The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
Trainee teachers learn to spot signs of child abuse in classroom
Trainee Tayside teachers have been given advice on spotting signs of abuse or neglect which may affect at least two youngsters in every classroom.
In a key Dundee education conference, NSPCC experts explained the Speak Out Stay Safe programme which takes the message directly to schoolchildren to help them remain protected.
The programme recently passed a major local milestone at Ladyloan Primary in Arbroath with an assembly marking its arrival in every Angus mainstream school. The scheme has involved 3,500 children in 33 schools in the county in the last academic year alone.
The Angus achievement also signalled 100% completion of the service for schools in Dundee, Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Moray and Shetland.
At Dundee University’s first Professional Graduate Diploma in Education conference, around 60 trainee teachers were told about charity research revealing an average of two children in every primary school classroom have suffered some form of abuse or neglect.
Alan Stewart, schools service manager for NSPCC Scotland, said: “It is so important that children understand the different forms of abuse, that they can spot the signs, know they have the right to be protected and where to turn if it is happening to them or someone else.
“The event is such a valuable opportunity to work alongside our colleagues in education and help make teachers of the future aware of the service, as well as giving them some insight into how we talk to children about abuse in a way that they can understand.”