Abuse of children is usually carried out by a family member or carer or by someone who knows them.
Children will be trusting in the presence of people they know, thus making them vulnerable. So, while "Don't talk to strangers" campaigns deliver a sound message, it makes sense to target resources at educating children to be more aware of when they feel unsafe even with people they know, and equip them with ways to make them feel safe again.
In essence, this is the thinking behind the Taking Care project, a partnership between health, education and social services, which was set up in Warwickshire in 1999.
"We first worked with 11 primary schools in the county with a package aimed at under-eights that used puppets and videos to present safety messages," says project manager, Ann Seal. "We were then asked to come up with something suitable for older children and came across Protective Behaviours - an approach which started in the US, was developed in Australia and came to the UK about 15 years ago."
Seal and a colleague took a foundation course in Protective Behaviours and thought it fitted the bill. She says: "Using a bought-in resource, we went into schools that agreed to have us. We ran a four-week series with children looking at feeling safe, how we feel when we feel safe, how we then know when we don't feel safe. The whole process is about recognising our own early warning signs that we don't feel safe and thinking about what we can do about it."
However, it became clear, if the training was left to just two people it wasn't going to be sustainable or reach enough children. "We also found that schools who agreed to take the materials and deliver the course themselves didn't in the end do it," Seal adds. Things came to a head when Seal's colleague left and wasn't replaced.
"By that time I had become an accredited trainer in Protective Behaviours, and it was agreed to start running training for teachers and support staff and to put together a curriculum pack," says Seal. "Schools now run the four-week course each year and because the staff are all trained it is hoped that the underlying messages about feeling safe are embedded in the school ethos."
The project provides children with a series of resources, including a set of 12 badges with significant statements (for example; "I am responsible for me", "If I don't feel safe, I will keep on telling" and "I choose how I behave") related to their learning about Protective Behaviours. "By wearing them, family and friends might ask what they are and that then helps everyone to talk about things openly," says Seal.
Involving families has also been crucial. There is a guide for parents (We All Have the Right to Feel Safe) about Protective Behaviours and how to encourage their child's learning in partnership with the school. Seal says: "When a school is new to the programme, I always offer to run a meeting for parents just to explain why the school is involved, what the project is about and why we need to be doing it."
The Taking Care project also provides, free of charge, Protective Behaviours training for anybody - statutory or voluntary sector - who works with children and families in the county. To date, more than 700 professional staff have completed this.
Indeed, the project's figures overall are impressive. By July 2,723 children have been involved, of which 1,227 completed the work for the first time in the last school year, while 1,395 children have been enrolled for the first time in the current academic year. Also, 237 teaching and support staff have been trained on inset days.
With such commendable county-wide commitment to the project it's reassuring that so many children will not be a stranger to feeling safe.
Lessons Learned
