Clingy pupil? It could be a sign of abuse, teachers told
TEACHERS should be wary of potential abuse if children are very clingy or have temper tantrums, according to guidelines from the health watchdog.
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence ( Nice) is urging teachers to seek advice from their colleagues and the child’s parents if they have any concerns.
The watchdog wants teachers to be less ‘British’ about the taboo topic of abuse and not shove their worries ‘under the carpet’.
Nice pointed out this will not mean parents are summoned in whenever children have tantrums or appear very upset. Instead staff are being asked to ‘ build up a gradual picture’ of what is going on in a child’s life to cause their sudden change of behaviour.
This might include the death of a pet or parents going through a divorce, for example.
Teachers should also try talking to the child themselves about why they are upset and speaking to their parents. If teachers are still suspicious a child is being abused after this they should then call social services.
The guidelines are being issued following several high-profile child abuse cases including Poppi Worthington and Baby P.
Poppi died aged 13 months in 2012 after being sexually abused by her father in Barrow, Cumbria.
Five years earlier 17-month old Peter Connelly, known as Baby P, had died at the hands of his mother and her boyfriend in Harringay, North London.
Serious case reviews into both tragedies were heavily critical of social services, the police, doctors and also schools for failing to intervene in the families.
The Baby P case review criticised the schools of his older brothers and sisters for not picking up on signs of family troubles.
Today’s guidelines are primarily aimed at teachers as well as social workers and the police to improve their responsiveness to child abuse. While it might prompt suspicion that teachers are being encouraged to be busy-bodies – especially as Nice has a reputation for issuing nannying advice – it said there is far more ‘under-recognition’ than ‘over-reporting’, and recent figures suggest abuse is on the rise.
Professor Gillian Leng, from Nice, said: ‘We want all profession- als to be aware and recognise when they need to ask questions or follow up with colleagues about a child’s wellbeing.
‘Not all cases will cause concern but if we do not ask, we may miss opportunities to protect children in their time of need. I guess we can be a bit British and perhaps aren’t curious enough and think we shouldn’t ask the questions.’
Dr Danya Glaser, a consultant child psychiatrist at University College London who helped draw up the guidelines, said teachers should use their ‘instinct and experience’. He said: ‘It’s about [noticing] some change in behaviour if you know the child.
‘We are saying err on the side of curiosity – it might be nothing but it might be something.’
While Nice is better known as the drugs rationing body, it also has a remit to draw up a wide range of guidelines on general health.
The most recent figures from the NSPCC suggest abuse is on the rise. A total of 50,310 children in England were identified as needing protection from abuse in 2015/16, up from 49,700 in 2014/15.