Child
protection within the wider concept of safeguarding children and young people
It is a legal requirement that schools maintain a
safe and secure environment where pupils can develop mentally and physically,
explore new ideas, establish positive relationships with others and create a
healthy self-image. The school’s safeguarding and anti-bullying policies
include the principles and procedures to be followed by staff. The
responsibility to safeguard children involves a number of aspects that the
school and teaching staff have to pay attention to.
It is the duty of all staff to watch out for
possible signs of child abuse and neglect and report their concerns immediately
if they believe that a pupil is likely to be suffering any harm by another
person. These issues include physical, emotional and sexual abuse (usually by
adults close to the child), neglect by the family/carers or bullying by peers.
Any of these issues can cause significant physical and/or emotional harm to the
child therefore teaching staff has to make sure to do whatever they can to
prevent or stop the process. (Kamen 2011, p. 47) Furthermore, by training the
children about avoiding risks (e.g. not playing in dark or deserted places),
making responsible decisions (e.g. not trying drugs just because of peer
pressure) and asking for support from trusted adults (e.g. teachers, police
officers), we can prepare them for adult life. (Kamen 2011, p. 54)
Safeguarding children also involves the requirements
towards the adults who are in contact with them inside the school setting on a
daily basis. Schools are legally bound to employ only people who are not listed
as unsuitable to work with children and have a clear criminal record. Teachers
and teaching assistants in a school are expected to behave as professionals as
they are role models for the pupils around them. Also if there is an allegation
against a staff member in the school, the head teacher has to follow the
relevant procedures in order to investigate the problem.
Finally, the school environment has to be designed
in a way that promotes opportunities of healthy development for all pupils. The
Health and Safety Act 1974 requires the school to have procedures to protect
everyone from harm on the premises and have procedures in place to prevent
accidents. Potential hazards have to be reported to the appropriate person who
also carries out an annual risk assessment. All staff has to be informed about the
safety policies and procedures. Adults have to make sure that pupils are not
taking any actions that may cause harm to another person, minimize risks by
always tidying up after themselves and use appropriate tools and safety
equipment when needed. (Burnham 2007, p. 5) A safe and secure environment also
includes a building and classroom design that is accessible for and supports
wheelchair users, promoting their security and development as well.
When
and why are inquiries and serious case reviews required and how does the sharing of
the findings inform practice?
Children’s welfare is a paramount consideration
within the school setting; therefore educational institutions have to assess regularly
their internal practice and external relationships with other agencies
according to the recommendations of the serious case reviews. Chapter 8 of Working together to safeguard children
(2010) describes serious case reviews as lessons to be learned for individuals
and agencies, in order to improve their practice of ensuring children’s
well-being in the school setting. If the recommendations are implemented
effectively, the changes ensure a better protection for children against future
harm and suffering.
A SCR has to be undertaken by the Local Safeguarding
Children Board when a child’s death (including suicide) is suspected to be the
result of neglect or abuse, even when parent, carer or relative who committed
the murder is suffering from mental illness or addiction. The LSCB will also
consider carrying out a serious case review if a child suffers a potentially
life-threatening injury or permanent impairment due to abuse or neglect; or has
been seriously harmed as a result of sexual abuse or a violent assault by
another child or adult; if a parent has been murdered and a domestic homicide
review is being initiated; or in any case that raise concerns about the way in
which local professionals and services cooperate in safeguarding children. (Serious Case Reviews, n.d.)
The information gained from SCR’s provides lessons
on local and national level too. At the local level, if the recommendations are
acted upon, individual agency and inter-agency cooperation improves. The review
is a learning exercise for those involved, good results and areas requiring
change both need to be shared. Training plans can be set up, focusing on the
key areas of the recommendations with timely and achievable goals. At the
national level, child death and serious case reviews are valuable sources of
information when creating and reviewing national policy and practice. (Working together 2010)
Processes in a work setting need to comply with legislation that covers
data protection, information handling and sharing
The job of a teaching assistant includes creating, updating
and dealing with pupil records therefore the relevant rules about information
handling and data protection have to be clear for them. Whenever a TA is
contributing to pupil records, it has to be accurate, complete and up to date.
Furthermore confidential information about the children in school cannot be
shared with a third party unless they are relevant in the particular situation.
When a child makes a disclosure to the teaching
assistant about being abused, this sensitive information has to be handled very
carefully. The adult has to listen to whatever the child wishes to share rather
than ask questions, and has to accept what they hear without criticism. The
child has to be reassured that it is not their fault what has happened and it
was the right decision to tell about it. However, they also have to be informed
that this situation cannot be kept a secret but has to be shared with relevant
third parties. The teaching assistant then has to make notes as soon as
possible about the date, the time, the details of the conversation and any
non-verbal behaviour accurately and objectively, without interpreting or
forming an opinion. This documentation can be the basis of the child abuse case
and might even be used in court if necessary. (Kamen 2011, p. 51-52)
The teaching assistant is also responsible for
maintaining pupil records, documents regarding e.g. pupil activities and
assessments, progress and attendance records etc. They have to be aware of the
Data Protection Act 1998, which prevents the disclosure of materials that are
likely to cause harm to the development of the pupil, those concerning child
abuse cases and references supplied to the potential employers of the pupil. (Teaching Assistant 2012, p.185) The
pupil records have to be locked up in a file cabinet or stored in a computer
secured by a password, being available only for authorised personnel. Each
pupil has to have a separate file for their records and these documents have to
be kept for five years. Parents have the right to see what is recorded about
their child, correct any mistakes and add any relevant information to it. Under
the Data Protection Act the information held by the schools can only be used
for specific purposes (i.e. to support the child’s development), and
individuals have the right to access the data held about them. The Freedom of
Information Act 2000 requires schools to publish their publicly available
information under a publication scheme so it is accessible for anyone. (Teaching Assistant 2012, p155-156)
Reference list
Burnham,
Louise, 2007, The Teaching Assistant’s
Handbook Primary Schools, Heinemann, p. 4-27.
Kamen,
Teena, 2011, Teaching Assistant’s
Handbook Level 3, Hodder Education, p. 46-58.
Serious Case Reviews,
n.d. North Yorkshire Safeguarding Children Board, accessed 04/11/13, <http://www.safeguardingchildren.co.uk/section-13-procedures.html>
Teaching Assistant. Providing
Support to Teaching and Learning in Schools. February 2012,
edn. 2010/05. UK Open Learning Ltd, p. 154-156, 180-181
Working together to safeguard
children, 2010.
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