Safeguarding - Annexure F | Polstead Preschool

Annexure F. Specific forms of abuse and safeguarding issues

This information is taken from KCSIE and whilst it may not always be relevant for early years children it is important to have an understanding of wider safeguarding issues that may affect families and communities.

Child abduction and community safety incidents

Child abduction is the unauthorised removal or retention of a minor from a parent or anyone with legal responsibility for the child. Child abduction can be committed by parents or other family members; by people known but not related to the victim (such as neighbours, friends and acquaintances); and by strangers. Other community safety incidents in the vicinity of a setting can raise concerns amongst children and parents, for example, people loitering nearby or unknown adults engaging children in conversation. As children get older and are granted more independence (for example, as they start walking to school on their own) it is mportant they are given practical advice on how to keep themselves safe. It is important that lessons focus on building children’s confidence and abilities rather than simply warning them about all strangers.

Further information is available at: www.actionagainstabduction.org/ and www.clevernevergoes.org/.

Child criminal exploitation (CCE) and child sexual exploitation (CSE)

We know that different forms of harm often overlap, and that perpetrators may subject children and young people to multiple forms of abuse, such as criminal exploitation (including county lines) and sexual exploitation. In some cases, the exploitation or abuse will be in exchange for something the victim needs or wants (for example, money, gifts or affection), and/or will be to the financial benefit or other advantage, such as increased status, of the perpetrator or facilitator. Children can be exploited by adult males or females, as individuals or groups. They may also be exploited by other children, who themselves may be experiencing exploitation - where this is the case, it is important that the child perpetrator is also recognised as a victim. Whilst the age of the child may be a contributing factor for an imbalance of power, there are a range of other factors that could make a child more vulnerable to exploitation, including, sexual identity, cognitive ability, learning difficulties, communication ability, physical strength, status, and access to economic or other resources. Some of the following can be indicators of both child criminal and sexual exploitation where children:

• appear with unexplained gifts, money or new possessions
• associate with other children involved in exploitation
• suffer from changes in emotional well-being
• misuse alcohol and other drugs
• go missing for periods of time or regularly come home late, and
regularly miss school or education or do not take part in education.

Children who have been exploited will need additional support to help keep them in education. Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) can be a one-off occurrence or a series of incidents over time and range from opportunistic to complex organised abuse. It can involve force and/or enticement-based methods of compliance and may, or may not, be accompanied by violence or threats of violence. Some additional specific indicators that may be present in CSE are children who:

have older boyfriends or girlfriends; and
suffer from sexually transmitted infections, display sexual behaviours beyond expected sexual development or become pregnant.

Further information on signs of a child’s involvement in sexual exploitation is available in Home Office guidance:

Child sexual exploitation: guide for practitioners
A full list of indicators can be found here: Child Sexual Exploitation - Oxfordshire
Safeguarding Children Partnership (OCSP.org.uk)

County lines

County lines is a term used to describe gangs and organised criminal networks involved in exporting illegal drugs using dedicated mobile phone lines or other form
of “deal line”. This activity can happen locally as well as across the UK - no specified
distance of travel is required. Children and vulnerable adults are exploited to move,
store and sell drugs and money. Offenders will often use coercion, intimidation,
violence (including sexual violence) and weapons to ensure compliance of victims.

Children can be targeted and recruited into county lines in a number of locations
including any type of schools (including special schools), further and higher
educational institutions, pupil referral units, children’s homes and care homes.

Children are also increasingly being targeted and recruited online using social
media. Children can easily become trapped by this type of exploitation as county
lines gangs can manufacture drug debts which need to be worked off or threaten
serious violence and kidnap towards victims (and their families) if they attempt to
leave the county lines network. A number of the indicators for CCE and CSE as
detailed above may be applicable to where children are involved in county lines.

Some additional specific indicators that may be present where a child is criminally exploited through involvement in county lines are children who:

Further information on the signs of a child’s involvement in county lines is available in guidance published by
the Home Office and The Children's Society County Lines Toolkit For Professionals.

Children and the court system

Children are sometimes required to give evidence in criminal courts, either for crimes
committed against them or for crimes they have witnessed. There are two age
appropriate guides to support children 5-11-year olds and 12-17 year olds. The
guides explain each step of the process, support and special measures that are
available. There are diagrams illustrating the courtroom structure and the use of
video links is explained. Making child arrangements via the family courts following
separation can be stressful and entrench conflict in families. This can be stressful for
children. The Ministry of Justice has launched an online child arrangements
information tool with clear and concise information on the dispute resolution service.

This may be useful for some parents and carers.

Consent

Consent is about having the freedom and capacity to choose. Consent to sexual
activity may be given to one sort of sexual activity but not another, e.g. to vaginal but
not anal sex or penetration with conditions, such as wearing a condom. Consent can
be withdrawn at any time during sexual activity and each time activity occurs.

Someone consents to vaginal, anal or oral penetration only if s/he agrees by choice
to that penetration and has the freedom and capacity to make that choice.

Further information about consent can be found here: https://rapecrisis.org.uk/get-informed/about-sexual-violence/sexual-consent/

Children who are absent from education

Good attendance promotes good outcomes for children. In a small minority of cases,
good attendance practice may also lead to the earlier identification of more serious
concerns for a child or family and may have a vital part to play in keeping a child or
other family members safe from harm.

All children, regardless of their circumstances and the setting they are in, are entitled
to an education which is suitable to their age, ability, aptitude, and any special
educational needs they may have. Local authorities have a duty to establish, as far
as it is possible to do so, the identity of children of compulsory school age who are
absent from education in their area.

Children being absent from education for prolonged periods and/or on repeat
occasions can act as a vital warning sign to a range of safeguarding issues including
neglect, child sexual and child criminal exploitation - particularly county lines. It may
also be a sign in very young children of parental mental health issues.

Schools and settings should put in place appropriate safeguarding policies,
procedures and responses for children who are absent from education, particularly
on repeat occasions. It is essential that all staff are alert to signs to look out for and
the individual triggers to be aware of when considering the risks of potential
safeguarding concerns such as travelling to conflict zones, FGM and forced
marriage.

whygoodattendanceisimportant.pdf (oxfordshire.gov.uk)

Poster Layout 1 (oxfordshire.gov.uk)

For Schools

All schools must inform their local authority of any pupil who is going to be deleted from the admission register where they:

have been taken out of school by their parents and are being educated outside the school system e.g. home education
have ceased to attend school and no longer live within reasonable distance of the school at which they are registered
have been certified by an appropriate medical practitioner as unlikely to be in a fit state of health to attend school before ceasing to be of compulsory school age, and neither he/she nor his/her parent has indicated the intention to continue to attend the school after ceasing to be of compulsory school age
are in custody for a period of more than four months due to a final court order and the provider does not reasonably believe they will be returning to the school at the end of the period have been permanently excluded

The local authority must be notified when a school is to delete a pupil from its
register under the above circumstances. Schools should contact the Admissions
Team: Tel: 01865 815175. This should be done as soon as the grounds for deletion
are met, but no later than deleting the pupil’s name from the register. It is essential
that schools comply with this duty, so that local authorities can, as part of their duty
to identify children of compulsory school age who are missing education, follow up
with any child who might be in danger of not receiving an education and who might
be at risk of abuse or neglect.

All schools must inform the local authority of any pupil who fails to attend school
regularly or has been absent without the school’s permission for a continuous period
of 10 school days or more, at such intervals as are agreed between the school and
the local authority (or in default of such agreement, at intervals determined by the
Secretary of State).

Settings who care for children who are not yet statutory school age need to be alert
to children who have poor attendance or who have not started at the Early Years
setting without explanation. If you have concerns about poor or unexplained
attendance discuss with the family and, with the family’s consent, complete a
Strengths and Needs Form and contact your LCSS locality worker, or in urgent
cases MASH.

Children with family members in prison

Approximately 200,000 children in England and Wales have a parent sent to prison
each year. These children are at risk of poor outcomes including poverty, stigma,
isolation, and poor mental health. The National Information Centre on children of
offenders NICCO provides information designed to support professionals working
with offenders and their children to help mitigate negative consequences for these
children. Home - Children Heard and Seen support children, young people and their
families who are impacted by parental imprisonment.

Domestic abuse

The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 received Royal Assent on 29 April 2021. The Act introduced the first ever statutory definition of domestic abuse and recognises the impact of domestic abuse on children, as victims in their own right, if they see, hear or experience the effects of abuse. The statutory definition of domestic abuse ensures that different types of relationships are captured, including ex-partners and family members. The definition captures a range of different abusive behaviours, including physical, emotional and economic abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour. Under the statutory definition, both the person who is carrying out the behaviour and the person to whom the behaviour is directed towards must be aged 16 or over and they must be “personally connected” (as defined in section 2 of the 2021 Act).

Types of domestic abuse include intimate partner violence, abuse by family members, teenage relationship abuse and child to parent abuse. Anyone can be a victim of domestic abuse, regardless of sexual identity, age, ethnicity, socio-economic status, sexuality or background and domestic abuse can take place inside or outside of the home.

All children can witness and be adversely affected by domestic abuse in the context of their home life where domestic abuse occurs between family members. Experiencing domestic abuse can have a serious, long lasting emotional and psychological impact on children. In some cases, a child may blame themselves for the abuse or may have had to leave the family home as a result.

Young people can also experience domestic abuse within their own intimate relationships. This form of child-on-child abuse is sometimes referred to as ‘teenage relationship abuse’. Depending on the age of the young people, this may not be recognised in law under the statutory definition of ‘domestic abuse’ (if one or both parties are under 16). However, as with any child under 18, where there are concerns about safety or welfare, child safeguarding procedures should be followed and both young victims and young perpetrators should be offered support.

Refuge runs the National Domestic Abuse Helpline, which can be called free of charge and in confidence, 24 hours a day on 0808 2000 247.

Its website provides guidance and support for potential victims, as well as those who are worried about friends and loved ones. It also has a form through which a safe time from the team for a call can be booked.

https://refuge.org.uk/what-is-domestic-abuse

Additional advice on identifying children who are affected by domestic abuse and how they can be helped is available at:

Domestic Abuse | NSPCC
Safe Young Lives: Young people and domestic abuse | SafeLives
Domestic abuse | gov.uk: specialist sources of support (includes information for adult victims, young people facing abuse in their own relationships and parents experiencing child to parent violence/abuse)
Operation Encompass (includes information on the impact of domestic abuse on children)

Drugs and Alcohol

Children can be at risk of drugs and alcohol directly and indirectly. They may be at direct risk of having access to these substances (e.g. through gangs) or indirectly because they affect family life at home through use by parents/carers, siblings, child-minders etc. Risks associated with drugs and alcohol and built into the year 5-6 curriculum in schools.

More details can be found at:

Staff members must not be under the influence of alcohol or any other substance which may affect their ability to care for children.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)

FGM comprises all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external
female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs. It is illegal in the UK and
a form of child abuse with long-lasting harmful consequences. FGM mandatory
reporting duty for teachers Section 5B of the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 (as
inserted by section 74 of the Serious Crime Act 2015) places a statutory duty upon
teachers, along with regulated health and social care professionals in England and
Wales, to report to the police where they discover (either through disclosure by the
victim or visual evidence) that FGM appears to have been carried out on a girl under
18. Those failing to report such cases may face disciplinary sanctions. It will be rare
for teachers to see visual evidence, and they should not be examining pupils or
students, but the same definition of what is meant by “to discover that an act of FGM
appears to have been carried out” is used for all professionals to whom this
mandatory reporting duty applies. Information on when and how to make a report
can be found at: Mandatory reporting of female genital mutilation procedural
information. Teachers must personally report to the police cases where they discover
that an act of FGM appears to have been carried out. Unless the teacher has good
reason not to, they should still consider and discuss any such case with the school or
college’s designated safeguarding lead (or deputy) and involve local authority
children’s social care as appropriate. The duty does not apply in relation to at risk or
suspected cases (i.e. where the teacher does not discover that an act of FGM
appears to have been carried out, either through disclosure by the victim or visual
evidence) or in cases where the woman is 18 or over. In these cases, teachers
should follow local safeguarding procedures.

Forced marriage

Forcing a person into a marriage is a crime in England and Wales. A forced marriage
is one entered into without the full and free consent of one or both parties and where
violence, threats or any other form of coercion is used to cause a person to enter into
a marriage. Threats can be physical or emotional and psychological. A lack of full
and free consent can be where a person does not consent or where they cannot
consent (if they have learning disabilities, for example). Nevertheless, some
perpetrators use perceived cultural practices to coerce a person into marriage. In
addition, since February 2023 it has also been a crime to carry out any conduct
whose purpose is to cause a child to marry before their eighteenth birthday, even if
violence, threats or another form of coercion are not used. As with the existing forced
marriage law, this applies to non-binding, unofficial ‘marriages’ as well as legal
marriages.

Fabricated or Induced Illness / Perplexing Presentation

Staff must be aware of the risk of children being abused through fabricated or
induced illness (FII). There are three main ways of the carer fabricating or inducing
illness in a child.

These are not mutually exclusive and include:

fabrication of signs and symptoms. This may include fabrication of past
medical history
fabrication of signs and symptoms and falsification of hospital charts and
records, and specimens of bodily fluids. This may also include falsification of
letters and documents
induction of illness by a variety of means

Where this is identified and considered a risk a referral will be made to the MASH for support and guidance. The setting may involve other agencies in making their assessments. That could include Health Visitor, community paediatrician, occupational therapists for example.

Gang and Youth / Serious Violence

Children and Young People who become involved in gangs are at risk of violent crime and as a result of this involvement are deemed vulnerable. Agencies and professionals have a responsibility to safeguard these children and young people and to prevent further harm both to the young person and their potential victims. Risks associated with gang activity include access to weapons (including firearms), retaliatory violence and territorial violence with other gangs, knife crime, sexual violence, and substance misuse.

Serious Violence Strategy | GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Children are also increasingly being targeted and recruited online using social media. Children can easily become trapped by this type of exploitation as county lines gangs can manufacture drug debts which need to be worked off or threaten serious violence and kidnap towards victims (and their families) if they attempt to leave the county lines network.

A number of the indicators for CSE and CCE may be applicable to where children are involved in county lines. Some additional specific indicators that may be present where a child is criminally exploited through involvement in county lines are children who:

go missing and are subsequently found in areas away from their home
have been the victim or perpetrator of serious violence (e.g. knife crime)

Faith Based Abuse

Information for those who work with children on a plan to help prevent child abuse
arising from religion or superstition National Action Plan to Tackle Abuse linked to
faith or belief

Harmful sexual behaviours (HSB)

Children’s sexual behaviour exists on a wide continuum, ranging from normal and
developmentally expected to inappropriate, problematic, abusive and violent.
Problematic, abusive and violent sexual behaviour is developmentally inappropriate
and may cause developmental damage. Consensual image sharing, especially
between older children of the same age, may require a different response. It might
not be abusive – but children still need to know it is illegal- whilst non-consensual is
illegal and abusive. The harmful sexual behaviour term has been widely adopted in
child protection. HSB can occur online and/or face-to-face and can also occur
simultaneously between the two. HSB should be considered in a child protection
context. When considering HSB, both ages and the stages of development of the
children are critical factors. Sexual behaviour between children can be considered
harmful if one of the children is much older, particularly if there is more than two
years’ difference or if one of the children is pre-pubescent and the other is not.
However, a younger child can abuse an older child, particularly if they have power
over them, for example, if the older child is disabled or smaller in stature. It is
effective safeguarding practice for the DSL (and their deputies) to have a good
understanding of HSB. This will aid in planning preventative education, implementing
preventative measures, drafting and implementing an effective child protection policy
and incorporating the approach to sexual violence and sexual harassment into the
whole school or college approach to safeguarding. HSB can, in some cases,
progress on a continuum. Addressing inappropriate behaviour can be an important
intervention that helps prevent problematic, abusive and/or violent behaviour in the
future. Children displaying HSB have often experienced their own abuse and trauma.
It is important that they are offered appropriate support.

Homelessness

Being homeless or being at risk of becoming homeless presents a real risk to a
child’s welfare. The DSL (and deputy) should be aware of contact details and referral
routes into the Local Housing Authority so they can raise/progress concerns at the
earliest opportunity. Indicators that a family may be at risk of homelessness include
household debt, rent arrears, domestic abuse and anti-social behaviour, as well as
the family being asked to leave a property. Whilst referrals and/or discussion with the
Local Housing Authority should be progressed as appropriate, and in accordance
with local procedures, this does not, and should not, replace a referral into local
authority children’s social care where a child has been harmed or is at risk of harm.
The Homelessness Reduction Act 2017 places a new legal duty on English councils
so that everyone who is homeless or at risk of homelessness will have access to
meaningful help including an assessment of their needs and circumstances, the
development of a personalised housing plan, and work to help them retain their
accommodation or find a new place to live. The following factsheets usefully
summarise the new duties: Homeless Reduction Act Factsheets
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/homelessness-reduction-bill-policy-
factsheets
The new duties shift the focus to early intervention and encourages those at risk to
seek support as soon as possible, before they are facing a homelessness crisis.

Modern slavery and the National Referral Mechanism (NRM)

Modern slavery encompasses human trafficking and slavery, servitude and forced or
compulsory labour. Exploitation can take many forms, including sexual exploitation,
forced labour, slavery, servitude, forced criminality and the removal of organs.
Further information on the signs that someone may be a victim of modern slavery,
the support available to victims and how to refer them to the NRM is available in
Statutory Guidance.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/modern-slavery-how-to-identify-and-
support-victims

Preventing radicalisation

Children may be susceptible to radicalisation. Radicalisation refers to the process by which a person comes to support terrorism
and forms of extremism. Similar to protecting children from other forms of harms and
abuse, protecting children from this risk should be a part of a setting’s safeguarding
approach.

 Radicalisation is the process of a person legitimising support for, or use of,
terrorist violence.
 Terrorism is an action that endangers or causes serious violence to a
person/people; causes serious damage to property; or seriously interferes or
disrupts an electronic system. The use or threat must be designed to
influence the government or to intimidate the public and is made for the
purpose of advancing a political, religious or ideological cause.
 Extremism is the vocal or active opposition to our fundamental values,
including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and the mutual respect
and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs. This also includes calling for the
death of members of the armed forces.
Although there is no single way of identifying whether a person is likely to be
susceptible to radicalisation into terrorism, there are factors that may indicate
concern. Specific background factors may contribute to vulnerability which are often
combined with specific influences such as family, friends or online, and with specific
needs for which an extremist or terrorist group may appear to provide an answer.
The internet and the use of social media has become a major factor in the
radicalisation of young people.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-prevent-duty-safeguarding-learners-
vulnerable-to-radicalisation/managing-risk-of-radicalisation-in-your-education-setting
As with managing other safeguarding risks, staff should be alert to changes in
children’s behaviour, or things they say which could indicate that they may need help
or protection.
It is possible to protect people from extremist ideology and intervene to prevent
those at risk of radicalisation being drawn to terrorism. Staff should use their
judgement in identifying children who might be at risk of radicalisation and act
proportionately which may include the designated safeguarding lead (or a deputy)
making a Prevent referral (see the Prevent duty).
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/making-a-referral-to-prevent

The Prevent duty

Prevent is one part of the government’s overall counter-terrorism strategy,
CONTEST. The aim of Prevent is to:
 tackle the ideological causes of terrorism
 intervene early to support people susceptible to radicalisation
 enable those who have already engaged in terrorism to disengage and
rehabilitate
Settings are expected to assess the risk of children being drawn into terrorism,
including support for extremist ideas that are part of terrorist ideology. This means
being able to demonstrate both a general understanding of the risks affecting
children and young people in the local area and a specific understanding of how to
identify individual children who may be at risk of radicalisation and what to do to
support them.

During the process of radicalisation, it is possible to intervene to prevent vulnerable
people being radicalised.
Settings should have clear procedures in place for protecting children at risk of
radicalisation. It is not necessary for settings to have distinct policies on
implementing the Prevent duty. The Prevent duty builds on existing local partnership
arrangements and early years providers should ensure that their safeguarding
arrangements consider the policies and procedures of OSCP.
Designated safeguarding leads and other senior leaders should familiarise
themselves with the revised Prevent duty guidance: for England and Wales.
The Prevent guidance refers to the importance of Prevent Awareness training to
equip staff to identify children at risk of being drawn into terrorism and to challenge
extremist ideas. Individual settings are best placed to assess the training needs of
staff in the light of their assessment of the risk to children of being drawn into
terrorism. In Oxfordshire we advise that all staff should complete the online Prevent
awareness training. Prevent duty training: Learn how to support people susceptible
to radicalisation | Prevent duty training
Settings must ensure that children are safe from terrorist and extremist material
when accessing the internet in the setting. Settings should ensure that suitable
filtering is in place. It is also important that settings teach children about online safety
more generally.
The Department for Education has also published advice for schools and childcare
providers on the Prevent duty and is intended to complement the Prevent guidance
and signposts other sources of advice and support.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/protecting-children-from-radicalisation-
the-prevent-duty
Further information and guidance are available:
Radicalisation - Oxfordshire Safeguarding Children Board (OCSP.org.uk)
Educate Against Hate https://www.educateagainsthate.com/
London Grid for Learning has also produced useful resources on Prevent (Online
Safety Resource Centre - https://lgfl.net/Safeguarding/TypesOfHarm/Prevent?s=13
Channel is a voluntary, confidential support programme which focuses on providing
support at an early stage to people who are identified as being susceptible to being
drawn into terrorism. Prevent referrals are assessed and may be passed to a multi-
agency Channel panel, which will discuss the individual referred to determine
whether they are at risk of being drawn into terrorism and consider the appropriate
support required. An individual will be required to provide their consent before any
support delivered through the programme is provided.

Sexual harassment and violence

Sexual violence and sexual harassment can occur between two children of any age
and sex. It can also occur through a group of children sexually assaulting or sexually
harassing a single child or group of children. Sexual violence refers to sexual
offences under the Sexual Offences Act 2003, including rape, assault by penetration
and sexual assault.

The following information relates to school aged children, but it is important for Early
Years staff to be aware that this is a form of abuse and the fact children can, and
sometimes do, abuse their peers in this way. Sexual harassment means ‘unwanted
conduct of a sexual nature’ that can occur online and offline. When referencing
sexual harassment, it is in the context of child on child, sexual harassment. Sexual
harassment is likely to: violate a child’s dignity, and/or make them feel intimidated,
degraded, or humiliated and/or create a hostile, offensive or sexualised environment.
Staff must challenge any form of derogatory and sexualised language or behaviour.
Staff should be vigilant to sexualised/aggressive touching/grabbing. DfE guidance
situates sexual violence, sexual harassment, and harmful sexual behaviour in the
context of developing a whole-school safeguarding culture, where sexual misconduct
is seen as unacceptable, and not 'banter' or an inevitable part of growing up.
It should be recognised that these issues are likely to occur. Schools should have
procedures in place to deal with them. Groups at particular risk include girls,
students who identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender+ (LGBT+), or are
perceived by peers to be LGBT+, and pupils with SEND so schools should provide a
safe space for these children to speak out and share their concerns with members of
staff. Pupils are protected from ‘upskirting’, bullying, homophobic, biphobic and
transphobic behaviour, racism, sexism, and other forms of discrimination. Staff
should have familiarity with the Equality Act 2010 and the Public Sector Equality
Duty (PSED), the Human Rights Act 1998 and recent reforms to the Act and how
they apply to safeguarding.
Our setting acknowledges the need to treat everyone equally, with fairness, dignity,
and respect. Any discriminatory behaviours are challenged, and children are
supported to understand how to treat others with respect. We also have a statutory
duty to report and record any of the above incidents and must record incidents
across the whole spectrum of sexual violence, sexual harassment, and harmful
sexualised behaviours and in doing so understand the scale of the problem and
make appropriate plans to reduce it.
All such incidents should be immediately reported to the Designated Safeguarding
Lead (DSL) or equivalent and managed in line with the setting’s child protection
policies. Victims of harm should be supported by the school’s pastoral system and,
and their wishes and feelings considered and that the law on child-on-child abuse is
there to protect them, not criminalise them.
The appropriate safeguarding lead person should be familiar with the full guidance
from the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS), Sharing nudes and semi-nudes:
advice for education settings working with children and young people
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sharing-nudes-and-semi-nudes-advice-
for-education-settings-working-with-children-and-young-people

So-called ‘honour’-based abuse (including Female Genital Mutilation and Forced Marriage)

So-called ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) encompasses incidents or crimes which have
been committed to protect or defend the honour of the family and/or the community,
including female genital mutilation (FGM), forced marriage, and practices such as
breast ironing. Abuse committed in the context of preserving ‘honour’ often involves
a wider network of family or community pressure and can include multiple
perpetrators. It is important to be aware of this dynamic and additional risk factors
when deciding what form of safeguarding action to take. All forms of HBA are abuse
(regardless of the motivation) and should be handled and escalated as such.
Professionals in all agencies, and individuals and groups in relevant communities,
need to be alert to the possibility of a child being at risk of HBA, or already having
suffered HBA. If staff have a concern regarding a child who might be at risk of HBA
or who has suffered from HBA, they should speak to the DSL (or deputy). As
appropriate, the designated safeguarding lead (or a deputy) will activate local
safeguarding procedures, using existing national and local protocols for multi-agency
liaison with the police and local authority children’s social care. Where FGM has
taken place, since 31 October 2015 there has been a mandatory reporting duty
placed on teachers that requires a different approach (see below). Karma Nirvana
run the national Honour Based Abuse Helpline.

Upskirting

‘Upskirting’ is where someone takes a picture under a person’s clothing (not necessarily a skirt) without their permission and or knowledge, with the intention of viewing their genitals or buttocks (with or without underwear) to obtain sexual gratification, or cause the victim humiliation, distress, or alarm. It is a criminal offence. Anyone of any gender, can be a victim. The Voyeurism (Offences) Act, which is commonly known as the Upskirting Act, came into force on 12 April 2019.

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Safeguarding - Annexure F