This training document provides guidance for protecting disabled and SEN children in schools. It aims to help participants identify abuse risk factors, recognize abuse indicators, and confidently manage child protection concerns involving these children. Specific topics covered include defining disability and abuse types, explaining increased vulnerability, discussing communication barriers, and providing tools and reporting procedures to support safeguarding. The overall goal is to bring the entire school community together to protect children.

1. Training for Staff to Protect Disabled
and SEN Children in Schools
Ann Raymond
Director
The CPSC Ltd UK
annraymond@thecpsc.com
Riyadh
3 February 2014
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2. The aim of today’s training
This training will enable participants to:
• identify the factors that lead to an increased
risk of abuse
• be alert to indicators of abuse
• recognise the importance of direct and
effective communication with children
• be more confident in their ability to manage
child protection concerns involving disabled
and SEN children
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3. Definitions
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4. Disability and SEN includes
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Sensory impairment
Physical impairment
Learning disability
Autistic spectrum disorders
Mental health needs
Behavioural needs
Profound and multiple disabilities
Chronic health conditions, e.g. diabetes,
respiratory illnesses
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5. Types of abuse
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Physical
Emotional
Sexual
Neglect
o International research suggests around 10% of children
are abused
o Abuse is the primary cause of at least one child
death each week in England
o Disabled children are 3 times more likely to be abused
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6. Definitions of Abuse
• Emotional: persistent
emotional maltreatment
leading to persistent
adverse effects on the
child’s emotional
development
• Physical: includes
hitting, burning,
poisoning, drowning,
shaking, suffocating
• Sexual: includes forcing
or enticing a child to take
part in sexual activities,
penetrative or non
penetrative, contact or
non contact
• Neglect: persistent failure
to meet a child’s basic
physical or psychological
needs, likely to result in
serious impairment of
health or development
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7. Some specific examples
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8. Increased Vulnerability
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9. Why disabled children are more
vulnerable to abuse and neglect
• Fewer contacts and trusted adults to confide in
outside the family
• Reliance on physical care makes it more difficult
to set the boundaries of appropriate touching
• Intellectual and physical limitations may make it
impossible to resist abuse, say No or run away
• Lack of words, signs or symbols to resist, avoid or
disclose abuse, fear and distrust
• Over use of physical responses to challenging
behaviour
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10. continued
• Regular truancy, absences or exclusion from
school…
• Over protection, leading to a limited lifestyle
• Failure to administer medication or keep medical
appointments
• Acceptance of different thresholds because the
child is difficult to manage
• A reluctance to challenge parents and carers
• Lack of teaching and opportunities to learn risk
management and develop resilience
• Limited or inadequate sex and relationships
education
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11. And some myths
• No-one would abuse a really vulnerable child
• Women don’t abuse children – and most staff
for special needs children are female
• Disabled children are asexual – child sex
offenders aren’t interested in them
• These children are well supervised – abusers
can’t get to them
• These children are more likely to make up
stories
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12. Indicators of abuse
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13. Signs to Watch for
• Changes in behaviour, perhaps from outgoing to
withdrawn, or quiet to aggressive
• Indications that the child is in pain or discomfort
• Distress during intimate care
• Lack of essential enabling equipment (for mobility,
communication etc)
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Bruises, cuts, burns, sickness, lethargy
Stealing food
Comfort eating
Anxiety around certain individuals
The behaviour of an adult
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14. Who Abuses Children?
• A family member
• A family friend or neighbour
• Another older child, including siblings (up to 30% of
sexual abuse in England is committed by under 18s)
• A trusted adult such as a teacher, club leader,
sports coach, religious leader or child minder
• A stranger
• Online sex offenders
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15. Help to Keep Children Safe Online
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16. Online Risks and Rewards
Disabled and SEN children all over the world
use technology to find information, make
friends, play games and have fun. But we
know that sex offenders use social media and
chat rooms to find vulnerable children.
Children need to be taught how to use
technology safely
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17. The Risks of Communication
Technology
• Random exposure to inappropriate material
• Cyber bullying
• Children making and distributing inappropriate
and indecent images
• Being coerced, tricked or forced into sexual
conversations or sexual acts which may be filmed
and distributed
• Offline meetings with adults who pose a risk
• Sex offenders are prolific users of social media
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18. Keeping Children Safe Online
Tips for Parents
• Try to put computers in the family room where you will be able to
supervise your child
• Explain to children that most people are kind but sometimes people
online are unkind, or are not who they say they are
• Investigate whether you can add ‘parental controls’ or filtering
software to the devices your child uses
• Explain what cyberbullying is and impress on your child that
sending hurtful messages can be serious
• Encourage your child to let you know if anything happens online
that worries or upsets them
• Remind children not to give their name, address or other private
details to people they meet online without your permission
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19. Signs of Worrying Online
Behaviour
• Child’s internet use becomes obsessive or they
lose interest in their schoolwork or friends
• They show fear or discomfort when their
mobile phone rings
• They become overly possessive of their
mobile/tablet/computer, as though they have
something to hide
• They are secretive about their online activity
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20. The School’s Infrastructure
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21. Schools should Develop
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A child protection policy
Nominated champion for child protection
Training for staff
A method of recording concerns
Guidance about physical contact, including intimate
care
• Lessons to help children understand and manage risks
• Lessons to help children use technology safely
• Procedures for reporting concerns to the correct
department
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22. Include in your Policy
• A statement expressing the school’s desire to protect children
• A quote from legislation about children’s right to safety and
protection
• The name of the nominated child protection person
• Your definitions of abuse and neglect
• Indicators of abuse and neglect
• Acknowledgement of the additional vulnerability of disabled
and SEN children
• Procedures for staff to follow if they are worried about a child
• How you try to ensure the staff are safe to work with children
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23. continued
• Expectations of staff conduct towards children
• A form for staff to record any worries about a child
• How confidential information will be stored and
managed
• How you help children to keep themselves safe
• How you will help parents to understand their child’s
needs
• Who the school will refer serious cases to
• The Saudi Child Helpline number
• Hospital and other important telephone numbers
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24. Reporting, Recording
and Referral Systems
• Impress on all staff the need to report all
concerns
• Include a space to record the child’s disability or
special need, and communication support needs
on your record of concern form
• Ensure lower level concerns are also recorded, as
they often contribute valuable information about
a child’s circumstances
• When making a referral about possible abuse,
provide all relevant information about the child’s
disability and how it impacts on their daily life
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25. The Importance of
Protective Communication
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26. Barriers to Effective
Communication
• Disinterest – Its nothing to do with me
• Embarrassment – I can’t talk about anything
sexual!
• Confusion– I’ve not been trained to deal with this
• Lack of time – I’m too busy
• Lack of language resources
• Sanctity of family life - I shouldn’t interfere
• Lack of privacy – a child needs to speak
confidentially
• Fear of the abuser – I might get hurt
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27. Supporting Effective
Communication
• Believing that child abuse does happen to
disabled and SEN children
• Adults who want to listen
• A private space for talking
• Teaching signs, symbols and simple vocabulary
to empower children to tell what is happening
to them
• Technological communication aids
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28. Try communicating these
sentences without speech
• My dad hit me really hard and he made me
cry
• I am afraid when I am left on my own in the
house in the dark
• The taxi driver said rude things to me. He
wants me to kiss him
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29. The following examples are from a free
online directory of symbols called
‘How it is’ available from
http://www.nspcc.org.uk/Inform/applications/HowItIs/index.asp
(please note the symbols shown here were developed for the UK
and some may not be appropriate in other cultures)
The online directory also includes symbols for intimate parts of the body
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30. I have the right to be safe
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31. I can do it myself thanks
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32. STOP DOING THAT.
I DON’T LIKE IT!!
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33. I’m worried. Can I talk to you?
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34. Someone has hurt me
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35. Bringing the School
Community Together
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36. Help Staff to Understand
• Ensure that reasons for the increased risk of
abuse for disabled children and young people,
and possible indicators, are highlighted in training
• Devise activities to help staff to understand the
barriers faced by some children to disclosing
concerns: e.g. ask them to convey a sentence to a
partner without speaking
• Provide staff with relevant information regarding
the effects of a child’s medical condition and
medication
• Find specialist training resources.
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37. Help Disabled Children to
Keep Themselves Safe
• Teach children that no-one has the right to
hurt them
• Provide accessible confidential support
materials, e.g. the Saudi Child help line
number, posters, leaflets, books, software
• Routinely involve all pupils in consultation
processes to help them develop confidence
and self esteem
• Ask the child for his/her views about personal
and intimate care
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38. Help Parents to Help
Their Children
• Explain to parents what child protection is all
about
• Agree physical contact and personal care
arrangements with parents and children
• Understand the stress a parent may face, but be
aware of the risks of condoning parenting
standards you would not accept for a non
disabled child
• Put together a support directory for parents to
signpost them to avenues of advice and support,
including websites and online forums
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39. Teachers are Important!
“I never told anyone what went on, how violent my dad was,
how I didn’t change into pyjamas when I went to bed on a
Saturday night because he would come in drunk and my
mum and I would have to run into the street.
I never told anyone about the knots in my stomach as I
heard him hitting her and felt so useless, so small.
But I know my teacher understood. Her kindness and
understanding kept me going, her classroom was my
sanctuary. I never told her, she just knew.
That’s what teachers do.”
(A teenager’s reflections on a violent childhood. From The Child Protection and
Safeguarding Handbook for Schools. Ann Raymond. 2013)
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40. Thank you for your time today and
your commitment to making life safer
for disabled and SEN children.
Enjoy the rest of the conference
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