The importance of considering the treatment and care of family pets in domestic violence risk assessments

A significant part of the health visiting role is to work with families where there is domestic violence. Pets are often regarded as members of the family and as such are additional victims in environments where domestic violence is perpetrated. This paper explores the co-existence of domestic violence and animal cruelty and the implications of the use of animal cruelty to exercise coercive control over intimate partners in terms of the dangerousness of the abuser. It also considers the impact of animal cruelty on the health and social and emotional development of children. In domestic violence situations, child safety should be held paramount and adult safety a priority; the authors argue that in the pursuit of the best outcomes for children and adults, health visitors should be cognisant of the treatment and care of family pets in their assessment and in planning interventions to support families in changing their situation. An overview is provided of the domestic violence risk assessment tools that refer to animal cruelty as a contributory factor for serious harm and the animal welfare services available to help families escaping domestic violence

Risk and teenage parenthood: an early sexual health intervention

Purpose - This paper outlines the development of a resource designed to support practitioners, who were not sexual health specialists, but who worked with young people who may be at risk of teenage pregnancy or parenthood. Its aim was to enable practitioners to carry out an assessment using a screening tool, and to use educational interventions designed to reduce risk-taking behaviour or refer to a sexual health specialist. We report a research project to examine the perceptions of practitioners who had used the resource. Design/methodology/approach – The resource was based on a local needs assessment and developed by a multi-agency working group. The research utilised an on-line questionnaire and telephone interviews with practitioners. Findings - Practitioners reported using the screening tool with young people with an average age of 13.1 years. They thought the educational interventions provided knowledge and helped with communication, self-awareness, reflection, confidence, attitudes and values clarification. Research limitations/implications - The project was based in one county in England. A sample of seventeen per cent of the practitioners responded to the questionnaire, and they might be those who had engaged most, or most positively, with the resource. Three practitioners undertook interviews. The views and behaviours of young people are yet to be evaluated. Originality/value - Within a climate of limited resources, the findings suggest that the project was providing an acceptable proportionate universalist, early sexual health intervention for young people

The relationship between a trusted adult and adolescent outcomes:A protocol of a scoping review

Abstract Background Although documentation of harm towards children and young people has existed for centuries, it was not until the 1960s that it became a specific focus for health professionals. Since that time, the importance of protective social networks has become better understood. The concept of trusted adults has come into sharper focus, with children being encouraged to develop networks of dependable adults to turn to for support in times of need. While many child protection processes highlight risks to younger children, there has been less emphasis on older children. The role of trusted adults may be particularly important during adolescence, due to burgeoning independence, developing sexuality, relationship formation, and associated vulnerabilities. While important choices relating to health and education are made during this period, there is little formal evidence relating to the impact of trusted adults on such outcomes. This review therefore aims to focus on the role and influence of trusted adults for adolescents. Methods This study is a scoping review. A broad range of databases will be searched, including MEDLINE, ERIC, Education Abstracts, Web of Science, ASSIA, Sociological Abstracts, and PsycINFO. Predefined inclusion/exclusion criteria will be used, with a focus on outcomes relating to health and education. Two reviewers will blind screen papers independently at all screening stages, with conflicts being resolved by a third reviewer. Quantitative and qualitative studies, as well as unpublished (grey) literature/reports, will be included. We will use the World Health Organization’s ‘second decade’ definition of adolescence. We aim to collate and map evidence in a broad overview and produce meta-analyses of homogenous data. Where this is not possible, a narrative summary will be produced. Discussion There appears to be sparse knowledge regarding the role of trusted adults for adolescents. Potential benefits to health and wellbeing may impact on educational attainment, and vice versa. These areas are of particular relevance during the second decade, when decisions that affect future direction, achievement, and wellbeing are being made. The increased understanding of the role of trusted adults provided by this review may help to inform practice and policy and lead to potential benefits for the health and education of adolescents. Systematic review registration PROSPERO CRD 4201707673

An analysis of child protection 'standard operating procedures for research' in higher education institutions in the United Kingdom.

BACKGROUND: Interest in children's agency within the research process has led to a renewed consideration of the relationships between researchers and children. Child protection concerns are sometimes not recognised by researchers, and sometimes ignored. Yet much research on children's lives, especially in health, has the potential to uncover child abuse. University research guidance should be in place to safeguard both researchers and the populations under scrutiny. The aim of this study was to examine university guidance on protecting children in research contexts. METHODS: Child protection Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were requested from institutions with Research Assessment Exercise (2008) profiles in the top two quartiles according to published league tables. Procedures were included if they applied across the institution and if they were more extensive than stating the university's general application of the UK Disclosure and Barring Service process. A typology for scoring the SOPs was designed for this study based on the authors' previous work. The typology and the raw data scoring were reviewed independently by each of the team members and collectively agreed. The raw scores were charted and analysed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: SOPs for research conduct amongst vulnerable groups were sought from 83 institutions. Forty HEIs provided policies which met the inclusion criteria. The majority did not mention children, young people or vulnerable adults as a whole, although children in nurseries and young people in universities were addressed. Only three institutions scored over 50 out of a possible 100. The mean score was 17.4. More than half the HEIs made no reference to vetting/barring schemes in research, only eight universities set out a training programme on child protection. Research was often not mentioned in the SOPs and only six mention children in research, with only two fully recognising the extent of child protection in research. DISCUSSION: There is potential for researchers to recognise and respond to maltreatment of children who participate in research. However, the majority of HEIs do not have an overt culture of safeguarding. There is confusion over what are the roles and responsibilities of HEIs in relation to research that involves children. CONCLUSIONS: The policies that are meant to support and guide research practice, so that children are protected, are in the most part non-existent or poorly developed

‘If parents are punished for asking their children to feed goats’: supervisory neglect in sub-Saharan Africa

Summary: In the United States and the United Kingdom supervisory neglect of children is premised on a construction of childhood which characterises children as essentially vulnerable and in need of constant care and protection by parents. This Western conception has been transmitted to the countries of the sub-Sahara via the Convention on the Rights of the Child. However, the socio-economic and cultural context of African countries differs significantly from those of the United Kingdom and the United States. The incorporation of a Western hegemonic idea of childhood into the national laws of African countries creates fundamental contradictions in the application of criteria for adjudging the adequacy of parental supervision in the sub-Sahara. Drawing on secondary data, this article explores these contradictions and proposes alternative considerations in the conceptualisation and assessment of supervisory neglect. Finding: The combined effects on households in the sub-Sahara of economic conditions, ascribed gender roles and the reciprocal duties held by children to assist their families, contest established indicators and thresholds for supervisory neglect. The concept of societal neglect together with the application of the Haddon Matrix provides a more apposite framework for reducing the risk of significant harm to children. Application: All African countries, excepting Somalia, have introduced the Convention on the Rights of the Child through domestic legislation. The findings of this study are pertinent to policy-makers and social workers in the sub-Sahara. They also invite Western scholars to critically engage with dominant notions of supervisory neglect and re-appraise its applicability in cross-national contexts

A systematic review of fantasy driven vs. contact driven internet-initiated sexual offences: Discrete or overlapping typologies?

Data presented within this article supports the findings of the manuscript “A systematic review of fantasy driven vs contact driven internet-initiated sexual offences: Discrete or overlapping typologies?” (Broome et al., in press) [1]. Inclusion and Exclusion criteria of study selection, PICO Formulation of Study Appraisal, as well as the Study Characteristics and Methodology of included studies are presented

Developing a child centred response to sexual abuse A discussion paper

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Lending Division - LD:85/08653(Developing) / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Someone to turn to .. An effective child protection system for the 21st century

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:m01/37307 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

So who are we meant to trust now? Responding to abuse in care; the experiences of young people

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:q96/18025 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo