What professionals know, think and do to prevent child abuse – and how we can support them

Key findings:

There is a belief that the prevention of child abuse is possible, but a lack of understanding about what preventing child abuse looks like in practice

Professionals often describe prevention in terms of their responses to abuse after it has occurred, rather than in terms of stopping abuse before it happens.

Professionals are already displaying behaviours that they do not recognise as the primary prevention of abuse

Members of the workforce are taking action to stop child abuse before it happens without recognising those actions as preventative. These include understanding their community context and employing practices that are poverty-aware, trauma-informed and sensitive to the wider issues that affect the daily lives of children and families.

There are systemic barriers to professionals engaging in prevention activity

Systemic barriers, such as complex referral pathways and lack of early help services, make it difficult for professionals to know where to turn to for help. There is also a lack of support for professionals affected by the stress and trauma of their work in preventing child abuse.

Professionals’ ability to prevent child abuse can be strengthened through training and working together

Prioritising staff training and development, through formal and informal opportunities, can build professional confidence and change behaviours. The development of sustainable prevention practice is underpinned by partnerships and joined-up working.

Recommendations

• Ensure professionals have regular access to high-quality training and resources that support them in preventing child abuse in their day-to-day roles.
• Provide organisational development and support around prevention and safeguarding policies and practices, to build contextualised approaches with local ownership.
• Establish committed, communicative learning networks to facilitate sharing of knowledge and expertise on the prevention of child abuse.
• Develop inclusive partnership-based approaches where professionals collaborate to identify and act on the prevention of, and response to, child abuse in a timely and effective way.
• Develop organisations and professionals’ understanding of the wider issues and inequalities that affect families and use this knowledge to shape practice that is more poverty-aware and trauma-informed.
• Prioritise staff wellbeing and safe spaces for learning, where organisations offer continuous trauma-informed support to their workforce in undertaking their responsibility to prevent child abuse.