WELCOME

                                                                            Self esteem   “It’s hard to improve your self-esteem, when you have so many people to compare yourself too”. The theme of this month’s blog is self-esteem, having delivered a session with a group of girls recently and hearing them express their honest feelings. It really hit home, and highlighted why it’s important for both parents/carers and professionals to empower young people to develop their self-esteem. So, what is self-esteem you may ask? Well, it describes how one feels about themselves internally; it looks at one’s self-worth, self-value, etc. It is often one of those words that gets thrown around a lot, making it seem like it is something you can easily just pick up off a shelf. The reality is however, that it takes intentionality and full responsibility to cultivate in one’s life.   In the UK, studies show 61% of 10 to 17-year-old girls have low self-esteem, while 7 in 10 girls believe that t

  Gender inequality is discrimination on the basis of sex or gender causing one sex or gender to be routinely privileged or prioritised over another. Starting in childhood, gender inequality can rob children of their childhoods and limit their chances – disproportionately affecting girls ( Save the Children, 2022 ). This discrimination continues into the workplace and business sector and despite significant investments in unconscious gender bias training, research has shown this has not resulted in greater levels of diversity within society ( Harvard Business Review, 2020 ). Whilst this does not suggest that we shouldn’t continue to invest in reducing it, we may however have a greater impact by intervening during childhood before bias has a chance to set in. It is critical that we all play a part in promoting, encouraging, equipping and enhancing a diverse and equal society for girls and boys to thrive. So, then the question is, how do we make gender advancement a reality? Well t

  We’ve discussed what constitutes a healthy relationship, common red flags and setting boundaries. Now let us explore what a victim of abuse may require as evidence if they choose to report their experience of abuse in the near future. As professionals we must also acknowledge that for many victims of DA reporting their experience of abuse is not a choice they want to make for a number of reasons, this is not an exhaustive list but can include: Ø   ⦿  Frightened that the abuse will get worse Ø  ⦿  Unable to go through with reporting, due to controlling behaviour impacting, where they go, who they see, what they are doing Ø   ⦿  Fear for their family breaking up Ø   ⦿  Fear of children being placed in care if they report Ø   ⦿  Previous poor experience with reporting Furthermore, recent research conducted by End violence against women, 2021 shared that we are seeing a drastic drop across all parts of the domestic abuse data. Which is extremely concerning and needs serious

  Sticking to the theme of healthy relationships, this month’s blog is exploring common red flags and establishing boundaries in relationships.     Empowering our young people to recognise red flags and setting boundaries is vital to helping them safeguard and protect themselves from unhealthy relationships. Some red flags may be obvious from the get-go, while others may be trickier to detect.   This is not an exhaustive list but is a good starting point to help them identify red flags whilst dating or in a relationship.    ·          Controlling or coercive e.g. telling them where they can go, who you can talk to, what you can wear   ·          Lack of trust    ·          Feelings of low self-esteem    ·          Physical or emotional abuse    ·          Narcissism   ·          Anger management issue   ·          Co-dependency    ·          Inability to communicate/resolve conflict    ·          Constant jealously    ·          Gaslighting      How to approach red flags  

  Relationships play a key part in young people’s wellbeing. From birth they are important to their development, mental health and feelings of belonging. They can be inherently positive; contributing to their happiness, confidence, health and even advancing their life aspirations. Therefore, being intentional about teaching young people about healthy relationships in their homes and in schools shouldn’t be taken lightly. The below 5 tips are not an exhaustive list, but are a good starting point to having honest and open conversations, that they can utilise in both their romantic relationships and friendships groups too.   1.        Help them define what a healthy relationship means to them Healthy relationships don’t look the same for everyone since we all have different needs, which can also change throughout different life stages. So, with this in mind, encourage them to note down what the current important internal characteristics are to them. 2.        Empower them to be conf

  Over the years we have and continue to have numerous reports of children being physically assaulted, poisoned and in some cases murdered regardless of the solid child protection policies in place. Perhaps it is the hidden and culturally sensitive nature of the phenomenon that has made it so difficult for authorities to deal effectively with these harmful accusations. However, one might ask ‘don’t all children have the right to be protected and safeguarded from harm?’ In response, I would argue that it is not acceptable to suggest that accusations and persecution of this phenomenon is limited to a particular culture. As history recalls, in many countries, including the UK, beliefs and practices in this phenomenon are a common feature (Koning, 2013).   What am I referring to, you may be asking? The branding of children as witches to be precise. To unpack this safeguarding concern let us commence with understanding that witchcraft is widely believed to be a negative spiritual forc

  “Imagine having to request extra hours at work, not because you needed the extra money, but because it was your only source of freedom"                                    Domestic Abuse, the missing policy in the workplace To begin with, domestic abuse (DA) has been defined as any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence, or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality” (Gov.uk, 2012). It is said that 1 in 4 women experience DA and these are not strangers from the corners of the earth, they could be our family members, friends, neighbours, and who I would like to highlight today; our COLLEAGUES. Even as professionals in safeguarding, this does not prevent victimisation. As reported by Neu, (2020) the majority of the education workforce are women and it’s likely that in any school or college, at least one woman will be at risk of, or experienci