‘I felt like whatever I was doing was worthless. Even if I did well in school, it wouldn’t matter to people because all they would care about is me being gay.’ ZOE, 12, SECONDARY SCHOOL PUPIL, ENGLAND* It’s February, LGBTQ+ history month, and a good time to think about the safeguarding of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender …
‘I don’t think my dad realises how many messages from random boys I get or how many dick pics I get. And I have to deal with it every day… it’s kind of like a normal thing for girls now’ – female pupil, 14 – from ‘Learning about online sexual harm’ Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual …
‘ I can see them out the flat window, see the officers walking around, thinking alright, these lot are looking for something, but they don’t know who I am, cos I’m not from around here. I’m walking around the corner to where the flat is. Outside that flat, there’s two TSG vans, two cars, sniffer …
The current definition of Safeguarding is inclusive, ambitious and broad. It is not a concept that is interchangeable with Child Protection, rather it includes Child Protection (this is one of the most common misconceptions we encounter in our work). Safeguarding includes any aspect of care or engagement of children and young people that enables them …
“I recently dealt with a case of a child who was of p6 [Scottish Year 5] age who sent an indecent image to another pupil who subsequently distributed this to the rest of the school. This was only discovered by myself when I overheard other pupils discussing this. We were faced with a difficult choice …
You may have missed it, but recently amongst all the political mayhem, and ahead of what seems like an imminent General Election, the Children’s Commissioner Anne Longfield launched her ‘Children’s Manifesto’, setting out what young people want. What is the role of the Children’s Commissioner? The role of Children’s Commissioner is to promote and protect …
It’s September and a range of settings are asking me what changes have taken place in the range of statutory safeguarding guidance they know they must comply with. Well, the good news is that, compared to last year, changes have been minimal. ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ (2018) remains the same. ‘Keeping Children Safe in …
I remember someone telling me once that the best ever training she ever went on involved the trainer just taking the participants through a series of serious case reviews. I have put together bespoke sessions myself at the request of settings and seen first-hand how the in-depth study of a case of child abuse has …
I recently put together the new Mandy Parry Training brochure for the next academic year 2019 – 2020, and once again it was time to revise my understanding of the statutory safeguarding training requirements for people who work with children. To be honest, while it’s one of the most common questions I am asked as …
*STOP PRESS!* There is a new edition of non-statutory document ‘Guidance for safer working practice for those working with children in education settings’ (2019), endorsed and recommended by the Safer Recruitment Consortium. The original guidance was developed by a DfES network in 2005, revised in 2009 and 2015. It is essential reading for everyone who works with children …