What To Do In Suspicion Of Abuse Or Neglect Flashcards
You work with children or come into contact with them in some other way. At some stage, your suspicions that a child is being abused/neglected how could this suspicions be aroused?
Something you hear or are told
Observation
Knowledge of the family
What to do in suspicion a child is being abused/neglected or in risk of?
Ring your local children’s services (social care) contact point.
If you are in doubt or need to consult someone about your concerns, staff at the contact point can put you in touch with someone who can help.
What to keep in mind/ be aware when handling a disclosure of abuse from a child?
Remember that it may be very difficult for a child to talk about abuse.
You may be the person the child has chosen to tell because the child trusts you and your reaction must make the child feel comfortable enough to continue to disclose.
Be aware that a wrong reaction ( anger, shock, etc) may make them close up and you may miss the opportunity to learn about the abuse.
It may well be the only time a child will tell of abuse.
How to react when handling a disclosure if abuse from a child?
Be reassuring and sympathetic
Do not put your arm around the child or any other contact that may sometimes make the child feel uncomfortable and may make them stop talking.
Do not appear shocked or angry
Take the disclosure seriously
Listen and observe
Remember what is being said
What is your task while handling a disclosure?
Clarify what is being said so you can establish that there is a suspicion of harm to the child.
You must tell the child that you will have to pass the information onto other people if it seems to you that this child or other children have been or may be hurt.
Record what you have been told. Use the child’s own word as far as possible.
Then tell someone appropriate what you suspect. Check the organisation procedures. This person will refer the concern to children’s services (social care) or the police. Some organisations have child protection procedure that require you to make the referral yourself.
What are you must not do when dealing with an abuse disclosure?
You are not expected to investigate what the child us telling you. The children’s service and the police will deal with it.
Do not conduct a full interview with the child.
Do not promise the child that you whatever it has been said a secret.
Now that you suspect that an abuse has happened, what should you do?
Consider the urgency of the situation:
Do you need to call the emergency services such as an ambulance?
Does the child need urgent medical attention? Ring 999
Call the police 999 if you think that:
A crime is being committed or likely to be committed in the near future?
The child is at risk because they have been left alone at home.
Etc.
In all cases of child abuse, you must contact children’s services (social care) whether or not the police is involved.
The contact point for children’s services (social care) cases will be the number to ring if you want to make a referral for social care to investigate.
The child protection unit (local safeguarding children board) in your area. You can ring them for advice if you are unsure whether your concerns should be referred to social care for investigation
Social care emergency duty team for calls outside office hours.
In all cases of child abuse or neglect you must contact children’s services whether or not the police are also involved. NEVER DELAY.
Time is vital. In certain organisations it is procedure to report to a manager or other named person who will then decide what action should be taken. If that person is unavailable for any reason, please do not allow this to delay a referral.
How to record your concerns?
Correct records are essential.
Always make clear the entries that are facts and which ones contain opinion or speculation on your part.
Records must be: Legible Dated Signed Relevant Complete Contemporaneous Stored safely Kept confidential - unless you can justify sharing them eg. In a child protection case
The LSCB may have given guidance on when information can be shared without the consent of those with parental responsibility. Agencies may have their own guidelines on how records should be written.
What does contemporaneous mean?
This means they should be written at the time of the incidents they describe or within a reasonable time afterwards. The word reasonable is not defined but it may be apparent when a time is not reasonable. Ex. It’s not reasonable to write up record a fortnight after you get back from holiday.
Recording incidents
Agencies and organisations have their own rules about the types of records that must be kept and you must be clear about what is required from you.
Records are vital in cases of child protection.
Records may be seen by your management or may be needed by children’s services or the police if the case is to be investigated properly. Records may be required by a person who takes over from you in the work with the child.
What will children’s services (social care) do after my referral?
They will gathered enough information to enable them to decide what their immediate actions ought to be:
They will contact the child’s health visitor, school nurse, GP, school and often people concerned with the child or family.
Check whether there has been concern in the past that meant that the child was noted to be at risk. A child protection conference may have decided that a child protection plan was required.
Where a possible crime is committed they will discuss the referral with the police and agree a joint strategy for investigating the concern
They may visit the family and see the child.
They may organise an examination by a consultant paediatrician if this is required.
There are many common concerns that people have about referring to the children’s services
Am I doing the right thing?
The parent or carer will know who has reported the concern
Nothing will be done
Children will be taken away
It would not happen in this family
It will upset my relationship with the family
The parents have not given consent for me to pass on the information.
Clarifying what a child has said
Ask questions to establish exactly what is being said: if a little girl says that her father plays with her fairy it means inappropriate touching or a barbie doll?
