Kirklees Neglect & Early Help Strategy:

What ‘Neglect’ means from a child & young person’s perspective

An brief summary of an engagement project carried out by the

IYCE Team, Kirklees Council

September 2017

FINDINGS REPORT

CONTENTS:

Page Page

Page

Page

1. What did we want to find

out?

2. How did we

gain this information

3. What does ‘neglect’

mean? An adult definition

4. Basic needs

5. Not having our

needs met

1 3

6

4

7

6. The important things we need to be healthy and

happy

7. Future

Recommendations

8 9

ENGAGEMENT AIMS:

Inspired by the Kirklees Safeguarding Children’s Board (KSCB) Kirklees Neglect & Early Help Strategy, the Voice & Influence team (IYCE) carried out an engagement project which aimed to:

Enable children and young people to share their views and perceptions on what the term ‘neglect’ means to them

Identify and discuss what they think are the basic things they need to be healthy and happy

Explore and discuss their thoughts on how it might feel to not have their basic needs met.

In meeting the above aims, the project sought to: To provide decision-makers with an insight

into children and young people’s perceptions and views on the issue of neglect

Identify and make recommendations about possible future explorations into the issue of neglect.

1. What did we want to find out?:

BACKGROUND:

The Kirklees Safeguarding Children’s Board identified a need to gain clearer insight into the views and perceptions of children and young people in Kirklees with regards to ‘Neglect’. This acknowledgement and step towards addressing the gap in knowledge from a children and young people’s perspective would do two things. Not only would it drive the need for changes in the way that social care services are delivered across Kirklees but also show a clear commitment to ensuring that the views of children and young people are taken into account as part of the review and redesign of these services. As the Council faces growing demand to better meet the Social Care needs of children and young people living in Kirklees, it is important now more than ever that opportunities are created to listen and engage directly with them to understand their needs from their perceptive. Using a series interactive workshops, this engagement project aimed to enable children and young people from a range of backgrounds to share their views and perceptions on what their basic needs are and the impact of not having these needs met.

1.

2. ‘How did we gain this information?:

In order to explore the children and young peoples’ perceptions in detail and gain a better understanding of the key issues, this project gathered qualitative accounts. This was achieved by: Recruiting a range of

children and young people from various backgrounds aged 9 to 15 living in Kirklees

Conducting discussion based activities to gather insight into their views on what they felt their basic needs were and the impact of not having these needs met

Producing a report to highlight their views and put forward recommendations on possible areas for future exploration.

INTERACTIVE WORKSHOPS:

A range of interactive workshops were developed, all aimed at enabling children and young people from across Kirklees to provide an insight into their perceptions and views with regards to the issue of ‘Neglect’. 35 children and young people aged between 9 and 15 years from a range of backgrounds were involved in workshops which took place in four primary and secondary schools in Kirklees. The issue of ‘neglect’ is potentially an emotive one capable of eliciting an array of different feelings and responses from an individual depending on their personal experiences. Therefore, to minimise the potential impact of this issue on vulnerable participants of the project, rather than focus on the term ‘neglect’ instead children and young people were asked to explore the concept of ‘Wants and Needs’. Interactive resources were designed and created specifically for the project. These enabled children and young people, regardless of their level of understanding to take part in and share their views. Prior to taking part in the project, school staff were briefed thoroughly on the aims and objectives of the project along with each child and young person involved. Workshops were kept small to ensure that all of the participants could actively take part and upon completion of the workshops the information collected was collated to identify any areas in need of further development or discussion.

2.

3.

RECRUITMENT OF YOUNG PEOPLE:

Recruitment of children and young people to this project was carried out through existing IYCE networks. This is an approach which has proved successful with previous engagement projects.

ETHICAL ISSUES:

The participants involved were all aged 9 to 15 years. Their involvement was voluntary and they were briefed thoroughly prior to their involvement to ensure that they fully understood the aims of the project. Confidentially and privacy was ensured to allow the participants to choose to share their experiences anonymously. IYCE are experienced in working with children and young people, aware of professional boundaries and has established networks with agencies which can help them. The children and young people were informed that should they experience any problems/ difficulties as a result of being involved in the project, IYCE were well placed to signpost them to a wide range of support services.

ANTI-DISCRIMINATORY ISSUES/ PRACTICE:

Young people who met the criteria volunteered to take part in the project. Wherever barriers existed, action was taken to overcome them. For example, sessions took place at venues which were local and accessible to young people, appropriate methods of communication were used and where appropriate support staff provided.

4.

The children and young people were presented with a range discussion ‘topics’ based around ascertaining their views and ideas on the concept of neglect. The topics were split into three key areas:

Personal items/ objects/ things

Home & Family

Emotional Well-being Open discussions were conducted around these areas and interactive worksheets were used to record the information shared. The participants had the option of recording their own responses in a variety of ways (e.g. using words, drawings, stickers etc.) or if needed adult support was provided.

Examples of some of the resources used as

part of the sessions

DEFINITION OF NEGLECT:

“Neglect is the ongoing failure to meet a child’s basic needs and is the most common form of child abuse. A

child may be left hungry or dirty, without adequate clothing, shelter, supervision, medication or health

care. A child may be put in danger or not protected from physical or

emotional harm.”

NSPCC definition

3. What does ‘Neglect’ mean? An adult definition:

‘WANTS & NEEDS’: There is a big difference between having the things we want and the things we need. The children and young people involved were clearly able to identify between the two, defining ‘wants’ as desirable items such as consoles and phones and ‘needs’ as things that are important for their well-being and survival such as food, clothes and shelter.

What ‘Neglect’ means to children and young people in Kirklees: Every child and young person has the right to be looked after properly. Not receiving the important things they need could constitute a form of neglect. The term neglect is an emotive issue which can illicit an array of different feelings and responses from an individual depending on their personal experiences. As a result, to minimise the potential impact of this issue on vulnerable participants of the project, rather than focus on the term ‘neglect’ they were asked to explore the concept of ‘Wants and Needs’.

According to Childline, every child and young person needs and should have access to the following:

Clothes that are clean and warm and shoes that fit and keep you dry

Enough to eat and drink

Protection from dangerous situations

Somewhere warm, dry and comfortable to sleep

Help when you’re ill or you’ve been hurt

Love and care from your parents or carers

Support with education

Access and help with medication if needed

5.

4. The important things we need to be healthy and happy:

Personal items / objects/ things:

Clean clothes and shoes

Soap, shampoo and deodorant to keep yourself clean and smelling fresh

Toys/ things to play with and keep us entertained

Books

TV and computer/ tablet

Pets – something to be responsible for and help look after

Access to health care and doctors as well as medication to treat health conditions

A way to stay in touch and contact people (phone and internet access)

The young people were asked to identify what they felt their basic needs were. They were asked what they felt were the basic things they needed to be healthy and happy in three key areas. Below is a summary of their responses:

Home & family:

A family that cares and looks after your needs

Decent healthy meals - food and water

Somewhere to cook and wash

A home that is warm and large enough to fit the whole family

Enough money to live comfortably

A debt free home

Opportunity to go to school and get a good education in a positive learning environment

A place to relax and sleep

A home that is clean and safe from hazards

A garden or outside space to play and relax in

Emotional Well-being:

A loving, caring and supportive family and friends

Healthy self-esteem and confidence

Positive role models

Feeling of safety in your environment and not being abused or bullied

Optimistic outlook for the future

Resilience – being able to bounce back after difficult times

Equality

Opportunity to exercise and stay fit and healthy

Clear boundaries and rules

Religion or something to believe

in or belong to

Taking part in activities and

hobbies - being able to express yourself and do something you love.

6.

5. Not having our basic needs met:

These are some of the comments young people made to describe what they thought the feelings of not having their basic needs met might lead to:

Here are some adjectives that the young people used to describe how they would feel if their basic needs were not being met:

Hopeless

Depressed

Tired and fed up

Disgraceful

Have bad thoughts

Unhappy

Useless

Stressed

Heartbroken

Mentally ill

Worthless

Not sociable

Suicidal

Dirty

Downhearted

Embarrassed

Unwanted and not needed

Scared

Frustrated

Neglected

Like a robot – disconnected with reality

7.

Depressed and it might lead you to do things like drinking alcohol,

smoking cigarettes or taking drugs and maybe suicide.

I’d feel bad about myself and useless.

I would have suicidal thoughts

and would feel like killing myself.

I would have a lack of motivation; I wouldn’t feel like doing anything or feel

safe around the people who are meant to love and

look after me

Life wouldn’t mean anything. Death would

be more worthwhile than life.

You might hang around with the wrong people

and start doing bad stuff. Eventually you

might end up in prison.

It would be very difficult to do well in education

because learning and school would be the last

thing on your mind - You’d

just want to survive.

I don’t think you’d grown up

to be a very happy adult.

6. Most important things we need to be healthy & happy:

8.

A child needs a good education to stay healthy.

Education is one of the most important things as it

can give you the information you need to

stay happy.

Every child needs a loving caring person in

their life. If you have that, you have everything

you need because nothing can harm you.

A pet like a dog – something to look after

and care for and something that needs you

too is important.

Very basically we all need food, water, clothes shelter as

well as a good education to survive

and stay happy.

We all at least need a loving

family and friends.

Exercise and fitness is very important to

me.

Children need the opportunity to get

involved with things instead of staying in a

little shell.

A caring, supportive family and friends to talk to through hard

times.

Equality, confidence and support to stay

emotionally and physically healthy.

Every child needs toys and things to play with to keep them entertained.

The young people were asked to summarise in a few words what they thought were the most important things they needed to be healthy and happy:

Resilience to never give up but also a

good education and family to keep us

safe and away from harm.

7. Future Recommendations:

SHOULD AWARENESS OF ‘NEGLECT’ BE RAISED AMONGST CHILREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE?

If so, the lines of enquiry which could be followed could include:

Is ‘neglect’ a term children/ young people understand or like to use? Are there any other preferred terms?

How is neglect identified? How can children identify neglect in themselves or others?

What does neglect look like? Is it a lack of food, clothing, shelter, love (an emotive concept)?

Who do/ can children & young people turn to if they suspect they or someone they know is being neglected?

What are the steps for intervention? Who and what professionals and services are involved and what do they do?

Several recommendations for possible future exploration have been identified. These can be broken down into two areas and are summarised as follows:

IDEAS TO SUPPORT A NEGLECT & EARLY HELP/ INTERVENTION STRATEGY FOR CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE (Bottom up approach):

Develop a children/ young people friendly version of the strategy

Create a young person’s narrative of neglect (case studies) - Experiences, ideas and solutions for change

Develop an awareness raising campaign amongst children and young people in Kirklees (linking to the lines of enquiry listed above)

Create a (virtual) advisory body of children and young people to help inform and shape the strategy and decision making

Elicit the child’s voice - develop alongside children and young people a ‘tool kit’ and/or training course/ resources aimed at equipping professionals with a range of ideas/ and techniques to enable them to more effectively elicit the voice of the child within their everyday practice.

9.

Acknowledgements:

A huge thank you to all of the young people who volunteered their time to take part in this project.

A special thank you also to:

Boothroyd Primary Academy, Spring Grove School, Hillside Primary & Spen Valley High School who took part and supported this project.

If you would like further details about this

project or a copy of the full report, please contact Susan Adams - IYCE (Voice & Influence) Team,

Kirklees Council