Child Protection and Safety Nicole Talarico > Talarico Consulting
Let me ask you if, every day, whilst undertaking your role as an early childhood professional, children’s safety and wellbeing is at the centre of your thoughts, values and your actions? If you feel like yes, it is, then can I ask you another question? Do you consider children’s protection, from abuse & neglect, part of that everyday checklist? It is children that are central to the profession we have chosen, so we should have a greater level of attentiveness towards their safety. So why is it then, that we are not leading the way, in the capacity of child safety and prevention? One of the reasons is that the simple phrase “child abuse” is an “umbrella” term that covers a wide range of activities that harm children. It is a form of ‘shorthand’ and as such has advantages and disadvantages: “ …The use of a short and simple label allows us to communicate without the need to repeatedly define and redefine our terms.” (Goddard, C. & Tucci (2006) State of Child Protection). Having Child Abuse & Safety permanently on team agendas will increase opportunities to
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EARLY EDITION > AUTUMN 2022
communicate and identify harm. This strategy creates conditions that allow services to be more responsive to any concerns, disclosures, allegations or suspicions and reduces the likelihood of maltreatment to children. Everyone needs to take charge in their local context. When you know what signifies abuse, and the warning signs, as well as support networks that are available, then you have an opportunity to prevent possible abuse or neglect re/occurring. What is also necessary to know are the indicators, that would help determine, if a child’s environment is safe and nurturing. In recent years, the experiences of children and young people witnessing violence, have been increasingly understood through the lens of
complex trauma. Trauma is commonly understood as a distressing or lifethreatening situation. Complex trauma is cumulative, repetitive and interpersonally generated. Queensland’s Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Strategy 20162026 (Queensland Government, 2016a, p. 1), identifies domestic and family violence as “any behaviour that is physically, sexually, emotionally, psychologically, economically, spiritually and culturally abusive, threatening, coercive or aimed at controlling or dominating another person through fear”. Children’s exposure to domestic/ family violence, which has increased as a result of the global pandemic (https://www.theguardian.com/ society/2020/dec/01/the-worst-year-
