Safeguarding: Bullying and Young People

A. Explain the importance of safeguarding children and young people. It is important to Safeguard children and young people because it ensures children’s welfare are protected without this protection their future could negatively be affected. Safeguarding ensures children are protected from abuse and neglect, which ensure their health and development is not impaired. It ensures that children are growing up in a safe environment . Their health and development could be impaired as its possible they could withdraw from family and peers which would affect them emotionally and also developmentally fall behind with educational milestones (if school is missed). Children need a safe environment to grow up in free from abuse and neglect. Parents, teachers and professionals are there to be approachable and accessible if needed, when/if any problem or concerns were to arise. This is all crucial in a child’s upbringing as the care they receive through their childhood will contribute to the success of the child’s ability to reach their full potential into adulthood.

B. Explain the importance of a child and young person centred approach. The importance of a child centred approach is to include seeing and keeping a child focused through difficulties they could be experiencing. Listening and ascertaining a child’s wishes and feelings will be important for the child. It is also important that the professional close to the child understands their daily lives and what they might be experiencing, no matter how hard it could be for the adult to hear. It is important to use a centred approach when safeguarding children. As this will give you the first hand opinion and facts from the child including feelings and wishes about their current situation and their future. This will make the organisations response more accurate and appropriate to meet the specific needs of the child or young person. It is important therefore to develop a trusting relationship with the child or young person as this will make it easier to discuss their wishes and concerns, which will give the professionals the opportunity to involve the child or young person where possible in decision making about current intervention if necessary and any future action, as ‘the unknown’ will undoubtedly be a worry to the child so hopefully making them aware step by step will make the process less daunting and give a more accurate diagnosis to the problem.

C. Explain what is meant by partnership working in the context of safeguarding. 'Partnership' within the context of safeguarding is achieving better outcomes through improved service delivery. Partnership working has come a long way in recent years. There is now a consensus that effective partnership working is essential in order to design, develop and deliver personal services for those requiring support and assistance to optimise their independence and happiness. The most important features of an effective partnership are engaging the right people and ensuring they function as a genuine team. Partnerships within the context of safeguarding is to facilitate a co-ordinated service; identify and respond to gaps in provision;enable service providers to be more responsive to the needs and views of users and their families. Partnership means everyone developing strong partnership links with relevant agencies and within the community and to be committed to sharing and accessing relevant information across appropriate agencies.

D.Explain policies and procedures that are in place to protect children and young people and adults who work with them. Policies and procedures are put in place to protect children and young people, there are also policies put in place to protect the adults working with them. Child Protection policy, qualities policy, PSHE and citizenship policy safeguarding policy and anti-bullying policy. Strategies from all of these policies are combined in all areas of the school day to protect all who work and learn in...