Children At Risk Of Abuse And Critically Examine Its Impact For Safeguarding Children

There are many procedures, policies, legislations and statutory guidance to support the safety and welfare of children and young people. They have been developed over many years to recognise the rights of children and young people, protect vulnerable children and young people and after independent inquiries of fatal abuse cases, to recognise the failures of multi agencies and support services.

The definition of child protection is the process of protecting individual children identified as either suffering, or likely to suffer, significant harm because of abuse or neglect. The term child protection is increasingly being replaced by ‘safeguarding’. Safeguarding has been described as; ‘a broader definition of the range of ways in which adults and professionals working with children need to act when dealing with child protection issues’(Ref: www.education.gov.uk/) Safeguarding refers to the prevention of harm to children and child protection is used more when dealing with policies and procedures following an event of suspected harm.

This assignment will discuss “Amie’s case study” and will explore some of the risks that she is exposed too and how they can have effect on her welfare. I will start by defining what is child safeguarding centred on the legislation framework of the Children Act 2004. I will also look on what is abuse and naming types of abuse, and establish the knowledge and understanding of Assessment Framework in Amie’s case. I will also look at multi-professional strategies that can provide help and protect Amie and her siblings according to legal legislation.

Safeguarding Policy Policy Statement HIT Training Ltd is strongly committed to practices that protect children, young people and vulnerable adults from abuse, neglect or significant harm. Staffs recognise and accept their responsibility to develop the awareness of the risks and issues involved in safeguarding. The company also recognises that it has a responsibility to protect staff from unfounded allegations of abuse. The company is committed to working with existing local safeguarding or adult safeguarding Boards and other health and social care partnerships to ensure the safeguarding of its learners. The company will ensure it has one nominated person the Operations Director

Practitioners and professionals working with children on a daily basis are in a good position to notice changes in a child's or young person’s behaviour which may be a possible sign of abuse. Children or young people may also confide in practitioners or allege that abuse has taken place.

In recent times safeguarding of children has once again come under spotlight with cases such as Madline McKan and the horrific murders of Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells. Prior to this the Children’s act of 1984 and updated 2004 version highlighted that all professionals have an obligation to report suspected abuse. There was a public inquiry in 2000 to address the failure of the law which was not upholding the protection of vulnerable children. There was changes to the legislation and the government set up The Every Child Maters (ECM) initiative. This works in line with current legislation Working Together to Safeguard Children 2006 Act. This Act authorised guidance on how organisations and individuals should work together to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people in accordance with the Children Act 1989 and the Children Act 2004. All organisations must have the succeeding policies and procedures:

M1- Discuss how policies and procedures help children, young people and their families whilst the child is being looked after.

Protecting children from maltreatment also preventing impairment of children’s health or development. This ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care. Taking action to enable all children and young people to have the best outcomes.

The UK Government has defined the term ‘safeguarding children’ as: ‘The process of protecting children from abuse or neglect, preventing impairment of their health and development, and ensuring they are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care that enables children to have optimum life chances and enter adulthood successfully.’

Guidelines: Working Together to Safeguard Children 2010, What to do if you’re worried that a child is being abused 2006,

One of the most important factors that affect child development is the relationship of the child with their primary caregiver. This is a tenet of developmental psychology known as attachment theory. John Bowlby, the creator of this theory, wanted to examine how early childhood experiences influence personality development. Attachment theory specifically examines infant’s reactions to being separated from their primary caregiver. Bowlby hypothesized that the differences in how children react to these situations demonstrates basic behavioral differences in infancy that will have consequences for later social and emotional development.

An explanation of child protection within the wider concept of safeguarding children and young people.

The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act of 1974 was originally created to protect a target population of children, under the age of 18, from child abuse and neglect; however, over the years this act has been amended and improved to protect a wider population, with many specific subpopulations, over the past 42 years. In the original text of the act, two specific populations are addressed with different goals: reducing the rate of child abuse in children under the age of eighteen, and improving the treatment of children who had been maltreated or neglected (National Low Income Housing Coalition, 2014). It is easy to see that this act and policies within it are aimed at protecting children specifically, yet looking only at the children,

According to Pecora, Sanders, Wilson, English, Puckett & Rudlang-Perman (2014), “Every year in the USA, about 695,000 unique children are confirmed as victims of child maltreatment (US Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s Bureau 2011) (p. 321). Such startling statistics suggest that child abuse is not just a public health issue; it is an epidemic. However, research reveals that prevention is possible through a collaborative effort made by parents, schools, the government, social services, and the

Social worker in charge of particular cases of a suspected child maltreatment must initially complete a core assessment of the child and his family's situation. This process is crucial for planning of an intervention with a positive outcome (Parker and Bradley, 2003). In the assessment, under the ecological model, the practitioner must recognise different systems, such as the child, family or neighbours, and surrounding environments. If the assessment asserts that a child fits a category of a child in need within these systems, defined in the Children Act 1989 as a child 'unlikely to achieve or maintain (...) a reasonable standard of health or development without the provision for him of services by a local authority' (Children Act, 1989, section 17), the social worker must organise a form of an intervention. He or she must assess which part of the environment requires a change, and where are stress factors negatively affecting the child and the family. At the same time, the child should be given resources, and a certain level of autonomy, and to be treated as the centre of the assessment (Teater, 2010). In the ecological perspective, it might be easier for the social worker to relate to the adults' needs (Davies and Davies, 2011). However, the focus of the assessment should be child-centred, protecting the child's health and wellbeing (Every Child Matters, 2004)(Department of Education, 2011).