Safeguarding in Schools and Colleges

Safeguarding Issues for Staff in Schools and Colleges

• Staff in schools and colleges should have awareness of safeguarding issues that can put children at risk of harm.
• Behaviours linked to drug taking, alcohol misuse, missing education, serious violence, radicalisation, and sharing of nude and semi-nude images can be signs that children are at risk.
• Child-on-child abuse can happen both inside and outside of school or college and online.
• Staff should be clear about the school's or college's policy and procedures with regard to child-on-child abuse and their role in preventing and responding to it.
• Staff should speak to their designated safeguarding lead (or a deputy) if they have any concerns regarding child-on-child abuse.
• Inappropriate behaviours between children that are abusive in nature should be challenged, and downplaying certain behaviours can lead to a culture of unacceptable behaviours.
• Child-on-child abuse may include bullying, abuse in intimate personal relationships, physical abuse, sexual violence, sexual harassment, causing someone to engage in sexual activity without consent, consensual and non-consensual sharing of nude and semi-nude images and/or videos, upskirting, and initiation/hazing type violence and rituals.
• Consensual image sharing between older children of the same age may require a different response, while non-consensual is illegal and abusive.
• Staff should understand that even if there are no reports of child-on-child abuse in their schools or colleges, it does not mean it is not happening.
• Teenage relationship abuse is a type of child-on-child abuse that can happen in schools or colleges.
• UKCIS provides detailed advice about sharing of nudes and semi-nude images and videos.
• Sexual harassment can be standalone or part of a broader pattern of abuse, and it can happen both inside and outside of school or college and online.

Test your knowledge on safeguarding issues for staff in schools and colleges with this informative quiz. From child-on-child abuse to sharing of nudes and semi-nude images, this quiz covers essential topics that every staff member should be aware of. Challenge yourself and see how well you know the policies and procedures surrounding safeguarding in educational institutions. Take this quiz now and become more informed on how to keep children safe from harm.