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Domestic abuse can encompass a wide range of behaviours. It can but does not have to involve physical acts of violence and can include threatening behaviour, controlling or coercive behaviour, emotional, psychological, sexual, and/or economic abuse. Domestic abuse can involve abuse facilitated and perpetrated online or offline. It is widely recognised that the perpetrator’s desire to exercise power and control over the victim is at the centre of abusive behaviours. Many victims will experience abusive behaviours simultaneously, perpetrators may demonstrate a wide range and use different tactics to gain power and control.
Children who see, hear, or experience the effects of domestic abuse and are related to the victim or perpetrator are victims of abuse themselves. It can seriously affect children’s physical and mental wellbeing, including into adulthood, so we have a responsibility to share concerns.
Intervening early helps to stop abuse getting worse and prevent children experiencing significant harm, so it is important to be alert to signs.
Domestic abuse can take different forms:
Physical: for example, hitting, punching, pushing, biting, burning, or choking.
Sexual: any form of sexual activity that takes place without the other person’s full consent (e.g. physical contact, withholding contraception, or pressuring into sexual activities).
Coercive & Controlling: The abuser uses violence, threats, puts them down or scares and frightens the victim. They do this to so they can control the victim and make them do things they do not want to. This behaviour often happens with other abusive behaviours, including physical, sexual, and financial abuse. The government says controlling or coercive behaviour is:
acts designed to make a person feel inferior and/or dependent by keeping them apart from friends, help and support. It can include taking advantage of their money and things they have, stopping their independence, and controlling what they want to do.
an act of assault, threats, humiliation and intimidation or other abuse that is used to harm, punish, or frighten the victim.
Psychological/emotional: for example, putting a person down, controlling them with threats and intimidation, blaming them for the abuse or denying it.
Financial: controlling the partner’s ability to earn and use their own money and resources (e.g. stopping them going to work, spending, or taking their money).
Technology can also play a role in abuse, particularly among young people. For example, an abuser might use technology to monitor and control their victim, share intimate images without their consent, or post false or malicious information about them on social media.
Signs of witnessing domestic abuse:
they may become anxious or depressed.
they may have difficulty sleeping.
they may complain of physical symptoms such as tummy aches.
they may start to wet their bed.
they may behave as though they are much younger than they are.
they may have problems with school
they may become aggressive, or they may internalise their distress and withdraw from other people.
they may have a lowered sense of self-worth.
older children may begin to play truant or start to use alcohol or drugs.
they may begin to self-harm by taking overdoses or cutting themselves.
Children may also feel angry, guilty, insecure, alone, frightened, powerless, or confused. They may have ambivalent feelings towards both the abuser and the non-abusing parent.
Stopping Domestic Abuse Together, also known as SDAT, is an early notification system to schools. It is our local version of Operation Encompass and informs schools of any incidents of domestic abuse where the police have attended a household where children aged 5-16 live.
Derbyshire Constabulary lead on SDAT, with support from partners such as local authority children’s social care, health services, schools, and other safeguarding agencies. SDAT helps schools respond to children’s needs in the education setting to support them with their learning, emotional and social development. It also promotes effective communications between police, local authority children’s social care and schools where there has been a domestic abuse incident.
Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility, and this is to help schools with responses to domestic abuse by helping them support children and their families exposed to or involved in domestic abuse. This may mean talking to students about their experiences, raising awareness through classroom discussion and schools’ activities, and helping victims and families by providing to them signposting information.
National Domestic Abuse Helpline
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.
Additional advice on domestic abuse and how to get help is available at:
National Domestic Abuse Helpline (freephone, 24/7): 0808 2000 247, https://www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk/
Men’s Advice Line (freephone): 0808 8010 327, https://mensadviceline.org.uk/
Galop (freephone, LGBT+): 0800 999 5428, https://galop.org.uk/get-help/helplines/
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.
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.
Child exploitation: what you need to know - Support for Parents from Action for Children
It's Not Okay - PACE (itsnotokay.co.uk)
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.
Several 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:
• go missing (from school or home) and are subsequently found in areas away from their home.
• have been the victim, perpetrator, or alleged perpetrator of serious violence (e.g. knife crime).
• are involved in receiving requests for drugs via a phone line, moving drugs, handing over and collecting money for drugs.
• are exposed to techniques such as ‘plugging,’ where drugs are concealed internally to avoid detection.
• are found in accommodation that they have no connection with, often called a ‘trap house or cuckooing’ or hotel room where there is drug activity.
• owe a ‘debt bond’ to their exploiters.
• have their bank accounts used to facilitate drug dealing.
Protecting children from county lines | NSPCC Learning
4206.1-County-lines-leaflet-final-web.pdf (cscp.org.uk)
What is county lines and how can I protect my child? - Support for Parents from Action For Children
Children may be susceptible to radicalisation into terrorism.
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. Radicalisation150 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.
There is no single route to radicalisation. However, there are some behavioural traits that could indicate that a learner is susceptible to radicalisation into terrorism. Radicalisation is not a linear process. Learners may express a combination of behaviours at different times.
Some signs that a young person may be vulnerable to radicalisation:
Isolating themselves from family and friends​
Talking as if from a scripted speech​
Unwillingness or inability to discuss their views​
A sudden disrespectful attitude towards others​
Increased levels of anger​
Increased secretiveness, especially around internet use
Follow this link for more information on indicators of risk Managing risk of radicalisation in your education setting - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
All schools and colleges are subject to a duty under section 26 of the Counter- Terrorism and Security Act 2015, in the exercise of their functions, to have “due regard152 to the need to prevent people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism”.153 This duty is known as the Prevent duty.
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.
For more information, follow this link Parents Archives - Educate Against Hate
There are a number of indicators, which may signal children are at risk from, or are involved with, serious violent crime. These may include:
• increased absence from school
• a change in friendships or relationships with older individuals or groups
• a significant decline in performance
• signs of self-harm or a significant change in wellbeing, or signs of assault or unexplained injuries
• unexplained gifts or new possessions could also indicate that children have been approached by, or are involved with, individuals associated with criminal networks or gangs and may be at risk of criminal exploitation.
The likelihood of involvement in serious violence may be increased by factors such as:
• being male
• having been frequently absent or permanently excluded from school.
• having experienced child maltreatment and having been involved in offending, such as theft or robbery.
A fuller list of risk factors can be found in the Home Office’s Serious Violence Strategy https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/698009/serious-violence-strategy.pdf
Most young people do not want to carry or use a knife. But some may carry a weapon because they are afraid of others carrying one. Knife crime can also be a direct result of child exploitation. The topic is often in the news, so it is common for parents and carers to worry about knives. See the links below for useful advice and guidance:
A-guide-to-knife-harm-for-parents-and-carers.pdf (benkinsella.org.uk)
I’m worried about my child and knife crime - Support for Parents from Action For Children
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.
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.
Female Genital Mutilation - Prevent & Protect | NSPCC
NSPCC FGM helpline: Call 0800 028 3550
Forcing a person into a marriage is a crime in England and Wales. A forced marriage is one entered 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.
More information can be found here Forced Marriage Unit
Setting up parental controls
Parental controls guides: Parental controls & privacy settings guides | Internet Matters
Useful Websites: