A teaching Assistant's Guide to....
Identifying the signs of child abuse and what actions to take if a disclosure is made. This leaflet will outline the signs and symptoms of the various types of abuse and how you as a teaching assistant can identify and respond to a case of child abuse should a child choose to disclose information with you. The different types of abuse are:
➔ Emotional
➔ Physical
➔ Neglect
➔ Sexual If you have been alerted to a possible case of child abuse, taking the correct steps could ensure the child's ongoing safety as well as your job.
For example If a child has arrived in school with a bruise on his head this doesn’t necessarily mean the child is being physically abused, the signs of abuse usually show through a continuing pattern or a childs explanation of an incident not quite fitting the injury. ➢ Emotional Abuse
Is the ongoing emotional maltreatment of a child, this can be due to a parent embarrassing the child, ignoring/ isolating them or trying to scare the child deliberately. This abuse can be quite difficult to identify due to there being no physical symptoms , they signs for emotional abuse usually show through the child being overly affectionate for strangers, having a distant relationship with their parents, using language which shouldn’t be in their vocabulary or struggling to control their own emotions and becoming prone to outbursts. ➢ Physical Abuse
This may be the most common form of child abuse which is detected earlyon as the child may be coming to school with
Broken bones, bruises, burns/ scalds etc.
Again though, if a child does arrive at school with a bruise this does not automatically mean they are being abused, if a recurring pattern is taking place and the child is injured a lot at home.
➢ Neglect
A child has basic needs and if those needs aren’t met with adequate attention this is classes as Neglect, neglect can be:
● Not being fed
Worried about a child? Contact our trained helpline counsellors for 24/7 help, advice and support. help@nspcc.org.uk 0808 800 5000
James Scott
● Being unclean and dirty
● Not having adequate clothing
● Not having adequate shelter
● Having a lack of supervision
A child suffering from neglect can cause serious harm to themselves
, they can be put in danger from their surroundings and is more likely to suffer from other types of abuse as well and also has a high risk of long term damage and in some cases even death. ➢ Sexual
When sexual abuse occurs with children it usually involves being forced/ persuaded to take part in sexual activities beyond their age, this can be physical or via technology such as social media/ chatrooms etc, sometimes the child may not even be aware that what is happening is abuse due to not fully understanding the situation.Sexual abuse can involve; sexual contact whether clothed or unclothed, encouraging a child to engage in a sexual activity, engaging in a sexual activity in front of a child, grooming, not taking the correct measures to prevent being exposed to sexual abuse and child
pornography.
