to be compliant. Compliant, passive or ‘good’ behaviour is rewarded. They are not brought up with choices nor taught to be assertive;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 80 - MAY 2002  the myths about child abuse and disability are powerful factors to prevent adults ‘hearing’, for example, that it doesn’t happen; that they don’t feel it; that it does more harm than good to investigate it.

(ADAPTED FROM TURNING POINTS, NSPCC)

Adults Listening to Disclosures

It is important to understand that children may not tell the whole story at one time, and should a member of staff receive part of a disclosure or suspect that what was heard might lead to more information, the detail and context should be recorded and the incident reported to Designated Teacher. The member of staff should be aware that if he/she has been singled out, then making himself/herself available for further contact would be important. This, however, does not mean that a child should be pressurised to reveal more information.

Adults should be aware that children disclose in a variety of ways - not only through direct disclosure. They may tell a story - a fantasy or as though a third person. There may be physical signs such as pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases. They may draw a picture relating to what is happening e.g. playing ‘boyfriends and girlfriends’. They may change their behaviour in relation to both peers and adults.

However, not all adults find it easy to “listen”.

Research informs us that one of the largest barriers to adults responding to disclosures is the existence of emotional blocks in the minds of professionals. Such emotional blocks can be so great that the adult receiving the disclosure may wish to cover the incident up, refusing to acknowledge that such things can happen.

Other reasons for adults having difficulty in ‘hearing’ what children are saying are many and stem from a person’s own experience, understanding and attitudes. For example, an adult may:

 have been abused themselves and re-visiting this is painful;  have no experience of talking about such explicitly sexual or violent matters;  feel such a range of emotions such as disgust and anger, that unless these emotions can be shared, the adult may become stuck ‘in denial’;  understand that the child may want the abuse to stop and yet want to prevent anything happening to the abuser;  feel incompetent to deal with such matters and be anxious about the outcome;  be unaware that some firmly held convictions act as a barrier to one’s understanding of a situation about another person. When children do tell, it demonstrates that the child is desperate to have the abuse stopped, and that they have put considerable trust in the adult receiving the disclosure. Being a good listener is a skill which comes more readily to some than to others. However, should a child begin to disclose, the approach needs to be one of calm re- assurance giving the child time and space to say what he/she wants to say asking only open questions, and not promising confidentiality (see Page 22 - Procedures for responding to disclosures and possible evidence of abuse).

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 81 - MAY 2002 THE WELCOMING SCHOOL - CHILDREN FAMILIES AND STAFF

There are both physical and human aspects of the welcome a school provides for both visitors and the regular members of its community. The challenge to those who work in schools on a daily basis is to know that a welcoming approach needs to be worked upon to maintain the ability to continue to see what the first time visitor sees, to be concerned at what he/she might see and the willingness to make changes when necessary and not to become complacent that because many visitors are known, they will automatically feel welcome.

The physical aspects might include:

 the quality and arrangement of the furniture and fittings in the entrance areas;  the images it portrays of itself in the entrance areas;  the extent to which ‘public space’ is used to celebrate and display its pupils achievements;  the clarity of directions for strangers;  the cleanliness and vitality of the area;  the use of mother tongue languages for signage in the multi-ethnic school setting.

The human aspects might include:

 the warmth and politeness of response from the first person with whom contact is made;  the warmth of the response from the first formal contact, often the office staff;  the speed of the initial response;  the confidence shown in answering questions and the clarity of the answers given;  a recognition that the telephone is an alternative but vital area where the warmth of the human welcome is necessary;  value and respect is offered to all visitors, regular or occasional;  maintaining a sense of calm, even in the face of untoward visitors.

The written aspects might include:

 the language in communications with parents/carers is clear and unemotive and uncomplicated;  forms are user friendly and only ask for necessary information;  in consultations, guidance is given as to the reason and nature of the consultation and parents/carers are given feedback on the outcome;  the contributions parents/carers and others make - money, kind and effort are recognised and acknowledged;  leaflets/brochures/booklets help parents/carers and others to gain an understanding of the school’s ethos and priorities;  the approach is encouraging and informative rather than impersonal and ‘putting down’.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 82 - MAY 2002 Other professionals:

 It is important that other professionals feel welcome and valued in school so that they may make their contributions readily. This means, for example, that when appointments are made, rooms are available and the appointments promptly kept.  Conversely, other agencies need to recognise the role which schools can play in working with them, and the sense of value and respect should be mutual. This can be achieved by acknowledging the help and support given, giving feedback on the progress of cases, being willing to share that an agency is involved, though not necessarily the detail of that involvement, giving recognition for positive contributions.

THE SUPPORTING SCHOOL

Children, their families and staff need to feel supported, not only at times where there is an allegation of abuse, but also at other times of personal difficulty.

A school which takes time and energy to build good relationships with parents may feel in some difficulty in making referrals about allegations of abuse, especially where parents/carers are involved. For good relationships to be maintained effective handling of communication is vital.

There is therefore a need for clear guidance on how communication should be handled and how members of the team should fulfil their role.

For many abused children school is a haven of security, stability and peace. Schools have a valuable part to play in recognising such a need in some children and in creating opportunities for a child to come to know a ‘haven-like’ stability. This will be particularly important for children new to the school, and especially those who have had to move because of an abusive situation. Opportunities for encouraging the child to be more self-assured and to raise self-esteem should be provided through the curriculum to further the individual child’s sense of safety.

When children are abused, whether this is physical, emotional or sexual abuse or neglect, or indeed a combination of abuse, they obviously experience a range of emotions and as a result may demonstrate a range of behaviours which may present in the classroom, and in more unstructured times. This may strain relationships between staff and children; children and parents/carers and staff and parents. It may present difficulties of consistency for all involved.

Although individual school staff may become closely involved with a particular case of abuse from receiving a disclosure through the investigative process to the monitoring and support of abused children who remain in the school, all school staff should be aware of the emotions any abused child may experience and the resultant behaviour which he/she may demonstrate.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 83 - MAY 2002 What Children May be Feeling

 Guilt (because of family break-up, the punishment of the perpetrator).  Anger (with the perpetrator, with the non-protective parents, with themselves).  Shame, feeling different, dirty.  Insecurity, distrust of adults.  Sadness, depression.  Low self-esteem.  Sexual over-stimulation.  Fear (of the perpetrator, of other adults, of ‘telling’).  Conflicting emotions, especially if the perpetrator is also loved.

What kind of behaviour may result

 Difficulty in attending, concentrating, learning.  Aggression, sudden over-reaction, mood swings, violent tantrums.  Excessive withdrawal.  Attention-seeking, flirtatious, sexually provocative, precocious behaviour.  Seeking trouble, blame, punishment.  Eating and sleeping difficulties, tiredness, forgetfulness, carelessness of appearance.  Obsessive behaviour - cleaning things, being perfect (work or appearance).  Absence from school.

(After Anne Schonveld, CEDC)

The effects of abuse are likely to be long-term, but some abused children can make considerable improvement with appropriate support. Not all abused children become abusers themselves, and fewer will do so given appropriate help as early as possible. The likelihood of an abused child becoming an abuser derives from poor parental experiences and therefore a lack of good parenting skills, and/or the fact of having their own children re-awakening feelings from the person’s own past.

A supporting school will therefore offer opportunities to feel secure and valued as an individual, help to raise self-esteem and allow for individual support or counselling.

This is not to say that an abused child will be easy to deal with in school. Such children frequently alienate themselves from others because of their behaviour and attitudes, and often make it difficult for adults to help them, to relate to them and sometimes even like them. It goes without saying that no-one, adult or child, responds effectively to anyone whom he/she believes does not like them.

There are strategies which schools can employ to improve children’s self-esteem, for example:

 Offer them opportunities for taking on new roles and responsibilities.  Design tasks which are achievable, by breaking down larger tasks into smaller ones.  Trust them to take responsibility for others, e.g. a pet or younger children.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 84 - MAY 2002  Criticise the action, not the person, when they do something wrong.  By setting appropriate boundaries and routines and monitoring them.  Help young people feel a sense of control over their lives by, for example, valuing their opinions and involving them in decision making.

(After Anne Schonveld, CEDC)

Troubled children will present staff with difficult behaviour at times. They can be exasperating and it is important that at such times adults allow themselves some ‘time out’ and walk away from the situation for a while. What is important is:

 to demonstrate that adults who are responsible and caring do not lose control, when they lose their temper;  that some adults can be trusted to respect the rights of children, especially rights over their own bodies;  that some adults are open to reason when their rights and wishes are in conflict with those of children;  that some adults will not simply use their power as adults to impose their will on children;  that some adults can recognise that a child’s bad behaviour is a problem to be solved, not a personal attack on their authority.

Assessing Needs - The Child

Once abuse is recognised, or has been disclosed, and an investigation is underway it is likely that the child will remain in school. This could be a distressing and anxious time for the child and also for staff trying to support and help in school. Staff will need to be alert to the child’s needs and appropriately responsive, but at the same time give proper attention to the rest of the class or group.

The child may be particularly responsive to a certain member of staff or to slightly different approaches, and in provoking the responses to a series of questions school staff may be able to come to a consistent strategy to be employed for this child in these circumstances e.g. creating time for the child to be with the person to whom he/she relates, using specific behaviour management techniques etc.

It may be helpful to try to answer the following questions about the child, to try to assess the most appropriate action to take.

 What is it about this child’s behaviour which is causing concern

- in the classroom? - elsewhere?

 Is this a change from the child’s previous behaviour?  Is the behaviour specific to one setting/one member of staff/the time of day or week, or is it general?

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 85 - MAY 2002  Is the child:

- uncommunicative - sometimes communicative - generally communicative about the abuse/their own feelings?

 What is the child’s view of him/herself?  What helps to change the child’s worrying behaviour? (For example, being ignored, more individual attention, reward strategies, ‘time out’ to cool down, being comforted, a chance to talk.)  What makes the behaviour worse? (For example, being shouted out, physical contact, being teased or told off.)  Which member of staff does the child get on with best? Why?  Does the child’s behaviour interfere with or harm other children?

It would also be helpful to build a picture of where the child is in relation to the investigation, so that tensions can be appreciated, for example, is the child accommodated in foster care, are the parents involved, has the investigation been completed? Liaison with the Key Worker is vital in these cases. However, it is still important to ‘listen’ to the child in relation to the abuse investigation and not to probe or question for detail.

(After Anne Schonveld, CEDC)

Children who are experiencing serious emotional disturbance may need professional counselling, or assistance from other specialists.

Supporting the child - following an allegation during and after an investigation.

 The teacher to whom a child has disclosed abuse may well have been singled out by the child because the teacher is seen as someone with whom the child relates easily, or may be someone whom the child sees as having the knowledge to get the abuse stopped. Whoever that person is he/she must understand the child’s feelings so that the child may be supported once an allegation has been made.

 As a result of having made the disclosure the child may well feel relieved that someone else knows and that something may be done to stop the abuse. Similarly they may also feel confused, angry, guilty, emotional, disloyal and worried. It is important therefore that the person to whom he/she has disclosed makes himself/herself available to listen further to the child. This does not mean that more questions are asked, merely that should the child need support opportunities are created.

 The child should be given the choice of what further support he/she needs - e.g. to remain quietly with another adult closely, to return to class and should be kept informed of the progress of any action by other agencies.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 86 - MAY 2002  During the investigation the child may need further support, since a child with the low self-esteem and lack of self-confidence may be unable to control emotions easily. It is important that he/she continues to have a person in school, who has been chosen by the child, for advice, consolation and to be a “listening ear”. That person must, however, not put himself/herself in the position of having actions misunderstood e.g. over-comforting the child, spending long periods alone with the child.

 Following the investigation and the outcome the child may well need counselling and it would be appropriate for the school to work with other colleagues in securing such help for the child. Much will of course depend upon the outcome, whether the child remains in school or moves on. However, the school may find the guidance given earlier useful in assessing the abused child’s needs and ways of supporting the abused child in school (Page 93).

Supporting Staff Involved

A member of staff involved with a child who has been abused will need time to record events, to be available for the child, and, if the school decides that he/she is the appropriate person, to prepare for and attend the Initial Child Protection Conference. For staff who may not have been to a Child Protection Conference before nor have prepared a report, the requirements, the process, the responsibilities and the difficulties will need to be explained to them. They will also need to be made aware of the school’s response to requests for possible further involvement, and to make suggestions about what that further involvement might include. The key to successful participation in Child Protection Conferences is preparation, and an understanding that a teacher probably knows the child better than anyone else around the table, apart from his/her parents.

A supporting school will also recognise that there will be considerable emotional impact on the individual member of staff who has become involved in the child abuse case. He or she will probably feel a range of very strong emotions - anger, disgust, anxiety and distress and may well be questioning - ‘Why did I not notice this earlier?’, ‘Did the child try to tell me earlier and I failed to listen?’, ‘Why me?’. It is important that it is explained that such emotions are not unusual and time should be given to allow the member of staff express his/her feelings. This could be to another individual but should not break the confidentiality which must ensue in such cases.

Head Teachers may also need to consider the point at which outside help becomes necessary. This may take the form of support for the child, for the member of staff or indeed for themselves. This is particularly the case where an allegation has been made against a member of the school staff.

A school can make a difference in how children feel about themselves and the respect they have for each other and the adults around them. A school can also make a difference in how the adults feel about themselves or the respect they have for each other and for the children in their care. Much is determined by the school’s ethos but understanding the context and nature of the school’s local community can help in determining the approach required to engage with both children and adults in that community.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 87 - MAY 2002 THE SCHOOL CONTEXT

THE NATURE OF THE LOCAL COMMUNITY

To maintain and indeed improve upon the effectiveness of a school as a social institution, it is important that schools know about the client groups with whom they are working and as much as possible about the general context in which they live their lives.

Head Teachers should be able to avail themselves of the statistical information available - most notably from the Community Safety information - to provide themselves with an overall picture of the school’s context, for example, in terms of Domestic Violence, Drug Use and poverty-related crime, and the incidence of mental health problems in the community, all of which have an additional impact on child abuse.

Where clusters of schools, or individual schools, hold regular multi-agency meetings with other agencies working in the area, different forms and sources of information are shared. Thus, in addition to the greater understanding achieved by working together, the sharing of available information adds to the school’s understanding of its context, its population and the additional stresses which are placed upon it, by the relative incidence of the problems caused by Domestic Violence, mental health problems, substance misuse within that population.

The Context of the School

Understanding the nature of Domestic Violence in the community and the impact on children..

Domestic violence has been defined as the physical, emotional, sexual or mental abuse of one person (usually a woman) by another, with whom they have or have had an intimate relationship. Domestic violence is rarely a one-off event. It tends to escalate in frequency and severity over time.

30% of women admit to having experienced some form of domestic violence and the incidence crosses social and ethnic groups.

There are well established links with child abuse:

 Many men who abuse women also physically abuse children, and there is a raised incidence of child sexual abuse in households where women are abused.

 Disabled children may face increased risk of abuse, and some of their disabilities may result from injuries inflicted on mothers during pregnancy.

 Risks to the unborn child are well known.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 88 - MAY 2002  Abused women may punish their children more harshly in order to appease the abusive man, or because of their own emotional state.

 The abusive man may force children into participating in abusing the woman, or threaten to use violence against them to ensure the woman accedes to his demands.

Domestic violence is not only the major physical abuse of such activities as beatings and kickings, but also consists of:

 a display of total power;  enforcing trivial demands;  threats;  acts of degradation;  enforced isolation;  creation of distorted perspectives;  creating physical disability;  exhaustion and manipulation through allowing occasional indulgence;  economic deprivation;  enforced pregnancy.

Schools need to understand that witnessing, even being party to, the abuse of their mother, will have a major impact on children, how they present in school and how they develop academically, socially and emotionally. Children will, of course, be at risk of accidental injury, because they may get in the way of an attack on their mother, or may frequently try to protect or help their mother. Their needs may be neglected whilst their mother is physically and emotionally unable to look after them, or their lives may be disrupted by being forced to leave home once or even several times. This latter is particularly a problem for children from ethnic groups who may need to leave their supportive community.

Schools also need to understand how the effects of domestic violence will show themselves in children in school.

 Younger children will show more overt disturbance since at the time that they are most dependent upon their mothers, the effects of abuse e.g. anxiety, depression and being less able to attend to a child’s needs.

 Pre-school age children are more irritable, over-active or excessively passive and inactive, often having sleep problems with nightmares.

 School age girls are more likely to be anxious, timid, socially withdrawn, afraid to go to school, with poor self-esteem; some, however, may be more aggressive than their peers.  School age boys are more likely to be more aggressive, demonstrating bullying tendencies which may increase the sense of rejection by peers and teachers; some however, may be timid, showing anxiety and depression.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 89 - MAY 2002  Both boys and girls are likely to show an increase in psychosomatic illnesses e.g. stomach-ache and asthma, poorer academic performance from poor concentration and irregular attendance. A higher than average proportion become obsessional - creating order out of chaos, and show a reduced empathy for other children.

 Adolescent girls are more prone to depression and acts of self-harm or suicidal behaviour.

 Adolescent boys are more liable to demonstrate delinquency with misuse of drugs and alcohol.

 In general terms, depression, anxiety, hyperactivity, eating problems, heightened aggression, difficulties with concentration and stress-related illnesses may be present as short and long-term effects on children witnessing violence.

Schools located near Women’s Aid refuges will probably find themselves accepting children whose mothers are fleeing from domestic violence on a regular basis; however, all schools may be in that position at some time. It must be remembered that families where domestic violence exists in some form will be in the static population of the majority of schools and school staff need to be aware of its existence, its likely impact on the children and what the school can do to support the child, and to help reduce the prevalence of domestic violence in the next generation of parents.

Good practice suggests:

 the ready acceptance into school of children fleeing such violent situations, and having systems in place to make children feel welcome, as well as finding their academic “fit” as quickly as possible to ensure a continuation of their education at the appropriate level (Benfieldside Primary School has worked to produce a pack to support rapid integration);  liaising with the children’s worker in the local refuge, where appropriate, to help in understanding the particular difficulties a child may face, for example in completing homework or having the correct kit;  having an ethos in school where all are respected as individuals, and which promotes raised self-esteem and empathy for others and where any form of abusive situation is not tolerated;  raising awareness about domestic violence and offering support to those who suffer as a result;  using the curriculum to discuss domestic violence - its existence, its non- acceptance socially, and its criminality, and to link it with in-school work on bullying, for example;  being aware of the fact that school may provide a ‘safe haven’ for children, and that teachers should be aware of what that may mean for individual children, in terms of recognising success and giving positive feedback;  using the curriculum to allow children to express their feelings and emotions;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 90 - MAY 2002  understanding the need for confidentiality as a major safety issue and therefore not divulging any information which could assist the abuser in tracing the family he has abused. Even to agree to pass on a message reveals that the school knows where the child/family is and that could be dangerous for both school staff and family;  supporting the mother by understanding the nature of domestic violence, its impact on the children and their mother, the fact that it is hard and may be dangerous to ask for help, that leaving the situation is not an easy decision to be undertaken without forethought, and to help by making available information about local support services even if this is only the local helpline number;  to be aware of the difficulties of the statutory duty to report information which may lead to a Child Protection investigation, whilst at the same time supporting the parent.

Understanding the nature of Mental Illness in the Community and the impact on children

Many children will grow up with a parent who suffers from mental illness. Most cases are short-term; however, there are a small number of children who live with a parent with severe mental illness such as schizophrenia or manic depression and a larger number will live with a parent having long-term problems such as alcoholism, learning difficulties or long-standing depression. There is an association between parental mental illness and emotional and behavioural problems with children and other problems such as attachment disorders.

In terms of child abuse/protection, children are most at risk when they are victims of aggression, they are targets of delusions or they are neglected for pathological reasons. More indirectly there are risks due to family disruption, the disruption of normal parenting and the increase in marital discord - which in itself is associated with an increased risk of psychological problems in the child.

For the child in school there are significant factors for the staff to consider in understanding the behaviours the child may be demonstrating and the support required:

 parental care may not meet the child’s needs - the younger the child, the more serious the problems of care and attachment may be, and the more serious the problems in growth, development and behaviour may become;

 the need to care for a parent who is unwell, and the possibility of caring for siblings;

 the difficulty in coping with school work or attending school regularly because of poor care, or the need to care;

 the fear that the child may become similarly ill in later life;

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 91 - MAY 2002  the distress, anxiety or shame about the parent’s illness and the resultant behaviour - and the response from others, both adults and children;

 some children, boys especially, show more aggressive and disruptive behaviour, others become withdrawn, anxious and have difficulty concentrating;

 the effect of the parental illness on a child’s behaviour may be short-term, lasting the length of the illness, or may be long-term.

Schools need to understand the nature of mental illness and how it might impact on children, and good practice would suggest:

 sound communication and joint working between professionals - Social Services, Health and Education - to ensure the best possible outcome for the child;  access to information about projects designed to support children affected by parental mental illness - Young Carers (DISC), Young Minds;  an understanding approach to the difficulties of young carers;  apparent resilience in a child should be supported and not taken for granted. If a child’s competence and sense of self-worth are boosted, a child develops a more sustainable inner strength to cope in times of stress;  recognition that a child’s behaviour may be the result of parental illness, and may indeed be a cry for help;  awareness that a child may be taunted/bullied as a result of the ‘strange’ behaviour of either parent.

Families where there are mental health problems may wish to hide the fact from the school and the local community because of the stigma attached to mental illness in our society. A supportive school and strong and professional links between the various agencies can help moderate the impact on children and their education.

(After Turning Points, NSPCC)

Understanding Substance Misuse amongst parents in the Community and the impact on children

A problem drug user is defined as:

“Any person who experiences social, psychological, physical or legal problems related to intoxication and/or regular excessive consumption and/or dependence as a result of his/her own use of drugs or chemical substances. This includes any form of drug misuse which involves, or may lead to, the sharing of injecting equipment.”

(Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs 1988)

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 92 - MAY 2002 The fact that parents are drug users does not necessarily mean that their children will be neglected or abused, but it may give reasons for concern. Drug use can mean that people are in some way in unhappy circumstances, and it may point to a chaotic lifestyle and possible poor environment for nurturing children. Financial problems, which may lead to criminal activity, are frequently caused by the need to feed the drug habit, and money which should be focused on meeting family needs is often diverted to drug use. Risks, thus, hinge around the mental state and behaviour of the parent, including drug induced depression, irritability and aggression; the social environment such as the association with other drug users, and risks in the physical environment including leaving drugs and associated equipment around the home (Klee 1998).

The abuse most common amongst children of drug using parents is neglect and emotional abuse, which stem from the chaotic lifestyle. Since drug use is in the main illegal, many parents are wary of the involvement of professionals, and contact with school may be restricted as a result, not only of the chaotic lifestyle, but also the wariness.

Children whose parents use drugs may feel a range of emotions about their parents, from anger, frustration and fear, to love. Schools need to be aware that children will only infrequently discuss their parents drug use openly, if at all, so that unless the information comes from the community, they may not know of the habit. To help the stability of such children it is important that in any drugs education or discussion, the problem of the substance, rather than demeaning the user, takes priority.

 Children of drug using parents may find themselves in the role of carer for their siblings and also for their parents.

 Their own mood and response, on a day to day basis, may be dictated by the mood and state of parents when the children leave the home to come to school, and their concerns for their parents’ state of mind on their return.

 Children may need to accept a wide range of people coming into the home, and this may well cause fear; similarly, violence and arguments in the home may also cause fear.

 Poor concentration and poor attendance are likely to feature because of fears, worries and poor home management.

 Children may be rejected by their peers because of a known drug connection. This in turn may lead to inappropriate/disruptive behaviour in an attempt to gain acceptance with peers.

 Conversely, dependent upon the nature of the school’s context such children may be highly respected amongst their peers and indulge in behaviour related to power over their peers e.g. threats, aggression.

 Schools should have in place procedures to follow if they feel that a young child may have ingested an illegal substance.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 93 - MAY 2002  Schools should also have in place procedures related to contacting and meeting with drug-using parents.

A school which understands the nature of its local community, and how the major themes of that context may impact on the lives of children and their overall safety, will take steps to ensure that there are strategies in place to help support those children. Such a school would also ensure that communication between agencies is well structured and that procedures for the management of child protection are clear and well understood by all involved with the school.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 94 - MAY 2002 CONFIDENTIALITY

Confidentiality is a thread which runs through Child Protection procedures and processes and is often a cause of concern. As part of this Handbook, therefore, confidentiality is dealt with in each area where it occurs, but this section draws together all areas where confidentiality is an issue.

Confidentiality Between Agencies

All agencies have a general duty to assist the Local Authority in carrying out its duties in connection with Child Protection and would therefore be expected to do so. Members of an agency who are requested for information should therefore provide it. It is a useful check to ask the caller for his/her phone number and call back, rather than giving the information immediately. It is also important to ask for what purpose the information is required. Confidentiality is not an excuse for inactivity in Child Protection; there should be effective confidential channels of communication between, for example, Social Workers and schools, and between individual schools. Social Services do have a broader brief for sharing information with clients, thus it is important to use clear unemotive language, avoiding jargon when giving information. Wherever possible the information should be factual, avoiding personal opinions and language should be non-discriminatory.

Confidentiality at Disclosure

If a child obviously wishes to disclose, but pre-sets a condition that the information should not be passed on, then it should be made clear that if the information is important and concerns the child’s well-being then it will have to be passed on. This could mean that the child says nothing more. The member of staff should not try to force a child to disclose, but it might be helpful if opportunities were made, should the child try again.

Apart from the designated teacher, and possibly the Head Teacher, the teacher receiving the disclosure must not discuss the facts with any other member of staff. If he/she needs to talk to someone to unburden themselves, then only the fact that some concerns about a child’s welfare have been disclosed can be discussed. Neither the child’s name nor the events should be discussed or passed on.

This is also the case where an allegation is made against a member of staff, should the allegation be made via another member of staff for example.

Confidentiality with Parents

Schools should not take it upon themselves automatically to inform parents if a child has made an allegation of abuse. This is important if the parents are not the abusers, but it is vital if the parents or members of the household are the alleged abusers, since informing them may give them vital time to destroy forensic evidence.

When a referral is made it is better to clarify the position with the Social Worker, especially if there are pressures about the parents coming into school, e.g. to collect the child at the end of the day.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 95 - MAY 2002 Where a child is taken to hospital by school staff, parents will need to be informed.

Where parents or other adults report abuse, or disclose as part of a conversation, or request confidentiality on an abuse matter, the parents will need an explanation that confidentiality cannot be given where a child’s safety and welfare are concerned.

Where parents request information abut the progress of a case, they should be referred to Social Services. Schools may help in describing the process.

Parents should not be informed of the fact that a child is being monitored for abuse either as a victim or perpetrator.

Child Protection information, records and concerns kept by the school are exempt from having to be passed on to parents. Legal advice should be sought should there be a request for such information, e.g. for court proceedings.

Confidentiality and “Need to Know”

All those who work in schools should be aware of the confidential nature of personal information about a student and the means of maintaining that confidentiality. Similarly, personal information about a child’s family should also be regarded as confidential.

Giving information to help support children in school or to seek information for a report should be very limited in nature. If the school staff is alert to the shared responsibilities about helping to protect children from abuse, it should be enough for the staff concerned to know the name of the child and that the concerns are about his/her welfare. This should prepare staff to act sensitively towards a distressed child. Should information be required staff should be given clear guidance about the type of information needed. This information should be given and requested only from those people who come into contact with the child.

Depending upon his/her age, the child should be kept informed of who knows and what they know, at all stages of procedures/investigations. A child may, indeed, like to choose who should be told.

Confidentiality and Communication Within School

If a member of staff receives information that there are concerns about a child’s welfare, or indeed that Social Services are involved it is not appropriate for that member of staff to approach the child to ask questions why, or even to say that he/she is aware that Social Services are involved.

Any written information should be passed personally to the Designated Teacher under cover of confidentiality, and obviously should not be completed when other children are around.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 96 - MAY 2002 If a child is in care, either with foster carers or in a children’s home, it is important that school staff closely involved with the child should be aware of the situation, to help them in dealing with practical matters, e.g. visits, collection of children after school. Again the detailed reasons do not need to be discussed and it must be acknowledged that some children will not wish others to know.

Confidentiality and a Child Protection File

DfEE Circular 16/89 gave Head Teachers specific powers to exclude from school records confidential information:

 which identifies a person (other than the pupil) to whom the information relates;  which identifies the source of information;  which could cause harm to the pupil or another;  which bears on a case of child protection;  which discloses information about another.

Thus a file containing child protection reports and records concerns should be kept separately from the child’s educational record and stored in a secure place.

A child protection record should be kept safe and access to it should be agreed and outlined in the school’s policy on Child Protection. It is likely that access would be limited to the Designated Teacher, Head Teacher and possibly Head of Year.

Child Protection files should not be shown to parents, Inspectors or Governors. They should not be shown to any member of staff without good reason.

Information contained in a Child Protection file should always be dated, timed and signed, and should be discussed with the Designated Teacher before being placed in the file.

There should be no duplicate of the information held elsewhere. Teachers’ rough notes may either go in the file or be destroyed once a formal copy has been made.

Confidentiality About a Child’s Sexual Activity

If a child is under 13 sexual activity will always be considered as a major concern. There are difficulties in trying to assess whether or not under-age sex is sexual abuse. In general, if the relationship is within conventional boundaries - similar age, and willingly consented to then this is less likely to be considered sexual abuse. The principle of ‘consent’ is an important concern in all issues relating to sexual abuse. Should there be an imbalance in age or suspicion of adult/family involvement then it is advisable to seek Social Services’ advice.

Teenagers are entitled to confidential health care, including contraception, in their own right without parental knowledge. Thus school staff should not inform parents; however, schools may encourage young people to discuss such matters with their parents.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 97 - MAY 2002 Confidentiality and Governors

As part of the review of policy, Governors may be informed of such matters as the number of cases the school staff has been involved in and the costs to the school in terms of supply cover to allow teachers to attend Child Protection Conferences. Governors may not be informed of the details of any individual child’s or family involved.

Where there is a case involving a member of staff, or the Head Teacher, the Governors must merely be informed that an allegation has been made against a member of staff, since to give further details may interfere with any future disciplinary procedures. The Chair of Governors may well be privy to the name of the member of staff, once suspension has been recommended or decided upon.

Confidentiality - Child Protection Conference Reports

ACPC procedures state:

“Good practice requires all professional members of a Case Conference to submit their reports in writing, having previously discussed them with parents. Where a report contains confidential information this matter should be brought to the attention of the Chairperson prior to the Conference. Any information which satisfies the confidentiality criteria should be presented as an addendum to the main body of the report. The Chair can then identify an appropriate point in the agenda to allow for the information to be shared.”

Minutes of Child Protection Conferences should be regarded as highly confidential and stored in the child’s Child Protection File. Circulation will be agreed as in the ACPC Procedures. Reports for Child Protection Conferences and Reviews are confidential to the author and the agency supplying the report.

Confidentiality and Volunteers

Where Head Teachers have requested volunteers to declare any convictions, as part of the vetting process, there should be absolute confidentiality to that information. Such information should not be divulged to anyone, including other members of staff.

Confidentiality and Domestic Violence

Confidentiality can be a major safety issue for those feeling domestic violence. Legal advice should be taken before divulging the whereabouts of children, or giving other information which may assist the abuser in tracing those he has abused.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 98 - MAY 2002

JANUARY, 2000 KNOWING THE NETWORK

SOCIAL SERVICES - CHILDREN AND FAMILIES TEAMS

THE DALES

Bishop Auckland 1 Kensington, Cockton Hill Road, Bishop Auckland DL14 6HX Tel. 01388-454800 Fax. 01388-454840

Barnard Castle Galgate, Barnard Castle DL12 8HA Tel. 01833-690690 Fax. 01833-631167

Crook Crook DL15 9HT Tel. 01388-763331 Fax. 01388-766287

EASINGTON

Peterlee Essington House, Essington Way, Peterlee SR8 5AZ Tel. 0191-5186000 Fax. 0191-5864130

Seaham St. John’s Square, Seaham SR7 0JR Tel. 0191-5186000 Fax. 0191-5814875

NORTH DURHAM

Durham Hopper House, Atherton Street, Durham DH1 4DL Tel. 0191-3831010 Fax. 0191-3836108

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 99 - MAY 2002 NORTH DURHAM (Cont’d)

Chester-le-Street 129 Front Street, Chester-le-Street DH3 3BL Tel. 0191-3831010 Fax. 0191-3836217

DERWENTSIDE

Stanley Front Street, Stanley DH9 0ST Tel. 0191-290990 Fax. 01207-290374

Consett 39 Medomsley Road, Consett DH8 5HE Tel. 01207-504921 Fax. 01207-506740

SEDGEFIELD

Spennymoor Green Lane, Spennymoor DL16 6JU Tel. 01388-424200 Fax. 01388-424242

Newton Aycliffe 21/27 Upper Beveridge Way, Newton Aycliffe DL5 4EB Tel. 01325-314466 Fax. 01325-301023

ALL LOCALITIES

Out of Hours 01325-375724

EDUCATION

Pupil Services Unit 0191-3833277 0191-3833115 0191-3834450

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 100 - MAY 2002 POLICE

Barnard Castle 01833-637328 Bishop Auckland 01388-603566 Chester-le-Street 0191-3884311 Consett 01207-504204 Crook 01388-603566 Durham 0191-3864222 Newton Aycliffe 01325-314401 Peterlee 0191-5862621 Seaham 0191-5812255 Spennymoor 01388-814411 Stanley 01207-232144

VICTIM SUPPORT (For help, counselling, support and assistance for the victims of all crime, including rape and sexual assault.

Chester-le-Street 0191-3871133 Derwentside 01207-505012 Durham 0191-3831515 Easington & District 0191-5872276 Gateshead 0191-4778395 Sunderland 0191-5672896

WOMEN’S AID (Advice lines supporting women suffering Domestic Violence)

Darlington 01325-364486 Derwentside 01207-508300 Durham 0191-3865951 Peterlee 0191-5863055 Gateshead 0191-4779309 Hartlepool 01429-277508 Wear Valley 01388-600094 Wearside Women in Need 0191-4151506 (young women’s Helpline)

PARENT HELPLINES

Organisation for Parents Under 0602-819423 Stress Parents Anonymous 0171-2638918 Helping Parents 01302-833596 Exploring Parenthood 0171-2216681 Parentline 01702-554782 (Monday to Friday 9.00 a.m. - 6.00 p.m. Saturday 1.00 p.m. - 6.00 p.m.)

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 101 - MAY 2002 PARENT HELPLINES (Cont’d)

Cry-Sis, BM Cry-sis 0171-4045011 (self-help and support for families with excessively crying, sleepless and demanding children)

RAPE HELPLINES (Newcastle area)

Rape Crisis 0191-2329858 Incest Crisis Line 0191-2615317 REACH (adults abused in adulthood) 0191-2261528

CHILDREN

CHILDLINE 0800-1111 NSPCC Helpline 0800-800500 Childline - In Care (6.00 - 10.00 p.m.) 0800-884444 Children’s Legal Centre 01206-873820 NYAS (National Youth Advocacy 0800-616101 Service) (provides confidential service for young people who get help from Durham Social Services) Care in Durham (CID) 0191-3844200 (helps and supports children currently being looked after) Young Carers Project (DISC) 0191-3842785

FAMILY

Durham Family Mediation 0191-3865418 (for families undergoing separation or divorce focusing on children’s welfare) Children - North East - Family Link 0191-2323741 (a befriending service for families with children under 8 in Derwentside, Chester-le-Street, Weardale, Teesdale and Durham) ‘DIRECTIONS’ 0800-393726 (information on health, family and disability)

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 102 - MAY 2002 CITIZENS ADVICE BUREAU

Bishop Auckland 01388-606661 Chester-le-Street 0191-3893000 Darlington 01325-380755 Durham 0191-3842638 Spennymoor 01388-420146 Stanley 01207-237858

OTHERS

Samaritans 0345-909090

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 103 - MAY 2002 TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

It is the responsibility of all schools to ensure that all staff, teaching and non-teaching, receive basic training in Child Protection, and that the school’s Designated Teacher is appropriately trained through single agency and multi-agency training sessions.

Basic Training for All Staff

All staff should have basic awareness raising training to enable them to fulfil the degree of delegated responsibility which all staff carry about Child Protection. This would enable staff to receive disclosures or know what to do should they witness an abusive situation, for example.

Basic training should therefore have the following outcomes:

 all staff, teaching and non-teaching, should know and understand about child abuse, its various forms and its patterns of prevalence, and local procedures;  all staff should have the skills required for the purposes of recognising the main signs of physical, sexual and psychological abuse;  all staff should know how to respond to a disclosure of abuse and/or an observation of signs or actions which may indicate possible child abuse;  all staff should be aware of the importance and requirements of monitoring and recording incidents relating to abuse, i.e. related behaviours and not merely incidents;  all staff should understand and accept the levels of confidentiality required in Child Protection matters;  all staff should know of the ACPC procedures, how to access them and that the procedures should be followed.

This training may be delivered, cascade-style, by the trained Designed Teacher. Or it may be delivered by the LEA Pupil Services Child Protection Team on request. The school may of course seek training from other agencies, e.g. NSPCC.

The training should be re-visited regularly to retain alertness to and awareness of the skills and procedures required.

It is essential that all new staff, especially newly qualified staff, have Child Protection as part of their induction process. Regular volunteers should also be considered as needing training.

Training for the Designated Teacher

The Designated Teacher should have participated in the LEA Training Programme (currently Level 2) as a minimum. Further training is offered through ACPC for multi- agency groupings. This is valuable to help in inter-agency understanding, and to provide opportunities for networking. Currently multi-agency training focuses on the referral process, and the Child Protection Conference.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 104 - MAY 2002 Further training on specific areas is often available and schools will be informed as this becomes available via Pupil Services Child Protection Team.

Schools which experience recurring patterns of alleged abuse would benefit from having some staff trained in child counselling, or a counsellor as part of the staffing establishment such training is available for example from NSPCC.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 105 - MAY 2002 CONCLUSION

The purpose of this Handbook has been an attempt to give clear and practical guidance to help Designated Teachers and Head Teachers deal effectively with Child Protection matters. Its aim was not merely to take readers through the procedures and outline where schools could enhance their involvement, although this has been an important element. A significant emphasis has been placed on what schools can do to help ease the difficulties faced daily by children who are abused, to work with children to help them protect themselves, and to prevent the perpetration of abuse by the next generation of adults by teaching responsible attitudes and respect for others.

Schools have been made aware of how important it is that they become knowledgeable about the nature of their local community and the impact of such elements as Domestic Violence, Substance Misuse and Mental Health can have on the well-being of the children in their schools. Using multi-agency groups can help share that local knowledge, and such groups can also have the advantage of allowing effort and resources to be appropriately channelled, avoiding disjointed and duplicated support.

In whatever sphere of activity, good schools aim for continuous improvement, and take it upon themselves to see out good practice, to share good practice and to review their own practice against appropriate benchmarks.

Child Protection is an area of a school’s activity which is worthy of such consideration, and should form part of a school’s review of its own efficiency and effectiveness. A model for such a review forms part of this Handbook, and if undertaken would allow a school to identify strengths and weaknesses, and thus plan for improvement in those areas where such need is identified.

In conclusion, the Handbook will have served its purpose if it is found useful by its target audience - Head Teachers, Designated Teachers, staff and Governors - and if greater consistency and improved strategies for protecting children and preventing abuse are developed throughout County Durham’s schools.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 106 - MAY 2002 Appendix 1

FOCUSED QUESTIONS FOR CHILDREN IN NEED REFERRALS

The following checklist and questions should be used to help you complete an initial referral of concern about a possible child ‘in need’. Where the question is written out in full - marked by an asterisk* - please use the exact wording, but feel free to ask supplementary questions to obtain more information.

Referrer Event

Professional What happened? Detailed description of Parent observed behaviour. Child Public This space is for brief/bullet pointed notes.

 Relationship to identified person/family?  

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  Does the child/family know you are referring  them now?  

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  Has anyone been spoken to about this  matter? Other family member? Other  professional/agency?  

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 Is the referrer willing to be identified to the  Has it happened before? How often? child/family/person?

 Can the referrer introduce a social worker?  Was there harm/injury to a child?

 Would the referrer be willing to be contacted  What has happened since then? in future?

 Is the referrer aware of what will happen  Did you see these things personally or has now? someone told you about them? If hearsay then contact details of third party needed.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Focused Questions

0 5 10  If 0 is that your concern is as high as it can be, and 10 is that everything is OK - what is your level of concern about this child now?

 What is happening for the child that is making you concerned

 Has the score ever been higher? (when things were better) (if the answer is YES) How high?

 What was happening then that made it higher?

 For the child

 For the family

 For the agency(ies)

0 5 10  What score would tell you things were OK?

 What would be happening then?

 For the child

 For the family

 For the agency(ies)

 What will have to happen for the concerns in this case to reduce - for the family to meet the child’s needs more effectively? (Search for DETAIL of what will make the concerns reduce)

 What will others (family members/agencies etc.) be doing differently?

0 5 10  Questions for professionals – DETAIL needed

 If 0 is that there is no likelihood of progress and 10 is that progress is certain - where is this case now? What needs to happen for progress to be made?

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Family & Community

 Does the caller know much about the This space is for brief/bullet pointed notes to family/person? provide supplementary information: 

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  How would the caller describe contact with  this family?  

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  Can the caller tell the agency anything that  would help them understand the family?  

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  What is the family’s composition?  

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  Ages/gender of children?  

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  Any other information about the child/family  which will help to resolve the concern?  

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A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 2

DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL CHILD PROTECTION REFERRAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT CONFIRMATION FORM Confidential

WHO IS THE REFERRAL ABOUT? The Pupil

Surname: …………………………………… Forename: ……………………………………… M/F: ………….

Date of Birth: ……………………………….. Age: ………………………. Year Group: ……………………….

Address: ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

Parents/Carers: ……………………………………………………… Phone No: …………………………………..

WHO MADE THE REFERRAL?

Name: …………………………………………………… Position: …………………………………………………..

School: ………………………………………………………………… Phone No: ………………………………….

Head Teacher: ………………………………………… Designated Teacher: ……………………………………. (Name) (Name)

TO WHOM WAS THE REFERRAL MADE?

Social Services Office: ...... Police

Time: …………………………………………………………….. Date: ……………………………………………...

WHO ELSE IS AWARE THAT THE REFERRAL HAS BEEN MADE?

......

WHAT IS THE REFERRAL ABOUT? (Include all relevant details i.e. dates, times, events, presenting facts, names and statements made by the child; remember not to embark on further investigations)

(continue on additional sheets if necessary)

Date: ......

Signed: ...... Designated Teacher/Referrer/Head Teacher/Line Manager

Return to: Manager of Pupil Services, Room 3/93, Education Dept., County Hall, Durham DH1 5UJ – marked confidential

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 2

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 3

(Cover for File)

Cestria Primary School

Child Protection File

Name: ......

D.O.B.: ......

Date File Opened: ......

Year Class Teacher

R.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Transferred to: ......

Date: ...... Reason: ......

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Cestria Primary School

Child Protection File - Additional Details

Name of Child: ______D/B ______

Address: ______

Tel. No.: ______

Parent(s)/Carer(s): ______

Social Worker(s): ______

______

Initial Referral Made: ______File Opened: ______

Additional Information:

File Closed: ______Reason(s): ______

______

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Cestria Primary School

File Note Re: ______

Date: ______Author: ______No. of Pages: _____

______

Signed: ______Date: ______P[ ] of [ ] cont. [ ]

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Cestria Primary School

File Note

Re: ______Date: ______

______

Notes:

______

Action: ______

Initials:______File to: ______Copy to: ______

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 4 Report for Initial Child Protection Conference Date of Conference:______

Name of Child ...... ………... Date of Birth ...... Address …………………………………………………………………………………………………..

………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Parents/Carers ...... ………………………………………………………………………………………

Name of person completing this report: ...... … Position ...... … Signed ...... Date ...... … Involvement in any previous Multi Agency meetings for this child Core Group Review Planning Meeting

This report will be shared with parents prior to the meeting (appointment offered) ...... This report has been shared with parents prior to the meeting dated ......

Involvement by other agencies/professionals (name professionals)...... Educational Psychology Service ...... since (date) ...... Education Welfare Service ...... … Learning Support Service ………………………………………………………………………………………… Child and Family Therapy ………………………………………………………………………………………… Other (e.g. DTU, Hearing Impaired) ………………………………………………………………………………

Attendance Week Ending Actual

Possible

Percentage of unauthorised absence this term: Any concerns/known factors affecting the pupil’s attendance? Any concerns/known factors affecting punctuality? Are absences notified appropriately? What reasons have been given for any absence?

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Special Educational Needs

Does the child have a Statement of Special Educational Needs?

Statement initiated Proposed Statement Statement finalised Date:

In brief what are the child’s Special Educational Needs?; What Stage of Assessment? Attach copies of IEPs if appropriate.

How does the child/young person perform educationally? (Please note strengths and weaknesses, attitudes and approaches to learning, attitude to homework, participation in extra-curricular activities, any particular areas of concern.) Is it the school’s view that the child is fulfilling his/her potential?

Is the child functioning at a level at, above or below average for his/her age?

How does the child/young person behave in school - in lesson time, in unstructured time? Are there any patterns or have there been any changes in behaviour/demeanour?

Relationships with People in School

How does the child relate to his peers? (Does the child have particular relationships with older or younger children?)

How does he/she relate to teaching staff, to other adults?

Describe briefly any specific incident to exemplify, if appropriate.

How does the child present in school (e.g. appearance, personal organisation, respect for authority)?

Are there any concerns about the child’s social, emotional or physical development?

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Relationships with Parents

1. Describe the relationship between parents and school, from the school’s point of view?

2. Have parents/carers taken up all the opportunities to contact school about the child - e.g. parents evenings, meetings to discuss particular incidents?

3. Does the child/young person talk about home at school; if so are any details relevant?

Are parents aware of any concerns school has?

How do they respond?

Are parents willing to work with school over specific issues, e.g. behaviour?

Conclusions

In Summary (please draw together briefly the main threads of this report)

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 5

FOLLOWING A CHILD PROTECTION CONFERENCE HELD ON (DATE) A DECISION WAS MADE TO PLACE (NAME) ON THE CHILD PROTECTION REGISTER

A REVIEW OF (NAME) ON THE REGISTER WILL TAKE PLACE WITHIN SIX MONTHS

CHILD PROTECTION PLAN

Child’s Name: Date of Birth:

(1) Names of all those involved in this Agreement/Plan

CHILD (if appropriate) PARENTS:

KEY WORKER: CORE GROUP: (e.g. Health Visitor, School Nurse, Teacher etc.) SIGNIFICANT OTHERS: (e.g. Family Members)

(2) Why was xxxs’s name put on the Register?

What are the problems as seen by:

CHILD (if appropriate) PARENTS:

(3) What needs to be done?

(4) How long will it take?

(5) Work to be done in order to tackle the Problems:

(a) By Child (if appropriate)

(b) By Parents

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 (c) By the Core Group Members:

(i) Health Visitor

(ii) School Nurse

(iii) Teacher

(iv) Key Worker

(v) Others

(d) Significant Others e.g. Family Members, Paediatrician etc.

(6) Who will visit and when?

(a) Health Visitor

(b) Key Worker

(c) Others

(7) When will this Agreement/Plan be Reviewed?

(8) What if this Agreement/Plan is not followed?

(9) What options are available if the problems are not solved?

PRIME RESPONSIBILITY FOR WORK WITH THE FAMILY DURING THIS PERIOD WILL REST WITH:

KEY WORKER

IF YOU ARE UNHAPPY/UNCLEAR WITH ANY PART OF THIS AGREEMENT/PLAN PLEASE DO NOT SIGN IT (YOU MAY WISH TO DISCUSS IT FURTHER)

Signatures:

Date:

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 6

The Review Child Protection Conference Report

Date of Conference:

Name of Child: ......

Date of Birth: ...... ……….

Address: ......

......

Parents/Carers: ...... ………..

Name of School/Establishment: ...... ……...

Phone: ...... Fax: ...... …...

Name of Person Completing this Report: ...... …...

Position: ………………………………………………………………………………………

Signed: ...... Date: ...... …...

Involvement in any previous meetings for this child

Initial Core Group Review Planning Conference Meeting

This report will be shared with parents/carers prior to the meeting (appointment offered).

This report has been shared with parents/carers prior to the meeting - date.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002

The school’s view (please state: what changes have there been in the child in school since the last report; whether there are continuing concerns and what these are, whether there are no further major concerns)

Since the previous meeting the following support/action has been undertaken:

The outcomes of this support/action are:

Recommendation for future support/action/involvement by school or other agency

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 APPENDIX 7 School Child Protection Self-Review Inventory The grids below indicate aspects of school life relevant to self-review of Child Protection arrangements. The grids are intended to enable a systematic annual process of self-review. It may not be possible to cover all elements every year. However, all elements should be covered over a two year period. The person responsible for conducting the review should consider taking the following steps: Step 1 - Select elements for inclusion in the review. Step 2 - For each element identify which participants - pupils, parents, staff, Head Teacher and other agencies - are best placed to provide relevant information. Step 3 - Using the headings for each section and the distribution of items amongst the participants create a set of inventories. Pupils Parents Staff Head Agencies 1. Head Teacher’s attributes 1.1 Sense of awareness and understanding of the lives of children and young people in need. 1.2 Acceptance of the responsibility to respond to these needs. 1.3 Personal commitment to the human rights of children and young people in school. 1.4 Clear, personal leadership to make the school a safe place for children and young people.

2. School’s arrangements to enable pupils to talk to adults in confidence, and be listened to 2.1 Designated times and locations for pupils to speak to staff. 2.2 Access to specialist staff, e.g. school nurse, school counsellor. 2.3 Use of registration time, circle time, tutorial time for personal contact with pupils.

3. School’s efforts to enable parental participation 3.1 Extent to which parents feel welcome in school. 3.2 Degree of parents’ confidence to approach Head Teacher or form tutors to deal with family matters. 3.3 Extent to which parents with family needs feel judged by school staff. 3.4 Extent to which parents with family needs feel they are listened to in school. 3.5 Extent to which parents feel they will be helped by school to cope with family needs.

4. Staff knowledge and skills 4.1 Ability to identify signs which may characterise physical, sexual or psychological abuse of pupils. 4.2 Extent to which staff demonstrate that they are alert to these signs. 4.3 Degree of staff confidence to act on signs of potential child abuse observed in school. 4.4 Knowledge of reporting system for making a referral in school. 4.5 Extent to which staff feel confident that their referral will be acted upon. 4.6 Extent to which staff are confident that they will be kept informed after making a referral.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 School Child Protection Self-Reviewnventory The grids below indicate the main areas for internal investigation. For each item the columns on the right indicate the key sources of feedback. Pupils Parents Staff Head Agencies 5. School culture 5.1 Extent to which staff respond effectively to the personal needs of pupils. 5.2 Level of staff understanding of the factors that may operate in families against the interests of pupils. 5.3 Staff accept of their responsibility to remain alert to abusive behaviour by adults in school.

6. Attributes of the designated teacher 6.1 Ability as a skilled and trusted listener. 6.2 Depth of knowledge of pupils, parents and staff. 6.3 Ability to remain calm under pressure and not to over-react. 6.4 Extent to which approach to specialist tasks is systematic and analytical. 6.5 Clarity and purposefulness of procedures for collecting further information.

7. School’s links with other agencies 7.1 Extent to which Head Teacher operates a network of inter-agency connection for pupils’ benefit. 7.2 Extent to which school has regular, purposeful meetings with other agency representatives. 7.3 Multi-agency meetings in school focused on children’s needs. 7.4 Extent to which multi-agency meetings focus on practical responses to pupils’ perceived needs. 7.5 Extent to which multi-agency meetings focus on information exchange and skill development. 7.6 Levels of professional trust and respect exist between the school and the other agencies. 7.7 Designated teacher has ready access to informal advice from other agencies. 7.8 Designated teacher can discuss with confidence a disclosure or referral with other agency officers. 7.9 Designated teacher knows action will not be taken by another agency without their knowledge. 7.10 Designated teacher has realistic expectations of what social workers can deliver.

8. School policy 8.1 Policy was developed with staff involvement. 8.2 Child Protection Policy is part of a wider set of related school policies. 8.3 Policy relates to school’s personal and social education curriculum. 8.4 Policy is published in a Staff Handbook. 8.5 Policy is published in information for parents. 8.6 Discussion of Child Protection Policy and practice is part of staff induction programme, for all staff.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 School Child Protection Self-Review Inventory

The grids below indicate the main areas for internal investigation. For each item the columns on the right indicate the key sources of feedback.

Pupils Parents Staff Head Agencies 9. Staff INSET 9.1 All staff have basic awareness training, and training to recognise possible signs of abuse. 9.2 Senior pastoral staff and designated teacher receive in-depth training. 9.3 Training for designated teacher involves multi-agency work.

10. Pastoral management arrangements 10.1 Take account of all pupils in school. 10.2 Geared sufficiently to the needs of pupils in families known to be experiencing difficulties. 10.3 During a child abuse investigation communications with staff are well managed.

11. Communications with families 11.1 School regularly informs parents about its Child Protection policy and practice. 11.2 Parents informed that school will put pupils first when there are concerns about neglect or abuse. 11.3 Parents are given clear information that the school will refer cases to Social Services if necessary.

12. Staff recruitment and selection (particular significance for residential schools) 12.1 Recruitment documentation highlights determination to protect pupils from abuse. 12.2 Recruitment documentation highlights values and beliefs about pupils’ rights. 12.3 Selection process makes explicit standards to which staff are expected to work to protect pupils. 12.4 Candidates required to express their commitment to the rights of pupils to protection from abuse.

13. Record keeping and reporting 13.1 School has well maintained confidential system of recording information about pupils in need. 13.2 When an investigation of alleged abuse occurs the school contributes information effectively. 13.3 At transfer the designated teacher passes all Child Protection information to her counter-part.

14. Allegation of abuse against staff 14.1 Cases treated with same determination and confidentiality as all other disclosures or allegations.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 School Child Protection Self-Review Inventory

The grids below indicate the main areas for internal investigation. For each item the columns on the right indicate the key sources of feedback.

Pupils Parents Staff Head Agencies 15. Involvement in and preparation for multi-agency Child Protection meeting 15.1 Designated teacher ensures all staff involved are briefed and prepared for the meetings. 15.2 Notes and background materials are prepared to a high standard.

16. Review of Child Protection arrangements 16.1 Designated teacher and Head Teacher review policy and practice annually. 16.2 Pupils, parents, staff and officers from other agencies involved in school’s annual self-review process.

17. Pupils’ perspectives 17.1 Pupils feel safe in school. 17.2 Pupils have confidence to go to adults in school if they need to deal with sensitive personal issues. 17.3 Pupils trust staff with confidential information. 17.4 School trains willing pupils to be actively involved in pupil support systems, such as buddies. 17.5 Pupils are taught about keeping themselves safe and being able to speak out against abuse. 17.6 Pupils are protected against intolerant and intimidating staff. 17.7 Pupils are enabled to speak out against any form of bullying in school.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 8

EDUCATION DEPARTMENT PROTECTION OF CHILDREN: DISCLOSURE OF CRIMINAL BACKGROUND OF THOSE WITH ACCESS TO CHILDREN Categories of posts where Police record checks should be made

(a) County Hall-based Staff Psychologists Education Welfare Officers Careers Officer (including specialist careers officers and other staff)

(b) School-based Staff Teachers Supply Teachers Music Instructors Auxiliaries Nursery Assistants Technicians and Laboratory Staff Matrons/Domestic Assistants Supervisory Assistants Houseparents/Residential Child Care Officers Welfare Assistants Caretakers Porters/Drivers/Handypersons/Attendants Swimming Instructors Clerical Assistants/Bursars/Administrative Staff Crossing Patrols Gardeners/Groundspersons (Note: Managed by Contract Services Department)

(c) Education Centres/Home Tuition/Child Guidance Clinics/ Youth and Community Centres Leaders and Wardens, including part-timers Teachers Clerical Assistants/Bursars/Administrative Staff Domestic Staff Caretakers Drivers/Handypersons/Attendants (d) Other Staff Any post not listed above which the Director of Education considers a Police check may be required. (e) Other Taxi Drivers and Escorts Volunteers who come into school on a regular basis, defined as coming into school on a regular weekly basis, or involved in overnight school visits University/college placements (Note: Undertaken on chargeable basis)

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Appendix 9

Source: CAPE - North West Region

CHILD PROTECTION DECLARATION

Volunteers, Governors and Other Staff New to the School/Service Including Supply Staff

Teachers and other people in regular contact with children and young people are in a position to get to know these individuals well, to develop trusting relationships, observe changes in behaviour and may be chosen by the young person to share confidences and concerns. Regrettably there are occasions where child abuse is alleged or suspected. All such situations must be taken seriously.

It is the policy of this establishment to safeguard the welfare of children and all others involved in the establishment’s activities by protecting them from physical, sexual and emotional harm.

It is the responsibility of each adult to ensure that his or her behaviour is appropriate at all times. A Code of Behaviour is included in this document to give positive guidance for all adults. It is essential that all adults follow the Code of Behaviour whether they work with children, young people or adults. Details of the steps to take if abuse is alleged or suspected are also included in this document, although more detailed guidance is available from the designated teacher for Child Protection. It is important to remember that the Education Service is not an investigation agency. If there is an allegation or suspicion of abuse then this must be reported to the Head, or similar responsible person, immediately who will begin the appropriate action. In all matters of child protection, the welfare and protection of the child is the paramount consideration. Swift reporting will enable the correct authority to give advice and take appropriate action.

These procedures are put in place, not to discourage adults to be involved in the life of this school/service, but to ensure, as far as possible, the safety of children and that people who may abuse children do not get the opportunity to do so.

All adults coming into contact with children and young people in this school/service must comply with the Child Protection Policy and Code of Behaviour. As one such person you are required to sign a copy of this document. By signing you agree to comply with the policy and to follow the Code of Behaviour. The form must be read, discussed, signed and handed to the Head Teacher or other designated person before you take up any duties in this establishment.

Procedure

If you suspect or are concerned that a child/young person is being abused:

(i) immediately tell the designated teacher for Child Protection or your Line Manager; (ii) record the facts as you know them and give a copy to the above person.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 If a child/young person tells you that he/she is being abused: (i) allow him/her to speak without interruption, accepting what is said; (ii) advise him/her that you will try to offer support but that you MUST pass the information on to the designated Child Protection Teacher. You must not promise confidentiality; (iii) immediately tell the designated Child Protection Teacher; (iv) record the facts as you know them, including the account given to you by the young person and give a copy to the designated Child Protection Teacher; (v) if the designated Teacher/Line Manager does not take action to refer the case to Social Services, you should take immediate action to do so within the same working day.

If you receive an allegation about any adult or about yourself: (i) immediately tell the designated Child Protection Teacher; (ii) record the facts as you know them and give a copy to the designated Child Protection Teacher. You must refer. You must NOT investigate.

Code of Behaviour Do treat everyone with respect.

Do try to plan activities so that they involve more than one person or at least are in sight of hearing of others.

Do respect a young person’s right to personal privacy.

Do provide access for young people and adults to feel comfortable enough to point out attitudes of behaviours they do not like, and try to provide a caring atmosphere.

Do act as an appropriate adult role model.

Do remember that someone else might misinterpret your actions no matter how well intentioned. Do not permit abusive youth/peer activities (e.g. ridiculing, bullying etc.).

Do not play physical contact games with young people.

Do not have inappropriate physical or verbal banter with others.

Do not jump to conclusions without checking facts.

Do not make suggestive remarks or gestures or tell jokes of a sexual nature.

Do not rely on your good name to protect you. It may not be enough.

Do not believe it could not happen to you. It could.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Every adult or other helper will be required to disclose all convictions whether spent or not. Checks will be made on everyone who has not already been the subject of vetting by this or any other organisation.

Name: ______

Date of Birth: ______

Address: ______

______

______

Other names by which I may be/have been known: ______

______

Please delete as appropriate

 I am willing to be checked against Police and other records, and will complete the appropriate form.

 I have not incurred any criminal convictions, nor have I committed any offences of abuse or causing harm to children or young people, or any other offence which may be relevant to the work which I may undertake in this establishment.

 I am not aware of any other investigations which may have been held, or may currently be in progress, concerning my behaviour towards others.

I have read and understood this document, consent to the appropriate checks being made, and agree to adhere to the Child Protection policy and follow the Code of Behaviour.

Name (please print): ______

Signed: ______

Date: ______

Signature of Head Teacher/other appropriate officer: ______

Position: ______

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 CHILD PROTECTION CASES

Child Protection investigations and procedures take precedence over a school’s disciplinary procedures. Advice on Child Protection matters is available from Pupil Services Unit.

In all cases where allegations of a child protection nature are made against a member of staff including the Head Teacher the Area Child Protection Committee procedures should be followed and the referral process undertaken as would any referral alleging harm to a child.

Receiving the Allegation

 The child should be listened to and heard, whatever form their attempts to communicate their worries take. On no account must suggestions be made to children as to alternative explanations for their worries nor leading questions asked. A written dated record must be made of the allegations - using where possible, the child’s own words - as soon as possible after the disclosure but certainly within 24 hours. A note should also be made of the dates, times, context, locations and names of potential witnesses.

 Confidentiality cannot be promised, since the nature of the allegation may dictate that a Child Protection referral should be made.

Consideration of the Allegation

 The allegation should not be investigated by the school beyond the point of considering whether there could be substance in the allegation, but the member of staff against whom the allegation has been made should not be interviewed. These initial considerations would involve discussion with the LEA Child Protection Team and would reveal one of the following:

 there is a need for an immediate referral under the Child Protection procedures - in which case a referral should be made;  there is reason to suppose abuse could have occurred and that referral under the Child Protection Procedures or under internal disciplinary procedures may be necessary - in which case a referral should be made unless the allegation is trivial or demonstrably false;  that the allegation is apparently without foundation (for example, if the member of staff were absent on the day in question);  that the allegation was prompted by inappropriate behaviour which needs to be considered under local disciplinary procedures.

Where a decision is taken not to make a referral a written dated note of the allegation and the reasons for the non-referral should be made.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Where the allegation is made against a Head Teacher it is advisable to inform the LEA Child Protection Team and the Senior Schools Officer, School and Governor Support Service as soon as possible, whoever receives the allegation should discuss the matter with the Designated Teacher, unless that person is the Head Teacher, in which case the contact should be made with the LEA directly. The Chair of Governors would then be informed

A referral should be made to the Social Services Team in the area where the child resides, the same working day as the allegation is made or the disclosure received.

A Strategy Meeting is the likely outcome of the referral being made.

A Strategy Meeting

 A strategy meeting should be called within 2 working days, but more often this takes place the same day. At the meeting the allegation will be considered by the Child Protection investigating agencies - Social Services and the Police with the LEA Officer and Head Teacher.

 The outcome of the Strategy Meeting will influence the subsequent immediate action in disciplinary terms. Until the outcome of the strategy meeting the member of staff should not be informed of the allegation, unless previously agreed with Social Services.

 The Strategy Meeting may have several outcomes including:

 not to proceed further under the Child Protection procedures;

 to continue the process of the referral by a joint investigation by Police and Social Services interviewing the child, (having sought the permission of parents) and to interview the member of staff;

 to recommend the suspension of the member of staff on the grounds that:

 where the allegations are so serious that dismissal for gross misconduct is possible  where a suspension is necessary to allow the conduct of the investigation to proceed unimpeded.

Advice on suspension should be sought from the LEA and from Personnel and Consumer Services and should be carried out in line with agreed procedures. The strategy meeting can only recommend suspension; it is ultimately the Head Teacher’s decision.

Where a joint investigation has been conducted a further strategy meeting may be called to reconsider the allegation in the light of the information gathered, for example to consider if other children may be at risk.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 Once a decision has been taken not to proceed further under the Child Protection procedures the Head Teacher can initiate the disciplinary investigation.

The Head Teacher should then:

 establish the nature of the allegations;  interview the employee;  establish who has already been interviewed and obtain statements/reports on this from Police/Social Services: liaise with County Secretary and Solicitor for information from the Police;  establish if there are other children/adults who need to be interviewed (when contemplating interviewing other children it is strongly recommended that advice is first sought from Pupil Services Unit);  when conducting interviews of this nature, it is important to be able to demonstrate that leading questions were not asked;  finally, when all relevant information has been gathered, re-interview the employee and decide if there is a case to answer;  if there is a case to answer a decision will need to be made as to whether it can be dealt with by management advice or whether a disciplinary hearing needs to be convened.

Where the allegation is against the Head Teacher, the Chair of Governors would be supported by School and Governor Support Service in line with agreed procedures.

Any disciplinary procedure should follow the appropriate guidance.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK MAY 2002 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anne Schonveld Schools and Child Protection. (CEDC Publications) Developing Your Child Protection Policy. Child Protection and School Support Staff.

School Governors and Child Protection.

Ben Whitney Child Protection for Teachers and (Kogan Page) Schools.

Department of Health Child Protection - Messages from Research.

Department of Education Pastoral Care in Schools - Child (Northern Ireland) Protection.

Home Office Living Without Fear.

N.S.P.C.C. Turning Points - A Resource Pack.

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 63 - MAY 2002 

DURHAM COUNTY COUNCIL CHILD PROTECTION REFERRAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT CONFIRMATION FORM Confidential

WHO IS THE REFERRAL ABOUT? The Pupil

Surname: …………………………………… Forename: ……………………………………… M/F: ………….

Date of Birth: ……………………………….. Age: ………………………. Year Group: ……………………….

Address: ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...

Parents/Carers: ……………………………………………………… Phone No: …………………………………..

WHO MADE THE REFERRAL?

Name: …………………………………………………… Position: …………………………………………………..

School: ………………………………………………………………… Phone No: ………………………………….

Head Teacher: ………………………………………… Designated Teacher: ……………………………………. (Name) (Name)

TO WHOM WAS THE REFERRAL MADE?

Social Services Office: ...... Police

Time: …………………………………………………………….. Date: ……………………………………………...

WHO ELSE IS AWARE THAT THE REFERRAL HAS BEEN MADE?

......

WHAT IS THE REFERRAL ABOUT? (Include all relevant details i.e. dates, times, events, presenting facts, names and statements made by the child; remember not to embark on further investigations)

(continue on additional sheets if necessary)

Date: ......

Signed: ...... Designated Teacher/Referrer/Head Teacher/Line Manager

Return to: Manager of Pupil Services, Room 3/93, Education Dept., County Hall, Durham DH1 5UJ –

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 63 - MAY 2002 marked confidential

A CHILD PROTECTION HANDBOOK - 63 - MAY 2002