Children and young people
A child is anyone who has not yet reached their 18th birthday (Children Acts, 1989 and 2004). ‘Children’ therefore means ‘children and young people’ throughout. The fact that a child has reached 16 years of age, is living independently or is in further education, is a member of the armed forces, is in hospital, in prison or in a Young Offenders’ Institution, does not change his or her status as a child or entitlement to services or protection under the Children Act 1989.
Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined as:
- Protecting children from maltreatment.
- Preventing impairment of children’s health or development
- Ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care.
- Taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes (Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2018, HM Government)
Child protection is a part of safeguarding and promoting welfare. This refers to the activity that is undertaken to protect specific children who are suffering, or are at risk of suffering, significant harm.
Children in need are defined under section 17 of the Children Act 1989, as those whose vulnerability is such that they are unlikely to reach or maintain a satisfactory level of health or development, or their health and development will be significantly impaired, without the provision of services (section 17(10) of the Children Act 1989), plus those who are disabled. The critical factors to be taken into account in deciding whether a child is in need under the Children Act 1989 are:
- What will happen to the child’s health or development without services being provided; and
- The likely effect the services will have on the child’s standard of health and development.
Categories of Abuse
There are 4 categories of child abuse:
- Physical - This includes hitting, shaking, poisoning, burning or drowning, fabricated or induced illness.
- Sexual Abuse - This includes forcing or enticing a child to take part in sexual activities; for example, inappropriate touching, rape, buggery, exposure to indecent images, or encouraging sexualised behaviour.
- Emotional Abuse - This includes persistent ill treatment of a child which affects their emotional development; for example, making a child feel worthless, unloved or inadequate.
- Neglect - This includes persistent failure to meet the physical and/or psychological needs of a child; for example, failing to provide adequate food, warmth, shelter, clothing, emotional care or medical treatment. It also includes failing to provide adequate supervision and protection from physical danger which includes leaving a young child “home alone”.
Reasons for concerns where maltreatment or abuse could be considered include:
- A child clearly alleges abuse.
- A child has an injury not consistent with the event reported as causing it.
- A pre-mobile child has an injury without clear accidental explanation.
- A third party makes a credible allegation of abuse.
- Concerns regarding sexual abuse even though there is no direct allegation.
- Concerns about a child living with or having contact with a person posing a risk.
- Neglect
- Abandonment
- Child refused urgent medical treatment.
- Emotional abuse
- Female Genital Mutilation and forced marriage.
- Child at risk of sexual exploitation
- Children whose parents/carers have mental health problems.
- Children who are pregnant
- Domestic abuse
- Children whose parents/carers are substance misusers.
- Children with disabilities
- Bullying at home or at school, including via computers or mobile phones
- Fabricated/induced illness.
- Children from abroad – not with their parents
- Parents/carers who are hostile and uncooperative in your attempts to treat their child/ren.
It is good practice to be open and honest with parents/caregivers about any concerns, the possible need for a referral, and information sharing between agencies. However, an inability to inform parents and/or cares should not prevent a referral being made. There are some rare cases where it will not be appropriate to discuss concerns with parents/caregivers before referral. In such situations, the timing of contact with parents/caregivers will be agreed with children's social care and/or the police once the referral has been made.
Situations where it would not be appropriate to inform family members prior to referral include where:
- Discussion would put a child at risk of significant harm.
- There is evidence to suggest that involving the parents/caregivers would impede the police investigation and/or children's social care enquiry.
- Sexual abuse is suspected.
- Fabricated or induced illness is suspected.
- Discussion would place one parent at risk of harm e.g., in cases of domestic abuse.
Adults at Risk
The Care Act 2014 defines adult safeguarding as protecting an adult’s right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect.
It is about people and organisations working together to prevent and stop both the risks and experience of abuse and or neglect.
Safeguarding balances, the right to be safe with the right to make informed choices, while at the same time making sure that the adult’s wellbeing is promoted including, taking into consideration their views, wishes, feelings and beliefs in deciding on any action.
We need to ensure that adults at risk due to health needs, social care needs, or disabilities are able to live in their community free of abuse or neglect.
The Care Act safeguarding duties Section 42 (1) apply to an adult where there is reasonable cause to suspect:
- has needs for care and support (whether or not the local authority is meeting any of those needs) and.
- is experiencing, or at risk of, abuse and neglect and.
- as a result of those care and support needs is unable to protect themselves from either the risk of, or the experience of abuse or neglect.
It is key to remember that:
- Anyone can be an abuser. Abusers can be family members, partners, friends, neighbours, people who work or volunteer in health or social care services, or strangers.
- Abuse can happen anywhere. It can happen at home, at work, in a nursing or residential home, in hospital and is usually carried out by a person in trust to the individual
- Abuse can happen once, a few times or lots of times. It can be deliberate or unintentional. It might be the result of a lack of training, knowledge or understanding or as a result of non-paid carer breakdown (carer stress)
Categories of Abuse
The following are forms of adult abuse within the Care Act:
- Physical - Hitting, slapping, pushing, kicking, misuse of medication, restraint, or inappropriate sanctions.
- Sexual - Rape and sexual assault or sexual acts to which the adult at risk has not consented, or could not consent, or was pressured into consenting.
- Psychological - Emotional abuse, threats of harm or abandonment, deprivation of contact, humiliation, blaming, controlling, intimidation, coercion, harassment, verbal abuse, isolation or withdrawal from services or supportive networks.
- Financial or material - Theft, fraud, exploitation, pressure in connection with wills, property or inheritance or financial transactions, or the misuse or misappropriation of property, possessions or benefits
- Neglect and acts of omission - Ignoring medical or physical care needs, failure to provide access to appropriate health, social care or educational services, the withholding of the necessities of life, such as medication, adequate nutrition and heating.
- Discriminatory - Racist, sexist, that based on a person’s disability, and other forms of harassment, slurs or similar treatment.
- Hate crime – Hate crimes and incidents are taken to mean any crime or incident where the perpetrator’s hostility or prejudice against an identifiable group of people a factor in is determining who is victimised. A person may be targeted because of hostility or prejudice towards that person’s: disability, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation or transgender identity. The crime can be committed against a person or property and a victim does not have to be a member of the group at which the hostility is targeted. In fact, anyone could be a victim of a hate crime.
- Mate crime – is similar to hate crime other than a perpetrator purports to be a friend or mate of the victim.
- Organisational– including neglect and poor care practice within an institution or specific care setting such as a hospital or care home, for example or in relation to care provided in one’s own home. This may range from one off incidents to ongoing ill-treatment. It can be through neglect or poor professional practice as a result of the structure, policies, processes and practice within an organisation.
- Self-Neglect this covers a wide range of behaviour neglecting to care for one’s personal hygiene, health or surroundings and includes behaviour such as hoarding.
- Modern slavery encompasses slavery, human trafficking, forced labour and domestic servitude. Slave masters use whatever means they have at their disposal to coerce, deceive and force individuals into a life of abuse, servitude and inhumane treatment.
- Domestic Abuse including psychological, physical, sexual, financial, emotional and so-called honour-based violence.
