Resources to support safeguarding practice with young people,
for use by all those working with and caring for young people.
These resources and materials have been developed from research and partnership work with young people, foster carers, and social care and allied professionals.
They are designed for use by all those working with and caring for young people. If that’s you, regardless of your role you may find them useful.
They share messages from young people with experiences of exploitation and harm, about how they experience safeguarding and support. The messages are also from those working with and caring for young people, about support needed and some of the challenges involved in safeguarding.
All the resources are designed as reflective tools to help you ‘check your thinking’ about key issues in safeguarding young people from exploitation, harms and other abuses, such as: assessing and managing risk, responding to young people, multi-agency practice, the importance of language and child-centred approaches.
Some of the messages may not be ‘new’.
That’s why we call them resources to ‘check your thinking’.
They may align with how you think already, they may present some challenges.
You can use the materials to help support you in your work by reflecting on your own understandings and practices.
You can use them with the people you work with to facilitate shared learning and discussion.
The part you’ll play in safeguarding and supporting a young person depends on your role and your relationship to a young person.
Whether you be a police officer, foster carer, youth worker, social worker, health worker, or in another role – a manager or ‘frontline’ – you may find it helpful to check your thinking and understand where others might be coming from (including young people).
Risk
What do you think about risk assessments? Where is your ‘risk lens’ and the focus of concern? Do we need to think differently about risk? How do young people understand risk? What drives decision-making about risk? How can collaboration help with responses and support for young people? This short video invites you to think about risk, managing risk and responses to risk.
Relationships
What does ‘relationship-based practice’ with a young person mean for your role? Are there too many relationships with professionals for young people to manage? Is it okay if a young person doesn’t get on brilliantly with you? Are short-term relationships a challenge… who for? This short video invites you to think about relationships and relationship-based practice with young people.
Supporting young people
What ‘works’ when supporting young people? How might support might be experienced by young people? Are there problems with some of the responses to exploitation? What might a ‘child-centred’ approach look like? What outcomes are expected for young people? This short video invites you to think about supporting and support for young people.
Mindful language
Is the power of language over or under-rated? What ‘work words’ are used with and about young people? What are their potential consequences? Does what we say shape the problems we are responding to? Why might this matter? This short video invites you to think about why being conscious of what we say and write is important for safeguarding young people.
‘Going missing’?
‘…that’s all great but what does that look like in practice?’ This short video invites you to think about responses and support for young people who are running away and ‘going missing’, bringing together some of the message from other topics explored.