An increase in child neglect cases across Australia has highlighted the need for greater recognition and understanding of the various forms of child abuse that can present to staff at schools.
An ABC News article refers to reports and evidence from various child protection groups who are concerned that not enough is being done to assist children suffering emotional abuse and neglect, which are conditions that may make children more vulnerable to other forms of abuse.
Groups like the National Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (NAPCAN) and UnitingCare claim that neglect and emotional abuse make children vulnerable to predators and the long-term consequences of such abuse could be as damaging as the physical kinds.
ABC News quotes Sue Packer from child protection group NAPCAN as saying that ‘child neglect is more than just the image of a hungry, dirty child at school.’
According to statistics from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (the AIHW) emotional abuse was the most common form of child abuse in Australia between 2013-14 (40%), followed by neglect (28%) and physical abuse (19%). ‘Emotional abuse’ is considered by the AIHW to mean ‘any act by a person having the care of a child that results in the child suffering any kind of significant emotional deprivation or trauma. Children affected by exposure to family violence are also included in this category.’
Our previous article also refers to research from the AIHW which demonstrates that there has been a 6% rise since 2012-13 in the number of children who have been involved with the child protection system in some way.
ABC News reported that child protection advocates believe that because of a scarcity of resources in the child protection system, authorities often prioritised children at risk of physical or sexual violence.
As its title indicates, the focus of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has been on sexual abuse and inquiring into ‘what institutions and governments should do to address, or alleviate the impact of, past and future child sexual abuse and related matters in institutional contexts’. It is also investigating what avenues for justice exist for survivors.
The work of the Royal Commission has been groundbreaking and crucial for survivors of child sexual abuse. The recommendations of the Royal Commission, once released, may also result in national reform of Australia’s child protection laws.
However, as emphasised by Fiona Arney from the Centre for Child Protection at the University of South Australia, the long-term consequences of neglect and emotional abuse could be profound and should also receive greater focus in terms of preventative strategies and intervention. According to the ABC article, Ms Arney believes that there needs to be more early intervention and multi-faceted programs that include parenting skills courses, treatment for mental health issues, drug and alcohol support, family violence services and family support.
The theme of the ABC article is that child abuse comes in many forms and that all parts of society need to watch out for symptoms that a child is suffering emotional abuse or neglect.
As our previous articles have explained, the legal and regulatory child protection regime in Australia is a complex area of policy, which is made no less opaque by a confusing web of reporting requirements.
The child protection regimes of the States and Territories adopt many different concepts of ‘abuse’, ‘harm’ and levels of ‘suspicion’ which must form the basis of ‘reportable conduct’ – making it difficult for the community to engage in a national dialogue on whether or not existing child protection laws are adequate.
Every school must therefore understand the laws in its jurisdiction and know what sorts of abuse must be mandatorily reported to the police or community services.
Importantly, as the various advocates in the ABC article remind us, there are many different types of child abuse and schools must assist their staff to understand how to recognise the symptoms of such abuse.
Something as simple as poor dental hygiene can be symptomatic of much deeper issues being experienced by the child at home.
National Child Protection Week takes place between 6-12th September.
Will your school be planning initiatives to recognise National Child Protection Week?