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Child exploitation and county lines a drama/film

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Child exploitation and county lines a drama/film

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This is a drama showing how a vulnerable 14year old becomes involved in drug activities

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A 14-year-old-boy is groomed into smuggling drugs for a criminal network.

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Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE)

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It is important to be clear about who the formal safeguarding process applies to.

In this section we will define adult safeguarding. See our safeguarding children resource for information in that area.

The Care Act statutory guidance defines adult safeguarding as:

Protecting an adult's right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect. It is about people and organisations working together to prevent and stop both the risks and experience of abuse or neglect, while at the same time making sure that the adult's wellbeing is promoted including, where appropriate, having regard to their views, wishes, feelings and beliefs in deciding on any action. This must recognise that adults sometimes have complex interpersonal relationships and may be ambivalent, unclear or unrealistic about their personal circumstances.

This definition hints at the challenges of safeguarding, but it is important to be clear about which adults we are discussing. A local authority must act when it has 'reasonable cause to suspect that an adult in its area (whether or not ordinarily resident there):

has needs for care and support (whether or not the authority is meeting any of those needs),

is experiencing, or is at risk of, abuse or neglect, and

as a result of those needs is unable to protect himself or herself against the abuse or neglect or the risk of it.' (Care Act 2014, section 42)

So safeguarding is for people who, because of issues such as dementia, learning disability, mental ill-health or substance abuse, have care and support needs that may make them more vulnerable to abuse or neglect.

Who is at a higher risk?

People with care and support needs, such as older people or people with disabilities, are more likely to be abused or neglected. They may be seen as an easy target and may be less likely to identify abuse themselves or to report it.

People with communication difficulties can be particularly at risk because they may not be able to alert others.

Sometimes people may not even be aware that they are being abused, and this is especially likely if they have a cognitive impairment. Abusers may try to prevent access to the person they abuse.

Further reading from SCIE

Ask about support with training, policies and procedures, and safeguarding reviews and audits

Classroom, tailored and e-learning safeguarding training courses. Supporting you to make sure that safeguarding measures are in place to safeguard adults and children from harm or neglect.

SCIE's Simon Bayliss talks about the importance of understanding safeguarding duties for charity board members

This guide is about your safeguarding responsibilities as a trustee of a user-led organisation (ULO). As a trustee you have a duty of care to your staff, people who use your service and volunteers

View more: News

Safeguarding adults: CPD-accredited online course

Get SCIELine ebulletin & access all resources. Free MySCIE account

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It is important to be clear about who the formal safeguarding process applies to. Understand what we mean by the term 'safeguarding'.

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As part of the Prevent strategy Total People will be promoting Fundamental British Values to reflect life in modern Britain. These values are Democracy, Rule of Law, Respect and Tolerance, Individual Liberty.

As part of the Prevent strategy Total People will be promoting Fundamental British Values to reflect life in modern Britain.
These 4 fundamental British values are:

Democracy

Rule of Law

Respect & Tolerance

Individual Liberty

Fundamental British Values underpin what it is to be a citizen in a modern and diverse Great Britain valuing our community and celebrating diversity of the UK.

Fundamental British Values are not exclusive to being British and are shared by other democratic countries as a way of creating an orderly society, where individual members can feel safe, valued and can contribute for the good of themselves and others.

These will mirror the principles and values of Total People and all the work areas that we support. These will occur throughout your programme and will be promoted by the staff with whom you come into contact.

Democracy

A culture built upon freedom and equality, where everyone is aware of their rights and responsibilities.

Examples

Leadership and accountability

Joint decision making

Team meetings

The right to protest and petition

Receiving and giving feedback

Rule of Law

The need for rules to make a happy, safe and secure environment to live and work.

Examples

Legislation

Agreed ways of working, policies and procedures

How the law protects you and others

Codes of conduct

Respect and Tolerance

Understanding that we all don't share the same beliefs and values. Respecting the values, ideas and beliefs of others whilst not imposing our own others.

Examples

Embracing diversity

The importance of religion, traditions, cultural heritage and preferences

Tackling stereotyping, labeling, prejudice and discrimination

Individual Liberty

Protection of your rights and the right of others you work with.

Examples

Equality and Human Rights

Personal Development

Respect and Dignity

Rights, choice, consent and individuality

Values and principles

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As part of the Prevent strategy, Total People promote Fundamental British Values in all areas of our business to reflect life in modern Britain.

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Assertiveness is a skill regularly referred to in social and communication skills training.

Being assertive means being able to stand up for your own or other people's rights in a calm and positive way, without being either aggressive, or passively accepting 'wrong'.

Assertive individuals are able to get their point across without upsetting others, or becoming upset themselves.

Although everyone acts in passive and aggressive ways from time to time, such ways of responding often result from a lack of self-confidence and are, therefore, inappropriate ways of interacting with others.

This page examines the rights and responsibilities of assertive behaviour and aims to show how assertiveness can benefit you. You may also be interested in our pages on Self-Esteem and Negotiation.

What is Assertiveness?

The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines assertiveness as:

"Forthright, positive, insistence on the recognition of one's rights"

In other words:

Assertiveness means standing up for your personal rights - expressing thoughts, feelings and beliefs in direct, honest and appropriate ways.

It is important to note also that:
By being assertive we should always respect the thoughts, feelings and beliefs of other people.
Those who behave assertively always respect the thoughts, feelings and beliefs of other people as well as their own.

Assertiveness concerns being able to express feelings, wishes, wants and desires appropriately and is an important personal and interpersonal skill. In all your interactions with other people, whether at home or at work, with employers, customers or colleagues, assertiveness can help you to express yourself in a clear, open and reasonable way, without undermining your own or others' rights.

Assertiveness enables individuals to act in their own best interests, to stand up for themselves without undue anxiety, to express honest feelings comfortably and to express personal rights without denying the rights of others.

Passive, Aggressive and Assertive

Assertiveness is often seen as the balance point between passive and aggressive behaviour, but it's probably easier to think of the three as points of a triangle.

Being Assertive

Being assertive involves taking into consideration your own and other people's rights, wishes, wants, needs and desires.

Assertiveness means encouraging others to be open and honest about their views, wishes and feelings, so that both parties act appropriately.

Assertive behaviour includes:

Being open in expressing wishes, thoughts and feelings and encouraging others to do likewise. See our page on Managing Emotions.

Listening to the views of others and responding appropriately, whether in agreement with those views or not. See our page on Active Listening.

Accepting responsibilities and being able to delegate to others. See our page on Delegation Skills for more.

Regularly expressing appreciation of others for what they have done or are doing. See our page on Gratitude and Being Grateful.

Being able to admit to mistakes and apologise.

Maintaining self-control. See our page on Self-Control for more.

Behaving as an equal to others. See our page on Justice and Fairness to explore further.

Some people may struggle to behave assertively for a number of reasons, and find that they behave either aggressively or passively instead.

Being Passive

Responding in a passive or non-assertive way tends to mean compliance with the wishes of others and can undermine individual rights and self-confidence.

Many people adopt a passive response because they have a strong need to be liked by others. Such people do not regard themselves as equals because they place greater weight on the rights, wishes and feelings of others. Being passive results in failure to communicate thoughts or feelings and results in people doing things they really do not want to do in the hope that they might please others. This also means that they allow others to take responsibility, to lead and make decisions for them.

A classic passive response is offered by those who say 'yes' to requests when they actually want to say 'no'.

For example:

"Do you think you can find the time to wash the car today?"

A typical passive reply might be:

"Yes, I'll do it after I've done the shopping, made an important telephone call, finished the filing, cleaned the windows and made lunch for the kids!"

A far more appropriate response would have been:

"No, I can't do it today as I've got lots of other things I need to do."

The person responding passively really does not have the time, but their answer does not convey this message. The second response is assertive as the person has considered the implications of the request in the light of the other tasks they have to do.
Assertiveness is equally important at work as at home.
If you become known as a person who cannot say no, you will be loaded up with tasks by your colleagues and managers, and you could even make yourself ill.

When you respond passively, you present yourself in a less positive light or put yourself down in some way. If you constantly belittle yourself in this way, you will come to feel inferior to others. While the underlying causes of passive behaviour are often poor self-confidence and self-esteem, in itself it can further reduce feelings of self-worth, creating a vicious circle.

Being Aggressive

By being aggressive towards someone else, their rights and self-esteem are undermined.

Aggressive behaviour fails to consider the views or feelings of other individuals. Those behaving aggressively will rarely show praise or appreciation of others and an aggressive response tends to put others down. Aggressive responses encourage the other person to respond in a non-assertive way, either aggressively or passively.

See our page on Transactional Analysis for more about this.

There is a wide range of aggressive behaviours, including rushing someone unnecessarily, telling rather than asking, ignoring someone, or not considering another's feelings.

Good interpersonal skills mean you need to be aware of the different ways of communicating and the different response each approach might provoke. The use of either passive or aggressive behaviour in interpersonal relationships can have undesirable consequences for those you are communicating with and it may well hinder positive moves forward.

It can be a frightening or distressing experience to be spoken to aggressively and the receiver can be left wondering what instigated such behaviour or what he or she has done to deserve the aggression.

If thoughts and feelings are not stated clearly, this can lead to individuals manipulating others into meeting their wishes and desires. Manipulation can be seen as a covert form of aggression whilst humour can also be used aggressively.

See our page: Dealing with Aggression for more information.

Different Situations Call for Different Measures
- or do they?

You may find that you respond differently - whether passively, assertively or aggressively - when you are communicating in different situations.

It is important to remember that any interaction is always a two-way process and therefore your reactions may differ, depending upon your relationship with the other person in the communication.

You may for example find it easier to be assertive to your partner than to your boss or vice versa. However, whether it is easy or not, an assertive response is always going to be better for you and for your relationship with the other person.

Further Reading from Skills You Need
Our Communication Skills eBooks
Learn more about the key communication skills you need to be an effective communicator.

Our eBooks are ideal for anyone who wants to learn about or develop their communication skills, and are full of easy-to-follow practical information and exercises.

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Assertiveness is a skill regularly referred to in social and communication skills training. Being assertive means being able to stand up for your own or other people's rights in a calm and positive way, without being either aggressive, or passively accepting 'wrong'. Assertive individuals are able to get their point across without upsetting others, or becoming upset themselves.

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Level 1 Child Criminal Exploitation course

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Level 1 Child Criminal Exploitation course

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Background to the issue

Evidence from the National Crime Agency shows that child criminal exploitation is increasing across all areas of the UK where children, due to their ease of manipulation and coercion, are being groomed and criminally exploited.

In 2021, 27,000 children in England were identified as being involved in county lines. Intervening early is so important to keep children safe from this devastating form of abuse and being aware of the signs a child might be being exploited enables parents and professionals to seek support quickly.

Parents Against Child Exploitation (Pace) and Virtual College have teamed up to create this FREE short (20 to 30 minutes) online course designed for parents, carers and professionals working alongside children and young people.

What will you learn from the course?

Gain an understanding about how children are groomed and criminally exploited. Learn what county lines is and how it is operated across the UK. Understand the impact this form of child abuse has on families and how to seek support if you have concerns about a child at risk.

Learning outcomes

Know more about county lines and other forms of child criminal exploitation

Know the signs and indicators of child criminal exploitation

Appreciate the impact child criminal exploitation has on families

Understand what to do if you suspect a child might be at risk

What will you be able to do, or do differently, after taking the course?

You will have the confidence to talk to a child about what county lines and criminal exploitation is.

You will be able to recognise the signs that a child or young person might be being exploited.

You will know how to seek support if you are concerned about your child or a child in the community.

Who is it for?

The free online training course is aimed and parents, carers and professionals who work alongside children and young people.

Related Course

Want to learn more about the affects of county lines on children? Virtual College have built a full CPD approved Child Criminal Exploitation, Gangs and County Lines Training online course.

Suitable for anyone who comes into contact with children on a regular basis the training will help you identify the signs and symptoms of abuse and what to do if you suspect a child or young person is becoming involved in gang activities.

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Level 1 Child Criminal Exploitation and County Lines Training | Virtual College

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Evidence from the National Crime Agency shows that child criminal exploitation is increasing across all areas of the UK where children, due to their ease of manipulation and coercion, are being groomed and criminally exploited. In 2021, 27,000 children in England were identified as being involved in county lines.

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Have you ever thought about how people perceive you? I mean seriously thought about it? We all wonder what people think of us every now and then but normally we tend to wonder this through curiosity rather than for any constructive reason. In fact, I expect some of you will be thinking... why should I bother reading this because "I don't care what people think of me".

If I was talking about looks or appearance then you would be right - I would stop reading now. But this blog is not about how you look, it's about how you communicate. It's about understanding how people perceive you so that you can make small changes to your behaviour to make you look and sound confident.

If you can work out how others perceive you, you can understand how you come across to them. This matters. If you get it wrong, it could be the reason why some people see you as lacking in confidence. If you get it right, you can start to think about adapting your behaviour so that their perception of you is what you want it to be.

In short, knowing how you come across to other people puts you in control and this in turn will make you look and feel more confident.

If you know how you come across, you can take control of the situation

I will show you in three simple steps how to work out how others perceive you. This in turn will help you to....

Get people to listen to you at work and socially.
Be influential when dealing with challenging people.
Come across with impact and be noticed at meetings.
Feel in control when you are out of your comfort zone.
But first, let's clarify why it matters how others perceive you.
Most people accept that other peoples' perceptions of them do matter. Not everyone though. Some believe that what other people think of them is of no consequence at all. From their point of view "confident people do their own thing". They are right to some extent. However, these people are not being very clever. Some might even say they are being over-confident. That's dangerous territory to be in.

These people tend to be those we would describe as 'thick skinned'. They're just not bothered what other people think of them. Sometimes they even pride themselves in having this trait; this supposed 'strength of character'. It's true that they're lucky they don't get affected emotionally by what other people think of them but be under no illusion, that's where the benefit of being thick skinned stops.

Imagine believing that you come across as a very confident person. You speak clearly and have no problem sharing your thoughts. However, the reality may actually be that other people see you not as confident, but as 'cocky', 'inconsiderate', 'insensitive', or even 'arrogant'. Imagine what the consequences are likely to be.

Quite simply, this failure to take account of others' perceptions of you may well impact on the path of your life. You could fail at an interview. Receive a poor performance review. Not be accepted as part of the team. Give a poor presentation. All because your self-perception is different to the perception others have of you.

Not taking account of how others perceive you may have a serious impact at work or in your social life

So it really does matter what people think and how they perceive you. However, it should not be the be all and end all. The reality of life is that most people cannot help but be affected by other peoples' impressions of them and therefore how people react to them. But I want to show you how this is a positive thing if considered constructively.
Follow these simple Steps to work out how others perceive you and then use this information to help you come across confidently
Step 1 - Revealing how you think you come across.

Whenever you are with others, you are communicating. It's true that most people think 'communication' is merely about talking. It's not though; talking is just one element of what it means to communicate. Try thinking more widely about the concept of communication. For example, have you ever considered that how you say something might be just as important as what you say?

Even when you're not talking, you're still communicating. Your physical presence alone communicates a message. For example, people will form a perception of you just by looking at your facial expression, the way you stand or even by the way you shake their hand.

Some people like to be the centre of attention and to talk, others prefer to watch from the side lines and to listen. Decisions such as these are determined both consciously and subconsciously through your natural communication style. This style is your own personal way of communicating, the instinctive way you come across when you don't consciously think about it. It will suit certain situations but not others. That's why it's so important to get to the bottom of it.

So how do you think you come across? Are you loud, caring, serious, enthusiastic for example?

My simple questionnaire ' How Do You Communicate ' will give you a clear idea of your own instinctive communication style. It's free to complete and considers four different types of style. Each of these has its own traits and typical communication behaviours.

It takes just a few minutes to complete the questionnaire and you'll receive your scores straightaway. The questionnaire is about how you think you come across so it's important to complete it honestly. Your scores should reflect how you feel about yourself.

Take a moment now to complete it and then continue to the next step.

Discover your natural communication style. Click here

Step 2 - Discovering if other people agree with you - Is the perception you have of yourself the same as how others perceive you?

Your questionnaire scores tell you how you think you communicate. Were there any surprises? Look out for more details about your scores in your inbox. You can also learn more about communication styles in my free book 'How to Get People To Listen to You'.

But how can you be sure this is what other people think? They might not agree with you.

You've got much more chance of coming across confidently if you are correct about what people are thinking about you when you're talking. The last thing you need is someone forming a negative impression of you - and you having no idea this is happening. Being confident is hard enough when you look and sound good, let alone when you don't!

So how can you be sure peoples' perception of you is what you assume it to be?

Perhaps you've never considered this. If so, you're not unusual. It's not something that tends to cross peoples' minds. Most people just make the assumption they come across the way they think they do. Be wary of this. You are making a presumption. You could be wrong.

Never make assumptions about how you think others perceive you

The truth is that most people do wonder what people think of them every now and then; it's just natural human behaviour. As I mentioned above, mostly it's simply because we're curious or perhaps lacking in self-confidence rather than for any constructive reason.

There's nothing wrong with being curious. But curiosity alone doesn't tend to lead to any meaningful conclusions you can use.

When I say 'use', I mean actually employ to help you to come across to people in the way you really want to be perceived. The difficulty is that, for some people, the way they want to come across can be very different to the way they actually come across.

So being curious is one thing but making changes to your behaviour having learnt from your curiosity is another. This really can make a huge difference, both at work and socially. For example, if you're presenting a negative impression when you're talking or doing something distracting that you're not aware of, this could be the reason why some people see you as lacking in confidence. In reality, that means you're probably not going to succeed at that interview, be listened to at meetings, engage people during a presentation...

Be aware... You could be communicating your lack of self-confidence without even knowing it

So how can you find out? How can you check how people actually perceive you?

You could ask them of course but you need to be sure they are giving you open and honest feedback. Getting objective feedback from people can be tricky if you are asking friends or family. On my face to face courses, you receive feedback from six people (including me). This works well because people haven't met before and they can be honest with each other.

You can also use my Reality Check questionnaire (included as part of The 4 Step Confidence Plan) which is designed so people can give you feedback anonymously. You choose who to invite to complete the questionnaire, but you won't know who said what about you - that way people can be completely open and honest. They can tell you the good things they see in you and also the things they think you should be aware of or that you could improve on.

You don't get to see peoples' completed questionnaires. Instead, the results of each questionnaire are collated automatically through our website and available for you to see once you've received five replies. The whole process is completely secure and confidential. The only person who'll see your results is you.

The Reality Check questionnaire has multiple choice answers and will only take people a few minutes to complete online. The results tell you how people view you in terms of:

The way you communicate and your body language
Your character
Your personal style and approach to life
How you cope with conflict
How you deal with stress
Your confidence levels

We recommend that you invite people who know you well enough to give you some balanced feedback. Try to choose as wide a variety of people as possible. Ideally you should invite at least eight people. The more the merrier. That way you'll get a comprehensive and balanced overall impression of how people see you. When people start the questionnaire, it's made clear in the instructions that they are completing it anonymously - this helps to ensure they record what they really think.

You should score yourself separately on a piece of paper so that you can compare your own results to how other people have scored you.

The Reality Check Questionnaire comes in Step 3 of my 4 Step Confidence Plan. Find out more here

Step 3 - Reconciliation - Controlling other peoples' perceptions of you.

The results of the Reality Check Questionnaire will give you a clear idea of how people actually perceive you. Take some time to compare these scores with your scores and also your results from the 'What's My Communication Style' Questionnaire.

To really use your scores from the questionnaires effectively, try opening your mind a touch. This should help to explain why different people react to you in different ways. You probably feel most comfortable with people who have a similar communication style to you. That's because people who communicate like you behave in a way that you can relate to. They do the things you do and don't distract you or frustrate you by coming across in a way you don't like.

The problems arise with people who have a different style to you. You might see this as a personality clash. In reality, it's a communication style clash. So it makes sense to adapt your behaviour so that their perception of you is what you want it to be. That's not giving in, it's actually being clever.

Ultimately, it's best to match the other person's style. You may want to come across as confident and assertive in some situations or perhaps considerate and empathetic in others. Stick to your guns though; you're only changing your communication style, not your opinion or needs. So although you are changing the way you communicate your message, the content and meaning of the message stays the same.

Change the way you communicate the message, NOT the meaning of the message itself

You can learn how to put this into practice on my online confidence course or come on one of my one day confidence courses to talk about it and try it out.

The key point to remember here is that if you know how others perceive you, you are more likely to be able to control the situation. You will start to see people reacting to you in the way you want them to. It's amazing how this can boost your confidence levels too.

So try to remember; have the confidence to 'do your own thing' but don't disregard other people's perceptions of you. Factor this into your thought processes and actions. Take account of peoples' perceptions but don't let this turn into paranoia. So "how am I perceived by others?" is certainly a question you should ask yourself regularly for constructive and positive reasons.
For regular free tips on confidence and self-esteem, sign up to receive my Confidence Tips once a week. This is a great way to stay focused on building your confidence in a structured way over a period of time.

Look, feel and be more confident

THE 4 STEP CONFIDENCE PLAN - A great place to start. Download our Free 4 Step Confidence Plan.

FREE RESOURCES - Just browsing? Check out our Blog and Free Resources.

ONE DAY COURSES - Kick start your confidence. Feel and see an immediate difference.

ON-LINE CONFIDENCE COURSE - There's no pressure. Learn in your own time at your own pace.

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How do People Perceive You? Most People Get This Wrong

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Have you ever thought about how people perceive you? I mean seriously thought about it? We all wonder what people think of us every now and then but normally we tend to wonder this through curiosity rather than for any constructive reason. In fact, I expect some of you will be thinking...

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Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE)

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It is important for the application of the MCA to have a fundamental understanding of the best interests principle.

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When your child misbehaves, rewards might be the last thing on your mind. However, positive reinforcement can be one of the most effective behavior modification techniques parents can use. Positive reinforcement can encourage prosocial behaviors, like sharing or following directions. And, you can use it to prevent misbehavior, like hitting, spitting, and rule violations.

Positive reinforcement can also be an effective way to motivate your child to be responsible, do their chores, get along with their siblings, or complete their homework assignments without arguing. Learn more about how to use this behavior modification technique, including positive reinforcement examples.

How Positive Reinforcement Works

Positive reinforcement is a type of positive discipline, an approach that seeks to guide and shape behavior by focusing on the positive while also reframing missteps as opportunities for learning. When consequences are added in to help discourage negative behaviors, this is sometimes called positive punishment. But positive reinforcement focuses on the other side-catching and rewarding the positive behaviors you want your child to be doing.

Consistency, limit-setting, encouragement, and kindness are pillars of this method. Essentially, providing a reward for doing well shapes behavior by motivating kids (or adults) to keep doing well-or even better.

For example, most adults go to work so they can receive a paycheck. Of course, there may be other rewards they experience too, like feeling good about themselves and their ability to help others. But their paycheck provides the main positive consequence of going to work. That positive reinforcement motivates them to keep working.

Like adults, kids who receive positive reinforcement for their good work are motivated to keep working hard.

So, it's important to reward the behavior you want to see more often, rather than simply focusing on their negative actions. When kids get attention and other benefits from behaving how you want them to act, those behaviors are much more likely to happen more often and-eventually-become habitual.

Examples of Positive Reinforcement

There are many ways to reinforce the behavior you want to encourage, and there are many free or low-cost reward options you can use. Positive reinforcement doesn't necessarily need to be a tangible item. Instead, you can positively reinforce a child's behavior by:

Clapping and cheering

Giving a high five

Giving a hug or pat on the back

Giving a thumbs-up

Offering a special activity, like playing a game or reading a book together

Offering praise

Telling another adult how proud you are of your child's behavior while your child is listening

You can also offer positive reinforcement by giving a child extra privileges or tangible rewards.﻿﻿ For example, if your child cleans their room without being asked, you could take them to the playground as a reward. Chances are that they'll be more motivated to clean their room again. If your child patiently helps their sibling with their homework, you could offer more time to play video games.

There are many different types of reward systems you can use to aid positive reinforcement as well. Younger children often do well with sticker charts and older children often respond well to token economy systems.﻿﻿

It's important to reward your child's efforts and improvement, rather than focusing only on perfect results. If you see them try or if they did better than last time, let them know you notice.

For example, if you are encouraging your child to put away their school things when they come home and you see that your child hangs up their coat but forgets to put their lunchbox on the counter, you can still praise the partial success. Similarly, if they start walking to the bathroom when you direct them to brush their teeth but get distracted along the way, you can still complement their initial compliance.

In fact, aim to offer praise right away once the good behavior starts rather than waiting until a longer task is complete, especially if you suspect their good intentions may get derailed. For example, if a child who struggles with homework begins working on their math problems, complement them for getting started. This early praise will give your child a sense of success and encourage them to stick with it.

Behaviors to Reinforce

Use positive reinforcement to encourage any behaviors that you want your child to repeat. Examples of behaviors to reinforce include:

Being a good friend

Being a good sport

Completing chores

Complying with a request right away

Compromising or being flexible

Handling a disagreement or disappointment without a tantrum

Helping you without complaint

Playing nicely with a sibling

Playing quietly

Putting in a lot of effort on a difficult task

Showing compassion

Staying at the dinner table without fidgeting or getting up

Talking about their feelings

Using manners

Waiting patiently

Schedules of Reinforcement

When your child is learning a new behavior or working on a specific skill, it's important to offer positive reinforcement on a consistent basis. After all, how often would you go to work if you only got paid occasionally? You might give up at some point because you'd decide your efforts aren't worthwhile.

The same can be said for your child. If you only catch them being good once in a while or you only give them positive reinforcement randomly, their behavior is unlikely to change.

This doesn't mean that you need to offer your child a reward every time they carry a dish to the sink. However, especially for younger kids, the more often their good behavior is noticed, the better.

To avoid a constant divvying out of physical rewards, you can set up a reward system where you provide immediate reinforcement in the form of a sticker or token. Then, stickers and tokens can later be exchanged for bigger rewards, such as a new book or an ice cream cone.

Over time, you can space out your reinforcement. Once your child has mastered a skill, surprise reinforcement from time to time can be effective maintenance. Say, "Wow, I'm so impressed you've been getting ready for school on time lately. I think we'll go to the playground tonight to celebrate."

The more often you can offer praise, the more motivated your child will be to repeat the behavior.

Linking Rewards to Behavior

If you are offering rewards along with praise, aim to connect them to the behavior you seek to reinforce. You want your child to see that exhibiting positive behavior makes good things happen.

For example, if your child helps you prepare dinner, you can let them decide which dressing to put on the salad-or what type of dessert to serve. If your child is a good sport about losing a game, you can let them choose the next game. If your child shares their toy with their sibling, you can let them stay up a bit later to keep playing-since they are playing together so nicely.

This connection between the reinforcement and the behavior will make the positive consequence more memorable and effective.

Additionally, you can offer your child the choice of what reward they would like to earn for consistently showing the selected behavior. This approach gives the child a greater sense of agency and buy-in, which will likely become another source of motivation.

Avoid Accidental Positive Reinforcement

Sometimes, parents accidentally reinforce negative behavior. One common way this happens is with attention. Attention can be very reinforcing, even if it's negative attention.

For example, a child who is purposely annoying their parent receives reinforcement every time their parent says, "Stop that!" or "Don't do that." Ignoring can be one of the best ways to respond to obnoxious attention-seeking behavior.

Another way parents unintentionally reinforce negative behavior is by giving in. If a parent tells a child they can't go outside, but then the child begs and pleads until the parent gives in, the child's whining has been positively reinforced. The child learned that whining helps them get what they want, encouraging them to whine again in the future.

Instead, make sure that negative behavior doesn't get reinforced. When your child misbehaves, follow through with a negative consequence, such as a loss of privileges or logical consequences.﻿﻿

A Word From Verywell

While eliminating reinforcement of negative behaviors, be sure to focus on the good behaviors that you want to reinforce. Once you get the hang of noticing all the praise-worthy things your child is doing, you'll likely find that positive reinforcement works much better than punishments-and makes for a much happier household.

Additional Reading

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Improve Your Child's Behavior Problems With Positive Reinforcement

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Positive reinforcement, in the form of praise or rewards, can be the most effective way to change kids' behavior.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Learn a powerful skill to motivate your child and boost their confidence and self esteem

What is Descriptive Praise?

'Descriptive Praise' is a way of giving your child appreciation and approval every day so that they are more motivated to listen and willing to co-operate. It is about noticing and mentioning all the OK things your child is doing to reinforce the behaviour you want to see. Children are programmed to seek their parent's attention so why not focus on what they are doing right.

What are the benefits of Descriptive Praise?

More co-operative child

More motivated child

Increased confidence and self-esteem

Children do more to please us

Less tension and stress

We like our children more as we notice what they are doing right

How do you do it?

Stand back and focus on what they do right

Notice and mention every tiny step in the right direction

Praise their effort, attitude and strategies not just the outcome

Point out the qualities shown by their behaviour

DP is hard. It feels like a foreign language at first but it really works with all ages from 1-100!!

Remember the magic ratio: - 5 POSITIVES TO EVERY NEGATIVE

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Descriptive Praise & Motivating Children - Educating Matters

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
'Descriptive Praise' is a way of giving your child appreciation and approval every day so that they are more motivated to listen and willing to co-operate. It is about noticing and mentioning all the OK things your child is doing to reinforce the behaviour you want to see.

# data[].attributes.headline
Comic strip conversations and social stories

# data[].attributes.subject
Comic strip conversations and social stories

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Social stories and comic strip conversations

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Find out more about social stories and comic strip conversations, and how they can help autistic people communicate.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Discover the reasons for singling out children’s rights in its own human rights Convention

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Serious Case Review: Daniel Pelka (2013) | Virtual College

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Child protection cases can have a significant effect on child safeguarding. Read how the inquiry into Daniel Pelka’s death influenced these practices.

# data[].attributes.headline
Finding the reasons for challenging behaviour

# data[].attributes.subject
Finding the reasons for challenging behaviour

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Introduction

What is county lines?

County lines is a form of criminal exploitation where urban gangs persuade, coerce or force children and young people to store drugs and money and/or transport them to suburban areas, market towns and coastal towns (Home Office, 2018). It can happen in any part of the UK and is against the law and a form of child abuse.

Children and young people may be criminally exploited in multiple ways. Other forms of criminal exploitation include child sexual exploitation, trafficking, gang and knife crime.

County lines gangs are highly organised criminal networks that use sophisticated, frequently evolving techniques to groom young people and evade capture by the police.

Perpetrators use children and young people to maximise profits and distance themselves from the criminal act of physically dealing drugs (National Crime agency, 2019). Young people do the majority of the work and take the most risk.

Dedicated mobile phone lines or "deal lines" are used to help facilitate county lines drug deals. Phones are usually cheap, disposable and old fashioned, because they are changed frequently to avoid detection by the police.

Gangs use the phones to receive orders and contact young people to instruct them where to deliver drugs. This may be to a local dealer or drug user, or a dealer or drug user in another county.

Phrases that young people may use to refer to county lines include:

'running a line',

'going OT/out there'

'going country'

'going cunch'.

These all refer to going out of town to deliver drugs or money (Thurrock Council, 2020).

We've put together some information to help anyone who works or volunteers with children and young people to recognise the signs that a child might be being exploited by a county lines gang and understand what action to take to help keep children safe.

This includes:

the risks associated with county lines

recognising and responding to concerns about county lines

how professionals can work to prevent county lines

a summary of the relevant legislation and guidance.

Risks

County lines is a cross-cutting issue that often overlaps with other forms of abuse and criminal exploitation. It can lead to serious physical and emotional harm to young people (Home Office, 2020a).

Criminalisation

If adults who work with children don't understand that county lines is a form of abuse, they may see children involved in county lines activity as criminals rather than as victims of criminal exploitation (Children's Society, 2019).

This can lead to children not getting the safeguarding support and protection they need.

Drugs

Perpetrators may use drugs and alcohol to entice young people into the gang lifestyle.

In some cases gangs trick young people into incurring drug debts that they then have to pay off through county lines activity. This is often referred to as 'debt bondage'.

Physical violence

There is a strong link between county lines activity and:

serious violence such as knife and gun crime

the use of substances such as acid as a weapon

homicide

(Home Office, 2018).

Conflict between rival gangs that are in dispute over who controls an area can lead to serious injury or death for young people who get caught in the wrong place.

The fear of serious physical violence as revenge for disrespecting, 'snitching' or 'grassing' is one of the things that prevents young people from leaving gangs or seeking help from the police and other agencies.

Sexual abuse and exploitation

As well as being used to transport drugs, county lines gangs may sexually abuse and exploit children of any gender (National Crime Agency, 2019).

This can happen through:

young people being forced into sexual activity with gang members or for the gang's financial gain

vulnerable children being made to work off drug debts through sexual exploitation as 'payment' (this might happen after the child has been coerced into becoming dependent on drugs by the gang)

children being groomed into what they believe is a romantic relationship with a gang member which then leads to exploitation

(National Crime Agency, 2019).

Some children are forced to transport drugs in ways that are invasive and harmful to their bodies. Young people may be forced to swallow bags of drugs to transport them, which could potentially be life threatening.

The practice of 'plugging' is also common, whereby drugs are inserted into a child's rectum or vagina. This is a form of sexual abuse and in some cases it can cause a child's death (Ofsted et al, 2018).

Trafficking and missing children

Young people can be trafficked to locations far away from where they live for long periods of time by a county lines gang. They may end up staying in unsuitable accommodation in an area that is unknown to them. This might include short term holiday lets or budget hotels.

Cuckooing

Cuckooing happens when a county lines gang takes over the home of a vulnerable adult by coercion or force, and use it as a base to deal drugs from. The vulnerable adult may have issues with substance misuse or mental health problems, be elderly or disabled or be in debt to the gang. These factors can make it easier for the gang to exploit and control them.

Children can be forced or coerced to stay at cuckooed addresses for long periods of time to deal drugs.

A cuckooed address is sometimes referred to as a 'bando' or a 'spot' by county lines gangs (Thurrock Council, 2020).

Financial exploitation and abuse

Gangs are known to launder money from drug sales through children's bank accounts, either by using an existing account or forcing or persuading the child to open a new one (Children's Society, 2019).
> Find out more about protecting children from trafficking and modern slavery

Recognising

Recognising

Grooming

The grooming process involves the gang:

seeking out a child to exploit

observing the child for vulnerabilities

finding out what the child's needs and wants are

manipulating the child into believing that being in the gang can fulfil these needs.

Once they have identified a child, the gang will make some form of contact and the grooming process will begin. This could be in person or via mobile phone. Social media profiles may also be used to glamourise gang life and entice young people.

Some children are groomed through family members, for instance if they have a sibling or relative who is already involved with a county lines gang.

County lines gangs offer money and status to attract young people. Children may also be attracted to joining a gang by the prospect of belonging to a 'family' that will protect them if their own family feels unstable or unsafe.

The following have been identified as key places where county lines gangs target and approach vulnerable young people:

schools and further and higher educational institutions

special educational needs schools

places for alternative provision outside of mainstream education

foster homes

homeless shelters.

Once a child is part of a county lines gang their loyalty and commitment will be tested. The gang will begin to trap the child by making them feel powerless to leave. This might include threats of violence if they leave, making the child feel like they are betraying their new 'family', or telling the child they will get in trouble if they seek help because they have committed a criminal offence (Children's Society, 2019).
> Find out more about grooming
Who is vulnerable to county lines exploitation?

Any child could potentially be at risk of criminal exploitation by a county lines gang.

Factors that make a county lines gang more likely to target, groom and exploit a child include:

the child having experienced neglect, physical and/or sexual abuse in the past

social isolation or social difficulties

poverty

homelessness or insecure accommodation status

connections with other people involved in gangs

having a learning disability

having mental health problems

having substance misuse issues

being in care or having a history of being in care

being excluded from mainstream education

(Home Office, 2020a).

Permanent exclusion from mainstream education has been identified as a critical event that can lead to young people becoming vulnerable to criminal exploitation (Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020).

County lines gangs can take advantage of the lack of structure, loss of a sense of belonging and feeling of rejection that exclusion can elicit in a young person.

The average age of young people who are exploited through county lines activity is 15-16 years old, but children as young as 12 have also been reported to have been involved (Home Office, 2020a).

Signs that a young person may be involved in criminal exploitation

The following signs may indicate that a child is being exploited by a county lines gang:

frequently going missing from school, home or care

travelling to locations, or being found in areas they have no obvious connections with, including seaside or market towns

unwillingness to explain their whereabouts

acquiring money, clothes, accessories or mobile phones which they seem unable to account for

receiving excessive texts or phone calls at all hours of the day

having multiple mobile phone handsets or sim cards

withdrawing or having sudden changes in personality, behaviour or the language they use

having relationships with controlling or older individuals and groups

unexplained injuries

carrying weapons

significant decline in school results or performance

being isolated from peers or social networks

associating with or being interested in gang culture

self-harming or having significant changes in mental health

(Ministry of Justice, 2019).

Responding

Responding to concerns about county lines exploitation

If you're worried that a child or young person might be or is at risk of being exploited by a county lines gang, you must share your concerns.

Reporting

If you think a child is in immediate danger, contact the police on 999. If you're worried about a child but they are not in immediate danger, you should share your concerns.

Follow your organisational child protection procedures. Organisations that work with children and families must have safeguarding policies and procedures in place.

Contact the NSPCC Helpline on 0808 800 5000 or by emailing help@nspcc.org.uk. Our trained professionals will talk through your concerns with you and give you expert advice.

Contact the local child protection services. Their contact details can be found on the website for the relevant local authority. The local authority the child comes from is responsible for the child's welfare. But it is also good practice to contact the local authority in the area the child is found, as they may need to be a part of the multi-agency response and there may be other children or vulnerable adults at risk.

Contact the police.

National referral mechanism (NRM)

As part of county lines, young people are trafficked to different locations.

You should refer children who have been trafficked to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). Evidence of a referral can be used in a young person's defence in criminal and legal proceedings (Youth Justice Legal Centre, 2018).
> Find out more about what action to take if a child has been exploited through trafficking and modern slavery
Multi-agency working

A multi-agency response is needed to tackle county lines and protect any children involved from further exploitation. This should include participation from local authority children's social care, the local authority community safety team, schools, police and youth offending teams.

The local authority the child comes from (if known) is responsible for the child's welfare (Ministry of Justice, 2019). They may need to liaise with child protection agencies in the area the child was found, in order to keep the child safe.

Collaborative working and information sharing is essential in protecting the welfare of the child.

Across the UK, Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) can act as sources of advice for children without a figure of parental responsibility in the UK who have been victims of trafficking and modern slavery (Home Office, 2020b).

ICTG regional practice co-ordinators take on a more strategic role supporting children who do have a figure of parental responsibility, working with professionals to encourage them to take a co-ordinated and multi-agency approach to child trafficking, modern slavery and county lines (Home Office, 2020b).
> Find out more about multi-agency working in child protection and safeguarding
Supporting the young person who has been exploited

Adults who work or volunteer with children and young people are in a good position to build trusting relationships with them. This will help young people feel able to discuss issues that are affecting their lives and speak out if they need support about any issue, including county lines (Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020).

Those who work with children need to be clear that county lines is not a lifestyle choice and that the young person is not to blame for being exploited by a gang.

Young people who are involved with a county lines gang may push back when help is offered. They may not see themselves as being exploited or they may be scared of recriminations if they 'snitch' or' grass' on gang leaders.

Gangs convince young people that there is no way out for them, in order to trap and control them. This means it's important for adults to reassure young people that there is a way out of gang life and that help is available when they are ready to leave.

Young people may finally reach out for help in the event of a major incident or emergency. This might include a serious injury or the threat of serious injury to themselves or someone they know, or if someone they know was killed. If professionals do not act quickly and effectively to intervene at this point, the child may be 're-groomed' or pressured back into the gang (Canterbury Community Safety Partnership, 2020).

Childline

If a child or young person needs confidential help and advice about gangs or anything else that's worrying them, you can always direct them to Childline. Calls to 0800 1111 are free and children can also contact Childline online.

Childline provides information and advice for young people affected by gang activity, drugs or any other form of abuse.

You can also download or order Childline posters and wallet cards.

Training

To help identify and support children who have experienced county lines, professionals need training which covers:

signs and indicators of county lines exploitation

the legislative framework around criminal exploitation

the NRM referral process

understanding the trauma experienced by young people

(Children's Society, 2019).

Prevention

Prevention

Schools and education

Schools and colleges can help raise awareness of county lines. This can be done through whole-school assemblies, class discussions or smaller group work.

As well as discussing what county lines is and how children might be targeted by gangs, schools should ensure children know who they can talk to if they have any concerns.

Schools are also well-placed to identify any children who may be at risk of county lines and form part of the multi-agency response.
> Find out more about having difficult conversations with children

> Find out more about promoting healthy relationships
Exclusion from school

If a child is at risk of being excluded from education, schools should always consider what immediate wrap around support can be put in place to protect them from county lines.

This should include exploring what support is available from children's social care, and voluntary and community organisations.

having their other children 'taken away' from them

their child being excluded from school

criminalising their child

recriminations from the county lines gang

Working with parents and carers

Engaging with parents and carers can help protect children and young people who are at risk of criminal exploitation. Parents and carers need support to manage any risk to their child.

It's important for services working with children at risk of county lines to understand what barriers might be in place for parents and carers. These might include fears around:

(Canterbury Community Safety Partnership, 2020; Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020).

Legislation and guidance

Legislation and guidance

Statutory guidance across the UK highlights the responsibility of those in the education, community and care sectors to safeguard children from all forms of abuse including county lines and other criminal exploitation.

County lines may involve child trafficking and modern slavery.
> Find out more about the legislation relating to child trafficking and modern slavery across the UK
Guidance

The Home Office has provided key guidance for all four UK nations on how to recognise and respond to concerns about county lines (Home Office, 2020a).

In England and Wales, the Ministry of Justice has provided guidance for frontline practitioners on referral pathways for responding to and safeguarding children involved in county lines (Ministry of Justice, 2019).

Public Health England (PHE) has published guidance on county lines exploitation to help health professionals prevent child exploitation and protect vulnerable children that have been manipulated and coerced into crime (PHE, 2021).

Practice principles, commissioned by the Department for Education (DfE), have been published by The Tackling Child Exploitation (TCE) Support Programme. The principles are for all professionals working with children around effective partnership working when responding to child exploitation and extra-familial harm (TCE Support Programme, 2023).

Further reading

For further reading about county lines, search the NSPCC Library catalogue using the keywords "county lines" or "criminal exploitation of children".

If you need more specific information, please contact our Information Service.

References

References

Canterbury Community Safety Partnership (2020) Protect your child: county lines and drug and alcohol abuse. (YouTube video). [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel (2020) It was hard to escape: safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation (PDF). [London]: Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel.

Children's Society (2019) Counting lives report: responding to children who are criminally exploited (PDF). London: Children's Society.

Home Office (2020a) Criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults: county lines. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Home Office (2020b) 2020 UK annual report on modern slavery. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Home Office (2018) County lines: criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Ministry of Justice (2019) County lines exploitation: practice guidance for youth offending teams and frontline practitioners. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

National Crime Agency (2019) County lines: drug supply, vulnerability and harm 2018 (PDF). London: National Crime Agency.

Ofsted et al (2018) Protecting children from criminal exploitation, human trafficking and modern slavery: an addendum. Manchester: Ofsted.

Public Health England (2021) County Lines exploitation: applying All Our Health. [Accessed 19/03/2021].

Thurrock Council (2020) Gangs and gang crime: county lines (drug trafficking). [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Youth Justice Legal Centre (2018) Child criminal exploitation: county lines gangs, child trafficking and modern slavery defences for children. London: Youth Justice Legal Centre.

Introduction

What is county lines?

County lines is a form of criminal exploitation where urban gangs persuade, coerce or force children and young people to store drugs and money and/or transport them to suburban areas, market towns and coastal towns (Home Office, 2018). It can happen in any part of the UK and is against the law and a form of child abuse.

Children and young people may be criminally exploited in multiple ways. Other forms of criminal exploitation include child sexual exploitation, trafficking, gang and knife crime.

County lines gangs are highly organised criminal networks that use sophisticated, frequently evolving techniques to groom young people and evade capture by the police.

Perpetrators use children and young people to maximise profits and distance themselves from the criminal act of physically dealing drugs (National Crime agency, 2019). Young people do the majority of the work and take the most risk.

Dedicated mobile phone lines or "deal lines" are used to help facilitate county lines drug deals. Phones are usually cheap, disposable and old fashioned, because they are changed frequently to avoid detection by the police.

Gangs use the phones to receive orders and contact young people to instruct them where to deliver drugs. This may be to a local dealer or drug user, or a dealer or drug user in another county.

Phrases that young people may use to refer to county lines include:

'running a line',

'going OT/out there'

'going country'

'going cunch'.

These all refer to going out of town to deliver drugs or money (Thurrock Council, 2020).

We've put together some information to help anyone who works or volunteers with children and young people to recognise the signs that a child might be being exploited by a county lines gang and understand what action to take to help keep children safe.

This includes:

the risks associated with county lines

recognising and responding to concerns about county lines

how professionals can work to prevent county lines

a summary of the relevant legislation and guidance.

Risks

County lines is a cross-cutting issue that often overlaps with other forms of abuse and criminal exploitation. It can lead to serious physical and emotional harm to young people (Home Office, 2020a).

Criminalisation

If adults who work with children don't understand that county lines is a form of abuse, they may see children involved in county lines activity as criminals rather than as victims of criminal exploitation (Children's Society, 2019).

This can lead to children not getting the safeguarding support and protection they need.

Drugs

Perpetrators may use drugs and alcohol to entice young people into the gang lifestyle.

In some cases gangs trick young people into incurring drug debts that they then have to pay off through county lines activity. This is often referred to as 'debt bondage'.

Physical violence

There is a strong link between county lines activity and:

serious violence such as knife and gun crime

the use of substances such as acid as a weapon

homicide

(Home Office, 2018).

Conflict between rival gangs that are in dispute over who controls an area can lead to serious injury or death for young people who get caught in the wrong place.

The fear of serious physical violence as revenge for disrespecting, 'snitching' or 'grassing' is one of the things that prevents young people from leaving gangs or seeking help from the police and other agencies.

Sexual abuse and exploitation

As well as being used to transport drugs, county lines gangs may sexually abuse and exploit children of any gender (National Crime Agency, 2019).

This can happen through:

young people being forced into sexual activity with gang members or for the gang's financial gain

vulnerable children being made to work off drug debts through sexual exploitation as 'payment' (this might happen after the child has been coerced into becoming dependent on drugs by the gang)

children being groomed into what they believe is a romantic relationship with a gang member which then leads to exploitation

(National Crime Agency, 2019).

Some children are forced to transport drugs in ways that are invasive and harmful to their bodies. Young people may be forced to swallow bags of drugs to transport them, which could potentially be life threatening.

The practice of 'plugging' is also common, whereby drugs are inserted into a child's rectum or vagina. This is a form of sexual abuse and in some cases it can cause a child's death (Ofsted et al, 2018).

Trafficking and missing children

Young people can be trafficked to locations far away from where they live for long periods of time by a county lines gang. They may end up staying in unsuitable accommodation in an area that is unknown to them. This might include short term holiday lets or budget hotels.

Cuckooing

Cuckooing happens when a county lines gang takes over the home of a vulnerable adult by coercion or force, and use it as a base to deal drugs from. The vulnerable adult may have issues with substance misuse or mental health problems, be elderly or disabled or be in debt to the gang. These factors can make it easier for the gang to exploit and control them.

Children can be forced or coerced to stay at cuckooed addresses for long periods of time to deal drugs.

A cuckooed address is sometimes referred to as a 'bando' or a 'spot' by county lines gangs (Thurrock Council, 2020).

Financial exploitation and abuse

Gangs are known to launder money from drug sales through children's bank accounts, either by using an existing account or forcing or persuading the child to open a new one (Children's Society, 2019).
> Find out more about protecting children from trafficking and modern slavery

Recognising

Recognising

Grooming

The grooming process involves the gang:

seeking out a child to exploit

observing the child for vulnerabilities

finding out what the child's needs and wants are

manipulating the child into believing that being in the gang can fulfil these needs.

Once they have identified a child, the gang will make some form of contact and the grooming process will begin. This could be in person or via mobile phone. Social media profiles may also be used to glamourise gang life and entice young people.

Some children are groomed through family members, for instance if they have a sibling or relative who is already involved with a county lines gang.

County lines gangs offer money and status to attract young people. Children may also be attracted to joining a gang by the prospect of belonging to a 'family' that will protect them if their own family feels unstable or unsafe.

The following have been identified as key places where county lines gangs target and approach vulnerable young people:

schools and further and higher educational institutions

special educational needs schools

places for alternative provision outside of mainstream education

foster homes

homeless shelters.

Once a child is part of a county lines gang their loyalty and commitment will be tested. The gang will begin to trap the child by making them feel powerless to leave. This might include threats of violence if they leave, making the child feel like they are betraying their new 'family', or telling the child they will get in trouble if they seek help because they have committed a criminal offence (Children's Society, 2019).
> Find out more about grooming
Who is vulnerable to county lines exploitation?

Any child could potentially be at risk of criminal exploitation by a county lines gang.

Factors that make a county lines gang more likely to target, groom and exploit a child include:

the child having experienced neglect, physical and/or sexual abuse in the past

social isolation or social difficulties

poverty

homelessness or insecure accommodation status

connections with other people involved in gangs

having a learning disability

having mental health problems

having substance misuse issues

being in care or having a history of being in care

being excluded from mainstream education

(Home Office, 2020a).

Permanent exclusion from mainstream education has been identified as a critical event that can lead to young people becoming vulnerable to criminal exploitation (Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020).

County lines gangs can take advantage of the lack of structure, loss of a sense of belonging and feeling of rejection that exclusion can elicit in a young person.

The average age of young people who are exploited through county lines activity is 15-16 years old, but children as young as 12 have also been reported to have been involved (Home Office, 2020a).

Signs that a young person may be involved in criminal exploitation

The following signs may indicate that a child is being exploited by a county lines gang:

frequently going missing from school, home or care

travelling to locations, or being found in areas they have no obvious connections with, including seaside or market towns

unwillingness to explain their whereabouts

acquiring money, clothes, accessories or mobile phones which they seem unable to account for

receiving excessive texts or phone calls at all hours of the day

having multiple mobile phone handsets or sim cards

withdrawing or having sudden changes in personality, behaviour or the language they use

having relationships with controlling or older individuals and groups

unexplained injuries

carrying weapons

significant decline in school results or performance

being isolated from peers or social networks

associating with or being interested in gang culture

self-harming or having significant changes in mental health

(Ministry of Justice, 2019).

Responding

Responding to concerns about county lines exploitation

If you're worried that a child or young person might be or is at risk of being exploited by a county lines gang, you must share your concerns.

Reporting

If you think a child is in immediate danger, contact the police on 999. If you're worried about a child but they are not in immediate danger, you should share your concerns.

Follow your organisational child protection procedures. Organisations that work with children and families must have safeguarding policies and procedures in place.

Contact the NSPCC Helpline on 0808 800 5000 or by emailing help@nspcc.org.uk. Our trained professionals will talk through your concerns with you and give you expert advice.

Contact the local child protection services. Their contact details can be found on the website for the relevant local authority. The local authority the child comes from is responsible for the child's welfare. But it is also good practice to contact the local authority in the area the child is found, as they may need to be a part of the multi-agency response and there may be other children or vulnerable adults at risk.

Contact the police.

National referral mechanism (NRM)

As part of county lines, young people are trafficked to different locations.

You should refer children who have been trafficked to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). Evidence of a referral can be used in a young person's defence in criminal and legal proceedings (Youth Justice Legal Centre, 2018).
> Find out more about what action to take if a child has been exploited through trafficking and modern slavery
Multi-agency working

A multi-agency response is needed to tackle county lines and protect any children involved from further exploitation. This should include participation from local authority children's social care, the local authority community safety team, schools, police and youth offending teams.

The local authority the child comes from (if known) is responsible for the child's welfare (Ministry of Justice, 2019). They may need to liaise with child protection agencies in the area the child was found, in order to keep the child safe.

Collaborative working and information sharing is essential in protecting the welfare of the child.

Across the UK, Independent Child Trafficking Guardians (ICTGs) can act as sources of advice for children without a figure of parental responsibility in the UK who have been victims of trafficking and modern slavery (Home Office, 2020b).

ICTG regional practice co-ordinators take on a more strategic role supporting children who do have a figure of parental responsibility, working with professionals to encourage them to take a co-ordinated and multi-agency approach to child trafficking, modern slavery and county lines (Home Office, 2020b).
> Find out more about multi-agency working in child protection and safeguarding
Supporting the young person who has been exploited

Adults who work or volunteer with children and young people are in a good position to build trusting relationships with them. This will help young people feel able to discuss issues that are affecting their lives and speak out if they need support about any issue, including county lines (Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020).

Those who work with children need to be clear that county lines is not a lifestyle choice and that the young person is not to blame for being exploited by a gang.

Young people who are involved with a county lines gang may push back when help is offered. They may not see themselves as being exploited or they may be scared of recriminations if they 'snitch' or' grass' on gang leaders.

Gangs convince young people that there is no way out for them, in order to trap and control them. This means it's important for adults to reassure young people that there is a way out of gang life and that help is available when they are ready to leave.

Young people may finally reach out for help in the event of a major incident or emergency. This might include a serious injury or the threat of serious injury to themselves or someone they know, or if someone they know was killed. If professionals do not act quickly and effectively to intervene at this point, the child may be 're-groomed' or pressured back into the gang (Canterbury Community Safety Partnership, 2020).

Childline

If a child or young person needs confidential help and advice about gangs or anything else that's worrying them, you can always direct them to Childline. Calls to 0800 1111 are free and children can also contact Childline online.

Childline provides information and advice for young people affected by gang activity, drugs or any other form of abuse.

You can also download or order Childline posters and wallet cards.

Training

To help identify and support children who have experienced county lines, professionals need training which covers:

signs and indicators of county lines exploitation

the legislative framework around criminal exploitation

the NRM referral process

understanding the trauma experienced by young people

(Children's Society, 2019).

Prevention

Prevention

Schools and education

Schools and colleges can help raise awareness of county lines. This can be done through whole-school assemblies, class discussions or smaller group work.

As well as discussing what county lines is and how children might be targeted by gangs, schools should ensure children know who they can talk to if they have any concerns.

Schools are also well-placed to identify any children who may be at risk of county lines and form part of the multi-agency response.
> Find out more about having difficult conversations with children

> Find out more about promoting healthy relationships
Exclusion from school

If a child is at risk of being excluded from education, schools should always consider what immediate wrap around support can be put in place to protect them from county lines.

This should include exploring what support is available from children's social care, and voluntary and community organisations.

having their other children 'taken away' from them

their child being excluded from school

criminalising their child

recriminations from the county lines gang

Working with parents and carers

Engaging with parents and carers can help protect children and young people who are at risk of criminal exploitation. Parents and carers need support to manage any risk to their child.

It's important for services working with children at risk of county lines to understand what barriers might be in place for parents and carers. These might include fears around:

(Canterbury Community Safety Partnership, 2020; Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel, 2020).

Legislation and guidance

Legislation and guidance

Statutory guidance across the UK highlights the responsibility of those in the education, community and care sectors to safeguard children from all forms of abuse including county lines and other criminal exploitation.

County lines may involve child trafficking and modern slavery.
> Find out more about the legislation relating to child trafficking and modern slavery across the UK
Guidance

The Home Office has provided key guidance for all four UK nations on how to recognise and respond to concerns about county lines (Home Office, 2020a).

In England and Wales, the Ministry of Justice has provided guidance for frontline practitioners on referral pathways for responding to and safeguarding children involved in county lines (Ministry of Justice, 2019).

Public Health England (PHE) has published guidance on county lines exploitation to help health professionals prevent child exploitation and protect vulnerable children that have been manipulated and coerced into crime (PHE, 2021).

Practice principles, commissioned by the Department for Education (DfE), have been published by The Tackling Child Exploitation (TCE) Support Programme. The principles are for all professionals working with children around effective partnership working when responding to child exploitation and extra-familial harm (TCE Support Programme, 2023).

Further reading

For further reading about county lines, search the NSPCC Library catalogue using the keywords "county lines" or "criminal exploitation of children".

If you need more specific information, please contact our Information Service.

References

References

Canterbury Community Safety Partnership (2020) Protect your child: county lines and drug and alcohol abuse. (YouTube video). [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel (2020) It was hard to escape: safeguarding children at risk from criminal exploitation (PDF). [London]: Child Safeguarding Practice Review Panel.

Children's Society (2019) Counting lives report: responding to children who are criminally exploited (PDF). London: Children's Society.

Home Office (2020a) Criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults: county lines. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Home Office (2020b) 2020 UK annual report on modern slavery. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Home Office (2018) County lines: criminal exploitation of children and vulnerable adults. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Ministry of Justice (2019) County lines exploitation: practice guidance for youth offending teams and frontline practitioners. [Accessed 16/03/2021].

National Crime Agency (2019) County lines: drug supply, vulnerability and harm 2018 (PDF). London: National Crime Agency.

Ofsted et al (2018) Protecting children from criminal exploitation, human trafficking and modern slavery: an addendum. Manchester: Ofsted.

Public Health England (2021) County Lines exploitation: applying All Our Health. [Accessed 19/03/2021].

Thurrock Council (2020) Gangs and gang crime: county lines (drug trafficking). [Accessed 16/03/2021].

Youth Justice Legal Centre (2018) Child criminal exploitation: county lines gangs, child trafficking and modern slavery defences for children. London: Youth Justice Legal Centre.

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Protecting children from county lines | NSPCC Learning

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Provides information on how adults working or volunteering with children can recognise, respond to and protect children from county lines.

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Stuart Hall MA PGMdip MCIPPdip, non-executive director at the CIPP provides some top tips on perfecting the invaluable art of communication

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Behaviour as Communication - A Growing Understanding

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Challenging behaviour is often a child's reaction to their needs not being met.Your toddlers meltdown is telling you a lot more than you might think.

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Behaviour: Verbal and non-verbal communication

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There are many children who expend much of their time and energy trying to decipher adult communications and masking their responses with ‘poor behaviour’ when they feel that they have misunderstood. Sara Alston looks at verbal and non-verbal communication

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Bob Livingstone is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCS 11087) in private practice for 22 years in San Francisco, California. He holds a Masters Degree ...Read More

Children and adolescents seem to communicate with their peers more electronically than face to face. They chat with their friends through instant messaging, texting, social network sites such as Facebook and email. Often times they are multi-tasking; they may be texting several of their friends while chatting via instant message and at the same time listening to the latest music download.

There world is insular, in constant motion and seemingly never ending. There is information sharing in these messages which appear to be slightly exaggerated sound bites. Discussions about homework, sports and the latest trends are shared. Drama and conflict are also included in these conversations, but there is no real means to resolve them.

Their online conversations tend to be short, but the back and forth dialogue with a multitude of friends can last for hours and simultaneously they are playing the latest video game. They also consider playing online games with their friends as meaningful contact and conversation. This seems more like parallel play as opposed to really being engaged with one another

Many young people prefer to communicate electronically rather than face to face. This is because face to face communication has become foreign to them since they have limited experience communicating live-in person.
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Lack of experience talking directly to each other has caused this means of discussion to become threatening. Online chats are communicated through keyboard strokes and can be discontinued at any time. It would be awkward to end a face to face discussion abruptly. It is probably even more uncomfortable for kids to begin a face to face discussion.

Multi-tasking electronically creates anxiety and diminishes meaningful discussion and relationships. Many children and adolescents feel like their life is empty if they don't devote an inordinate amount of time each day to multi-tasking. It seems that the absence of moving from one text to another then to an online chat and then to one's Facebook page creates an alarming boredom. This sense that there is nothing to do eventually creates an anxiety that causes emotional outbursts or increased sadness.

Mastery of face to face or direct communication is important because connecting deeply with others is one of the most rewarding aspects of being alive. It is also an important life skill. It still is not possible to conduct a job interview in a text message. Young folks need to learn how to ask and answer direct questions.

Lack of face to face communication eliminates the process of attempting to problem solve together. Sometimes you have conflicts with those you love that require a real commitment to working through these issues. This process takes time and energy. It is also very fulfilling once you obtain real resolution.

The use of electronics as the main means of communication does not support this intensity or sense of purpose. The reliance on these gadgets causes kids to not have the patience for long, meaningful discussion.

How do young people communicate face to face if they have limited experience doing so? One of the pitfalls here is that they don't learn effective listening skills or even the ability to act like they are paying attention to someone else in the room.

They either talk over the other person or they don't pay attention to anyone else around them. If you enter any family restaurant you will notice the parents talking with each other while their children are either listening to their Ipods, playing on a Gameboy or texting a friend.

When I have worked with kids and their parents at eliminating or reducing their screen time, the children tend to have reactions that are similar to drug withdrawal. They become extremely moody and agitated. They are relentless in wanting access to their devices. They may develop sleep or appetite disturbance.

Children and adolescents mostly utilize cell phones for their main mode of communicating-text messages. Parents buy their kids cell phones for the false sense of security that they will be able to reach them at all times, but many kids will simply not answer their phones when their parent's caller ID phone number comes up.

What can parents do about this phenomenon? You can model effective communication with other adults in your life as well as your children. You can insist that they not have ear bugs on while you are attempting to talk with them. You can also limit your children's time on these gadgets.

Being a parent is the most difficult job in the world. It is especially tough now with the downfall of the economy. These days' parents have to work many hours during the week often traveling much of the time.

Try to spend quality time with your kids talking about how they feel about school, their future and their relationship with you. Help them get beyond one word responses.

Keep Reading By Author Bob Livingstone, LCSW

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How Do Our Young People Communicate Today: What Is The Downside And What Can We Do About It? Part One - Mental Help

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Bob Livingstone is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCS 11087) in private practice for 22 years in San Francisco, California. He holds a Masters Degree ...Read More Children and adolescents seem to communicate with their peers more electronically than face to face.

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Approximately one in six people with a learning disability (LD) engage in “behaviours that challenge”. Behaviours that challenge are defined by their negative impact on the person (e.g., injury, exclusion from the community) and others (e.g., physical harm, stress). The actions of staff members can…

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Daniel Pelka: Sibling hid food for starved boy

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Four-year-old Daniel Pelka's life was one of such "extreme cruelty" in the run up to his death that a sibling felt compelled to hide food for him while he was being starved by his parents. Daniel was denied food, force-fed salt, held under the water in a bath until unconscious and regularly beaten.

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Challenging Behaviour. Is the term outdated?

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Challenging Behaviour. Is the term outdated?

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Challenging Behaviour is a term the healthcare sector has misused for years. When the term was originally introduced, it was an attempt to move away from the then widely used term "behaviourally disturbed". The healthcare sector recognised that the term had become associated with some very negative connotations and therefore should not, in good conscience, be given to an individual.

Labelling in this manner, we understand now, would be detrimental to relationship building between individuals on either side of the cared for / carer divide. Despite this however the term"challenging behaviour" was introduced and very quickly it fell into regular use. This term Challenging Behaviour followed the usual sector path of defaulting through ignorance into a label to assign to a "cared for" individual. There are many reasons why the assigning of this label is used, these range from financial to actively maintaining the power divide in the carer/cared for relationship. Sadly this has been the norm for the last 20 years of my experience, in that time I have repeatedly challenged the belief with thousands of staff on training workshops.

On training even today in introductions on courses staff still make several statements that follow one of these two patterns:

"I work with someone who has challenging behaviour"

"I work in the challenging behaviour unit"

Generally it does not take much teaching and interactive discussion for the group to realise that the term challenging behaviour is outdated. What one person finds challenging another may not. What is an expression of a need by one person may be perceived as a challenge by another.

How many times have you met people in life that you do not gel with due to them having some little quirks that you find irritating. If you believed they were doing this on purpose to cause you upset then you might say they are challenging you. However if you understand that their grinding teeth that drives you crazy is just part of the persons expression, you may say they grind their teeth which I find a challenge.

This leads to a wholly different perception of the behaviour.

He does not have challenging behaviour - he grinds his teeth which I find challenging, whereas you, another person, may not find it a problem.

These phrases set the whole philosophy of the work we do into a "them and us" mentality. This state of mind leads to more people in distress. Well being is achieved through many factors, most significantly having those significant relationships in our lives. Significant relationships are a big factor in all of us maintaining lower stress levels, leading to any one of us displaying less distress that other people may find difficult, disturbing or challenging.

SO WHAT IS IT?

If we look at some of the ways our sector use the term:

A policy

I worked with a policy that used the definition that a behaviour that challenges is any behaviour that enough of the staff group believe constitutes a management issue.

This cannot be considered bad and can be defined depending on the staff groups perceptions. One group worked with an individual who was bed-bound who shouted at them, to those staff he was extremely challenging, and it caused them a management issue. To other staff groups he may not have been challenging at all as he could not move and had never carried out a threat.

one common definition of challenging behaviour is defined by the Challenging Behaviour Foundation

"Culturally abnormal behaviour(s) of such an intensity, frequency or duration that the physical safety of the person or others is likely to be placed in serious jeopardy, or behaviour which is likely to seriously limit use of, or result in the person being denied access to, ordinary community facilities."

or wikipedia

While these are cited as an Emerson definition in 1995 I can clearly state that prior to 1995 I was a trainer teaching "challenging behaviour" courses, even back in 1995 the definition was easy to pull apart. Someone picking their nose and chewing it will divide a group of staff emotionally but will not be considered challenging under the definition.

Times have moved on and most of the sector are accepting or starting to accept that the term should be used in a more appropriate context.

in recent years the term challenging behaviour has been used to reflect the fact that some of the behaviours that are seen are a challenge to us as professionals, teachers, carers and parents. That the person showing these behaviours is not a 'problem' to be fixed, or someone doing something wrong that needs to be sorted, but that the behaviour is a sign that something isn't working. It shows that there is some need being unfulfilled, or a problem with communication.

In essence it is that there is something going wrong that needs to be addressed, not that there is a person doing something wrong who needs to be stopped. Scope.org.uk

This is a common stumbling block in terminology, last year I met a healthcare professional who took an instant dislike to me when I said I was a challenging behaviour trainer. However her mind was aligned with mine and I soon resolved the confusion when she said she hated the term. Unfortunately stating what I do gets predictable reactions through preconceptions see blog post here

Therefore how do we proceed, the sector use the term and professionals in the sector given a bit of experience or training get the point, YET there it is, with every new member of staff setting up the divide in the relationship through the perception of the concept from day one in employment due to use of an outdated term. The invisible barrier sets in.

I propose a new concept, we find a new term. I have some suggestions however we should be careful here, language changes with time and linguistics are geographic in their perception. One service talk about their individuals "going into behaviour", which, from my background I see as just as problematic as using the term "he is becoming challenging". So our concept must address this balance as best we can to help new staff instantly perceive a role of a relationship builder rather than managing he / she who is displaying challenging behaviour. Often a staff member will say:

he is doing it because he is not getting what he wants !

to which I reply

you mean we are not meeting his needs

this is purely a perception issue, both statement mean the same however the second one puts the onus on the staff member to assist rather than blame.

ASSISTING INDIVIDUALS IN DISTRESS

If we used this phrase I believe we are more likely to instil a culture of compassion. Indeed I believe this area of training should be about developing relationships to better assist individuals in distress.

If you had a member of your family who had a head injury and could not communicate to their own satisfaction which therefore led to them displaying distress, would you say:

he is becoming challenging and we need to find a way of controlling him!

or

he seems distressed, what ways can we assist him to regain control to reduce his stress?

I do not think that needs an answer. Yet by using the term challenging behaviour with new staff that is the philosophy gap we ourselves are creating.

TRAINING

Our course Developing Positive Relationships with those in distress covers all you would assume is in a standard challenging behaviour / physical intervention training. However this is the only page on the site you will see the term challenging behaviour as our work is about the relationship building, despite stress, between each other including those we care for.

Develop the relationships - reduce the distress.

Notice from the content that to achieve this, staff support systems need to build in place to underpin relationship development, this works in the same way as the individual in distress needing significant relationships in their daily lives. Your staff group bond into a team, as a side effect of training in this manner, creating supportive staff helping each other assist in relationship building with those in distress.

Ultimately should this not be our goal? What terminology do you use and why?

REF

(taken from the web pages quoted from above)
Ref: Emerson, 1995, cited in Emerson, E (2001, 2nd edition): Challenging Behaviour: Analysis and intervention in people with learning disabilities. Cambridge University Press
^ Emerson, E. 1995. cited in Emerson, Eric (2001). "Challenging behaviour". Challenging Behaviour: Analysis and Intervention in People with Severe Learning Disabilities. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 3. ISBN 978-0-521-79444-2.

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Challenging Behaviour is a term the healthcare sector has misused for years. When the term was originally introduced, it was an attempt to move away from the then widely used term "behaviourally disturbed". The healthcare sector recognised that the term had become associated with some very negative connotations and therefore should not, in good conscience, be given to an individual.

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Caring for a relative with severe learning disabilities whose behaviour is challenging can have a huge effect on your life, leaving you with little time and energy for your own life and well-being.
Download: Information sheet on the impact of caring on families
How can caring affect families?

When a child is diagnosed with a disability the amount of information and support offered to the family varies. Families can feel very alone and unsure about how to support their child, or what will happen in the future. Seeing challenging behaviour appear in a young child can be upsetting and confusing. There is a lot to learn and getting professional help and specialist services can be difficult.

Families are often socially isolated and can be left out of family events, activities and places in the local community because of their family member's behaviour. Family carers say they have feelings like stress, frustration, anger, guilt, shame and loneliness, or feel that no-one understands what they are going through. Feeling low or stressed can sometimes lead to mental health problems like depression or anxiety, that need medical help. Relationships break down more often for people whose son or daughter's behaviour challenges. Finding support and time alone to relax is really important, but can be hard. Meeting other parents is really helpful to get support and to share ideas of what has helped.

Eating well, exercising and getting enough sleep can be tough when your family member's needs come first, especially if they have sleep problems. Families can plan their time to do activities that are good for all the family and be healthy together.

Parents might not be able to work and extra money is spent if things get broken or equipment and changes are needed at home. There are benefits, direct payments and grants that families might be entitled to.

What help can families get?

The Challenging Behaviour Foundation's Family Support Service offers confidential emotional support by telephone or email. We also have a Family Carers' Email Network to put you in touch with other families.

Carers' charities, support groups and parent networks all offer support.

Siblings can get in touch with other young people in their position or join in special activities through young carers charities.

A carer's assessment from adult social services looks at whether you need extra support. This can be short breaks or respite, financial support, or help to get into training or work.

Families may be entitled to different benefits or funding, like direct payments.

Download: Information sheet on the impact of caring on families

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Caring for a relative with severe learning disabilities whose behaviour is challenging can have a huge effect on your life, leaving you with little time and energy for your own life and well-being. Download: Information sheet on the impact of caring on families When a child is diagnosed with a disability the amount of information and support offered to the family varies.

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Information about different aspects of communication and teaching new skills, support packages, transition planning and planning for the future.

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Bullying is usually targeted behaviour that is repetitive and persistent. It can have long-lasting effects on children and young people's mental health and academic performance.

A 2018 ONS report found that 17% of young people had been bullied in the past year. The proportion of young people reporting being bullied was higher in the younger age groups: 22% of 10-year-olds said they had been bullied, compared with 8% of 15-year-olds.

Bullying can be harmful and affect children and young people's mental health in a number of ways.

Who's more at risk of being bullied?

Bullying can happen for any number of reasons, but if a child is seen as weaker or different in some way they can be more at risk. This might be because of their physical appearance, race, culture, gender identity, sexuality, disability, family situation (i.e. growing up in care or parents divorcing) religion or beliefs. It could also be because a child is shy or introverted, appears anxious, vulnerable or has low self-esteem.

When bullying takes place, there is often a significant, perceived power imbalance between the child involved in bullying, and the child who is bullied.

Research conducted by the NHS in England found that young people with a mental health condition are nearly twice as likely to be bullied, and more than twice as likely to be cyberbullied.

Children and young people who are more likely to be bullied may include those with additional learning needs, or with a disability or long-term illness, as well as those who live in deprived areas or one-parent households.

Identifying the signs

Bullying can take many forms:

verbal abuse: name-calling, saying nasty things

physical abuse: hitting, kicking, scratching, pushing

emotional abuse: making threats, spreading rumours, being blackmailed, telling lies about another child or young person, excluding a child or young person from friendship groups or activities

What schools and further education settings can do

If you are at all concerned about a child or young person, you should always speak to your designated safeguarding lead as a matter of priority. They will be able to advise on suitable next steps, and speaking to them about any concerns should always be the first action you take, ahead of any of the suggestions on this page.

School and college leaders should communicate to all pupils and staff that bullying is unacceptable and emphasise the impact it can have on individuals. It's also important for schools to respect, promote and celebrate diversity within and outside of their school community.

Schools can reduce bullying by teaching pupils social and emotional skills during health and wellbeing education lessons, and reinforcing these skills throughout the curriculum. Skills that help to protect children against bullying include, learning how to:

co-operate with others

be tolerant

show empathy

build healthy relationships

resist inappropriate pressure.

These skills will also develop pupils' resilience and coping skills and help them to negotiate conflict constructively.

Here are two key approaches that schools and further education settings can focus on to help prevent and tackle bullying:
1. Focus on a whole-school approach
School or college leaders, governors or parent councils, school or college staff, and parents and carers need to work together to design an effective whole-school strategy to prevent bullying. This may include:

building strong relationships with parents and carers before any crisis emerges, so that difficult conversations about behaviour are easier and more productive

training school/college staff to help them understand the different types of bullying and the impact these may have on mental health and wellbeing. Effective training should help staff to feel confident to tackle bullying, manage challenging behaviours, and know how to deal with different situations, such as prejudice-based language, for example

adopting a firm but non-judgmental and non-shaming approach to addressing bullying behaviours - and making sure to separate the child or young person from the behaviour

encouraging all school/college staff and pupils to be alert to signs of bullying, and have the skills to know what to do if they witness bullying

being aware of the importance of the physical environment of the school/college and how breaktimes and lunchtimes are organised - this may involve monitoring school bullying hotspots.

2. Design an effective anti-bullying policy
All education settings should have a behaviour policy in place that focuses on preventing all forms of bullying among pupils. It can also be helpful to involve parents in designing these policies.

Your setting's policy should:

instruct pupils and staff on what to do and who to tell if they witness bullying

help pupils to feel confident about reporting bullying

have clear procedures for dealing with children and young people who bully

have additional support in place for children and young people who are bullied to prevent their mental health from deteriorating - this may be through pastoral care or counselling, or through linking up with external community support services

have clear procedures for recording and monitoring bullying incidents (what, when, frequency, triggers, consequences and effectiveness) - this will help shape future actions

consider sharing specific reports on bullying (with detailed analysis) with governors, parent councils and trustees.

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Bullying and cyberbullying : Mentally Healthy Schools

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Bullying is usually targeted behaviour that is repetitive and persistent. It can have long-lasting effects on children and young people's mental health and academic performance. A 2018 ONS report found that 17% of young people had been bullied in the past year.

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Guide to adult siblings of those with challenging behaviour

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Guide to adult siblings of those with challenging behaviour

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Challenging behaviour and learning disabilities

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Challenging behaviour and learning disabilities

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Challenging behaviour and learning disabilities: independent living

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This film for social care managers and staff shows how services and families can work together to improve the lives of people with behaviour that challenges. The film illustrates that, with good support, people with challenging behaviour and severe learning disabilities can enjoy independent, fulfilling lives.

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Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014: Regulation 10

The intention of this regulation is to make sure that people using the service are treated with respect and dignity at all times while they are receiving care and treatment. To meet this regulation, providers must make sure that they provide care and treatment in a way that ensures people's dignity and treats them with respect at all times. This includes making sure that people have privacy when they need and want it, treating them as equals and providing any support they might need to be autonomous, independent and involved in their local community.

Providers must have due regard to the protected characteristics as defined in the Equality Act 2010.

CQC cannot prosecute providers for a breach of this regulation or of its parts, but we can take regulatory action. See the offences section for more detail.

CQC must refuse registration if providers cannot satisfy us that they can and will continue to comply with this regulation.

Component of the regulation

Providers must have regard to the following guidance

10(1) Service users must be treated with dignity and respect.

When people receive care and treatment, all staff must treat them with dignity and respect at all times. This includes staff treating them in a caring and compassionate way.

All communication with people using services must be respectful. This includes using or facilitating the most suitable means of communication and respecting a person's right to engage or not to engage in communication.

Staff must respect people's personal preferences, lifestyle and care choices.

When providing intimate or personal care, provider must make every reasonable effort to make sure that they respect people's preferences about who delivers their care and treatment, such as requesting staff of a specified gender.

People using the service should be addressed in the way they prefer.

People using the service must not be neglected or left in undignified situations such as those described in the guidance for Regulation 13(4) below.

10(2) Without limiting paragraph (1), the things which a registered person is required to do to comply with paragraph (1) include in particular-

Providers must make sure that they treat people using services with dignity and respect. In particular this includes the things listed in 10(2) (a)-(c) but these things are not exhaustive and providers must demonstrate that they take all reasonable steps to make sure that people using their service are always treated with dignity and respect.

10(2)(a) ensuring the privacy of the service user;

Each person's privacy must be maintained at all times including when they are asleep, unconscious or lack capacity.

All reasonable efforts should be made to make sure that discussions about care treatment and support only take place where they cannot be overheard.

Staff must make sure that people have privacy when they receive treatment and that they are supported to wash, bath, use the toilet and hold private conversations.

Each person's privacy needs and expectations should be identified, recorded, and met as far as is reasonably possible.

People's relationships with their visitors, carer, friends, family or relevant other persons should be respected and privacy maintained as far as reasonably practicable during visits.

People using services should not have to share sleeping accommodation with others of the opposite sex, and should have access to segregated bathroom and toilet facilities without passing through opposite-sex areas to reach their own facilities. Where appropriate, such as in mental health units, women should have access to women-only day spaces.

If any form of surveillance is used for any purpose, providers must make sure this is in the best interests of people using the service, while remaining mindful of their responsibilities for the safety of their staff. Any surveillance should be operated in line with current guidance. Detailed guidance on the use of surveillance is available on CQC's website.

10(2)(b) supporting the autonomy, independence and involvement in the community of the service user;

People who use services must be offered support to maintain their autonomy and independence in line with their needs and stated preferences. When offering support, staff should respect people's expressed wishes to act independently but also identify and mitigate risks in order to support their continued independence as safely as possible. (See Regulation 12(2)(a) & (b) for more detail).

People must be supported to maintain relationships that are important to them while they are receiving care and treatment.

People must be supported to be involved in their community as much or as little as they wish. Providers must actively work with people who wish to maintain their involvement in their local community as soon as they begin to use a service. The provider must make sure that people are not left unnecessarily isolated.

Note: Where people are detained in high security settings, 'the community' relates to the facility where they are detained and their level of involvement in it will depend on their care and treatment needs.

10(2)(c) having due regard to any relevant protected characteristics (as defined in section 149(7) of the Equality Act 2010) of the service user .

People using services must not be discriminated against in any way and the provider must take account of protected characteristics, set out in the Equality Act 2010.
The protected characteristics are age, disability, gender, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity status, race, religion or belief and sexual orientation

This means that providers must not discriminate, harass or victimise people because of these protected characteristics. This includes direct and indirect discrimination, which is described in the Equality Act 2010.

Providers must also make sure that they have due regard to people's protected characteristics in the way in which they meet all other regulatory requirements. For example, in relation to care and treatment reflecting the person's preferences in Regulation 9(1)(c) or in relation to community involvement in relation to Regulation 10(2)(b).

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Our guidance explains how care providers can meet this requirement, which is one of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. Its intention is to make sure that people using the service are treated with respect and dignity at all times while they are receiving care and treatment.

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You're a whistleblower if you're a worker and you report certain types of wrongdoing. This will usually be something you've seen at work - though not always.

The wrongdoing you disclose must be in the public interest. This means it must affect others, for example the general public.

As a whistleblower you're protected by law - you should not be treated unfairly or lose your job because you 'blow the whistle'.

You can raise your concern at any time about an incident that happened in the past, is happening now, or you believe will happen in the near future.

Who is protected by law

You're protected if you're a worker, for example you're:

an employee, such as a police officer, NHS employee, office worker, factory worker

a trainee, such as a student nurse

an agency worker

a member of a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)

Get independent advice if you're not sure you're protected, for example from Citizens' Advice.

A confidentiality clause or 'gagging clause' in a settlement agreement is not valid if you're a whistleblower.

Complaints that count as whistleblowing

You're protected by law if you report any of the following:

a criminal offence, for example fraud

someone's health and safety is in danger

risk or actual damage to the environment

a miscarriage of justice

the company is breaking the law, for example does not have the right insurance

you believe someone is covering up wrongdoing

Complaints that do not count as whistleblowing

Personal grievances (for example bullying, harassment, discrimination) are not covered by whistleblowing law, unless your particular case is in the public interest.

Report these under your employer's grievance policy.

Contact the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) for help and advice on resolving a workplace dispute.

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Whistleblowing - what it is, who to tell, what to expect and how to complain if you're treated unfairly

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Commissioning care homes: common safeguarding challenges

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Commissioning care homes: Common safeguarding challenges

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Management strategies for Behaviour that challenges

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Management strategies for Behaviour that challenges

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Following brain injury it is important that those supporting the person have knowledge of a range of interventions to reduce challenging behaviour. However if significant behavioural episodes occur, the following de-escalation approaches may be helpful:

Requesting that the person 'stop' the behaviour may be effective. To do this you must know the person well and have a good therapeutic relationship.

Providing the person with opportunities to express the reasons for anger/frustration/distress in a calm and safe manner.

Assisting the person to identify alternative and more appropriate ways of expressing anger/frustration/distress.

Always communicate respectfully, using an assertive but gentle tone. A confrontational approach is unhelpful.

Communication is best facilitated by using clear and simple language.

Withdrawing from an escalating situation can at times diffuse the behaviour but may also inadvertently reinforce it. Therefore it is important to re-engage with the person once they are calm.

Where safe to do so, downplay behaviours in order to avoid reinforcing them.

Use distraction techniques: do not focus attention on the behaviour but instead do something to distract the person's attention away from it such as tell a joke/story, draw their attention to something else, do something surprising (e.g. 'accidently' drop something).

Use redirection techniques: provide an alternative activity to the behaviour e.g. turn on T.V. offer a walk, offer coffee, play a game of cards etc.

Encouraging the use of basic anger management strategies at the time of a behavioural episode may be helpful for some people.

Management of High Risk Situations
Some challenging behaviours may present such a significant risk to the brain injured person and/or other people that the basic management strategies described above are not appropriate due to the immediate danger. In these situations safety is a priority and specialist support is essential i.e. the use of sedative medication and/or control and restraint techniques may be required. If control and restraint techniques and/or intramuscular sedative medication are being used on a regular basis to manage episodes of challenging behaviour, then consideration should be given to detaining the person under the Mental Health (Care & Treatment)(Scotland) Act 2003. In these circumstances expert advice should be sought from a Consultant Psychiatrist.

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Basic Management Strategies for Episodes of Challenging Behaviour

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Following brain injury it is important that those supporting the person have knowledge of a range of interventions to reduce challenging behaviour. However if significant behavioural episodes occur, the following de-escalation approaches may be helpful: Requesting that the person 'stop' the behaviour may be effective.

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If you think you or someone you know is being abused, or neglected you should tell someone you trust.

This could be a friend, a teacher, a family member, a social worker, a doctor or healthcare professional, a police officer or someone else that you trust. Ask them to help you report it.

Supporting people when concerns are raised about abuse or neglect can be very difficult and distressing for everyone involved. Deciding what's the right thing to do can be stressful, particularly if the person you are concerned about is reluctant to accept support. If you are not sure what to do you can always seek advice.

To report a crime

in an emergency, contact the police, call 999

if the person is not in immediate danger, contact the police, call 101

For further information on who to contact locally in your area, please visit NHS England Safeguarding app.

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If you think you or someone you know is being abused, or neglected you should tell someone you trust. This could be a friend, a teacher, a family member, a social worker, a doctor or healthcare professional, a police officer or someone else that you trust. Ask them to help you report it.

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There are several key components for successful management of challenging behaviour. Firstly, the intervention should be developed to maximise a person's quality of life, rather than to simply suppress an unwanted behaviour. Secondly, the intervention should always be based on a systematic assessment of behaviour. It is important for those carrying out the intervention to have a good idea about the cause of the challenging behaviour before trying to change it. Behaviour can be caused by different things for different individuals, so trying to change behaviour without fully understanding it can lead to the behaviour becoming more ingrained over time. Interventions should never be restrictive.

Managing behaviour that is underpinned by pain and discomfort

Treatment of underlying health difficulties followed by regular monitoring should help to reduce behaviour. It may be helpful to familiarise yourself with common health difficulties in Prader-Willi syndrome. It is important that families have a supportive GP who is willing to take the time to listen and understand the needs of children with Prader-Willi syndrome.

Managing behaviour that is underpinned by sensory reinforcement

There are numerous strategies to help reduce challenging behaviour that is maintained by sensory reinforcement. For example, working out what kind of sensory reinforcement the person is receiving from the behaviour and trying to provide that via other means. Increasing the general level of sensory experiences the person has throughout the day may be another helpful strategy.

Behaviour that is underpinned by external causes

External factors that cause challenging behaviour include access to social interaction, escape from a demand, access to a preferred object or activity, escape from social contact, and escape from an aversive sensory experience. Interventions for these behaviours typically involve teaching a person an alternative way to communicate what they want, and structuring the environment so that the thing they desire is available as much as possible. This might involve teaching a sign or helping the person use a communication system. It also involves making sure that the previous behaviour, for example self-injury, is no longer as effective as the new method of communication in gaining the desired outcome. Sometimes it is not possible for a person to have the thing they desire when they ask for it and in these instances it is important to work with the person so they can discriminate when the thing they want is and is not available.

These interventions can be complicated and need to be monitored carefully. We advise that families seek the support of a professional such as a clinical psychologist, or behavioural team.

Don't give up!

What is important to remember is that these behaviours may increase for a short time when teaching a new form of communication. This is because for the new communication to be successful the old form of communication (challenging behaviour) needs to be less successful. Families may be advised to ignore the behaviour that challenges or respond in a way that gives as little 'reward' or reinforcement as possible. When families change the way they respond to behaviour the person with Prader-Willi syndrome may show more behaviour as they try harder to make their needs known. This is called an extinction burst and is a natural part of behaviour change. However, over time the behaviour will decrease. As a final note, it is very important that people do not ignore challenging behaviour without teaching an alternative communication strategy because otherwise the person has no way to communicate their needs.

Managing other forms of challenging behaviour

To read some tips on managing other forms of challenging behaviour visit these pages:
Challenging behaviour due to anxiety Challenging behaviour due to interruption of repetitive behaviours Challenging behaviour due to frustration due to communication difficulties Download this page as a PDF .

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There are several key components for successful management of challenging behaviour. Firstly, the intervention should be developed to maximise a person's quality of life, rather than to simply suppress an unwanted behaviour. Secondly, the intervention should always be based on a systematic assessment of behaviour.

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Mencap warns that the COVID-19 pandemic is putting vulnerable people in inpatient units at even greater risk as deaths are confirmed.

At least 2,045 people with a learning disability and/or autism still locked away in inpatient units as charities warn they are at even greater risk during coronavirus crisis

190 children with a learning disability and/or autism are still locked away in inpatient units

At least 5 people with a learning disability and/or autism locked away in inpatient units died in April 2020

People with a learning disability and/or autism continue to be locked away during lockdown - 70 admissions in April 2020

One year on from BBC Panorama's expose of the Whorlton Hall abuse scandal, NHS Digital data shows that at least 2,045 people with a learning disability and/or autism remain locked away in inpatient units in April 2020, of which 190 are children.

This comes as charities, advocacy groups and families warn of the huge risks faced by vulnerable people in these units, where they are at increased risk of abuse, neglect and contracting and potentially dying from COVID-19 during the coronavirus crisis.

Last month, at least 5 people with a learning disability and/or autism died in inpatient units; according to NHS England data, there has been at least 76 deaths from COVID-19 specifically in Mental Health and Learning Disability and/or Autism inpatient settings, as of 14th May 2020.[1] Families are also extremely worried about the treatment of their loved ones at this time with reports of increased use of seclusion and over-medication, as well as some inpatient units cutting family contact.

Last month, the Government failed to meet its own Transforming Care programme target for the second year running with almost 300 more adult inpatients still locked away at the end of March 2020.[2] This revised target followed the failure to meet the target set in 2015 to close, by March 2019, 35-50% of in-patient beds.

Despite lockdown, there continues to be a steady stream of admission with 70 admissions in April. Delayed discharges also continue with at least 130 people still stuck in hospital when they are ready for discharge in April, with the main reasons being a lack of social care and housing provision in the community.

While powers in the Coronavirus Act risk leaving vulnerable people unable to access the social care they need. This means that people with a learning disability and/or autism are at increased risk of being locked away while those who are currently locked away will remain stuck in inpatient units or discharged into unsuitable temporary placements which will leave them at risk of readmission.

Edel Harris, Chief Executive of the learning disability charity Mencap, said:

"It's one year on from the BBC Panorama programme's exposure of the hospital abuse scandal at Whorlton Hall, yet people with a learning disability and/or autism continue to be locked away in these modern-day asylums during the coronavirus crisis, at even greater risk. Some families are rightly terrified about what might be happening to their loved ones behind closed doors and today's data confirms that there has been at least five deaths in one month. With family contact cut and CQC inspections reduced during lockdown, there is huge concern about who is making sure that some of the most vulnerable people in society are being kept safe and well during this national crisis.

"While there has been a decrease in the number of people with a learning disability and/or autism locked away in inpatients units, we are still deeply concerned that there continues to be new admissions during lockdown. The Care Act easements in the Coronavirus Act risk even more people reaching crisis point because they can't get the support they need at home. We know from our work supporting families that people are often being discharged into temporary placements or back into the family home, leaving them without the support they need at an extremely challenging time. This is putting huge strain on families and risks creating a vicious cycle as people reach crisis point and are in danger of being admitted again.

"People with a learning disability and/or autism are being forgotten in this crisis - and nowhere more than those who are locked away behind closed doors. The Government, CQC and NHS England must fulfil their duty to ensure the safety and wellbeing of people with a learning disability and/or autism in inpatients units. Government and NHS England must also sustain and build community support packages for the people who have been discharged and make sure funding reaches frontline social care services. Lockdown must not result in more people being locked up."

Vivien Cooper OBE, CEO of the Challenging Behaviour Foundation, said:
"The pandemic has affected everyone, but for families whose relatives with a learning disability and/or autism who are in inpatient units their already significant concerns have further increased. We know that there are multiple reports of restrictive practices (restraint, seclusion and inappropriate use of medication) - although this is likely to be just the "tip of the iceberg" as only data for 3 out of 14 private/independent providers and 29 out of 56 NHS providers has been collected. Added to this now we know that COVID-19 has been spreading, amidst concerns about the lack of PPE equipment, and families are fearful for the safety, health and wellbeing of their relatives. For over nine years we have heard politicians declare their commitment to transform care - we are still waiting for that to happen, despite more scandals and dozens of reports. This data, these numbers, represent people whose lives could and should be transformed."

The Care Act easements contained within the Coronavirus Act relieve local authorities of their full duties so that they can prioritise the cases they deem most urgent. Families have already expressed concern that local authorities are already making use of the Care Act easements to cut vital support for people with a learning disability and/or autism.

The average total length of stay in inpatient units is5.7 years. While in these units, children and adults with a learning disability and/or autism are subject torestrictive interventions (like physical, prone, mechanical and chemical restraint) - 3,590 in one month, of which 605 were against children.This is likely to be just the "tip of the iceberg" as only data for3 out of 14 private/independent providers and 29 out of 56 NHS providers.

Anonymous case study:
"Our daughter has been locked away in inpatient units for nearly 15 years now. We were finally looking forward to her being discharged into a community placement with 24-hour care in March, when the coronavirus crisis struck, and everything was put on hold. This came as a devastating blow to our family. We had been planning for her next stage of life, for her to finally achieve a level of independence, and her freedom was almost in grasp.

"This has had a massive impact on my daughter. Not knowing when she will be coming home has led to her anxiety levels increasing. Lockdown has also meant that we haven't been able to visit her, and we haven't been told when we can next see her. Throughout lockdown, she has been confined within the inpatient unit with only walks in the small courtyard; although she will be able to go out for limited walks with one of the support staff soon.

"We were worried sick that our daughter might contract COVID-19 while she is still locked away. Being trapped in an inpatient unit can make people physically vulnerable; I know from our daughter's experience that it is difficult for patients to get regular physical exercise, eat healthily and people are often overmedicated. That kind of lifestyle takes a serious toll on the body. I was also worried about whether she would get the medical treatment she needs at the right time if she fell seriously ill.

"Our worst fears were realised when our daughter started displaying COVID-19 symptoms. We felt completely helpless because we couldn't do anything to care for her while she was unwell. Although she was never tested, she was treated by the inpatient unit as being positive and was isolated for eight days. Thankfully, she is over the worst of it now but other people in her hospital are also suspected to have had it.

"What is the hardest thing for my daughter and our family during the coronavirus crisis is not having a discharge date that we can look forward to. We hope that she will be out before her next birthday so that we can celebrate together, that's all we can do to help keep us going."

For further information or to arrange interviews, contact Mencap's media team on:

Notes to editors

1. Mencap has been campaigning with families on these issues since the abuse scandal at Winterbourne View nine years ago.

2. The Assuring Transformation data from NHS Digital is the most accurate and up to date account of people with a learning disability and autism in institutions. It is a record of how many are in an institution, how long they have been in for, when their care and treatment is checked and what kind of unit they are in. Latest data shows that numbers have fallen from 2,260 at the end of March 2019 to 2,045 at the end of April 2020: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/learning-disability-services-statistics/provisional-statistics-at-april-2020-mhsds-february-2020-final

3. Figures for restrictive practices quoted from NHS Digital MHSDS Data: February 2020, published May 2020. For more information: https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/learning-disability-services-statistics/provisional-statistics-at-april-2020-mhsds-february-2020-final

4. In the tables for restrictive practices we cannot distinguish between 'less than 5' and 'missing data', so we have to treat this all as missing data.

5. Mencap is asking the Government to focus on:

Developing local expertise, support and services

Ensuring there is joint oversight and ownership of the national programme by the Ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care, Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Department for Education.

Removing the red tape and funding barriers that are preventing so many people from returning home.

There remains no robust plan from leadership for cross-government working.

About Mencap

There are 1.5 million people with a learning disability in the UK. Mencap works to support people with a learning disability, their families and carers by fighting to change laws, improve services and access to education, employment and leisure facilities. Mencap supports thousands of people with a learning disability to live their lives the way they want.

For advice and information about learning disability and Mencap services in your area, contact Mencap's freephone  Learning Disability Helpline on 0808 808 1111 (9am-3pm, Monday-Friday) or email  help@mencap.org.uk.

What is a learning disability?

A learning disability is a reduced intellectual ability which can cause problems with everyday tasks - for example shopping and cooking, or travelling to new places - which affects someone for their whole life;

Learning disability is NOT a mental illness or a learning difficulty, such as dyslexia. Very often the term 'learning difficulty' is wrongly used interchangeably with 'learning disability';

People with a learning disability can take longer to learn new things and may need support to develop new skills, understand difficult information and engage with other people. The level of support someone needs is different with every individual. For example, someone with a severe learning disability might need much more support with daily tasks than someone with a mild learning disability.

[1] According to NHS England data, there has been at least 76 deaths specifically in Mental Health and Learning Disability and/or Autism inpatient settings, as of 14th May 2020: https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/covid-19-daily-deaths/.

[2] According to calculations made by Mencap and the Challenging Behaviour Foundation, for NHSE's one year target of '37 adult inpatients per million population' by March 2020 to be met, it would mean there would be approx. 1,600 adults in inpatient units at the end March 2020. NHS Digital data showed that there were at least 1,895 adults with a learning disability and/or autism remain locked away in inpatient units in March 2020 - almost 300 more adult inpatients than the target.

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One year on from Whorlton Hall abuse scandal yet people with a learning disability and/or autism still locked up during lockdown

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Mencap warns that the COVID-19 pandemic is putting vulnerable people in inpatient units at even greater risk as deaths are confirmed.

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How social isolation impacts a child's mental health

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How social isolation impacts a child's mental health

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Social behaviour

Social behaviour includes how an individual's thoughts, feelings and behaviour influences, and is influenced by, other people. Creating social relationships is central to human well-being, and not just due to the pure joy of being with friends, or when learning social norms. It is argued that experiencing social behaviour, and engaging in social interaction is vital during childhood development. However, many children, for various reasons, are not able to participate in, or experience, the social behaviour that is crucial for their well-being, mental health, and development.

The absence of social relationships and behaviours have been shown to affect child development in various ways. For example, previous research has revealed that socially isolated children tend to have lower subsequent educational attainment, be part of a less advantaged social class in adulthood, and are more likely to be psychologically distressed in adulthood (Lacey, Kumari & Bartley, 2014). This text will focus on how long-term social isolation is closely related to loneliness and physiological illness, and how it affects a healthy development of the brain.

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social support and care are fundamental needs for human beings.

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How does social isolation affect a child's mental health and...

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Social behaviour includes how an individual's thoughts, feelings and behaviour influences, and is influenced by, other people. Creating social relationships is central to human well-being, and not just due to the pure joy of being with friends, or when learning social norms. It is argued that experiencing social behaviour, and engaging in social interaction is vital during childhood development.

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How to deal with challenging behaviour in children

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How to deal with challenging behaviour in children

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A person's behaviour can be defined as "challenging" if it puts them or those around them (such as their carer) at risk, or leads to a poorer quality of life.

It can also impact their ability to join in everyday activities.

Challenging behaviour can include:

aggression

self-harm

destructiveness

disruptiveness

Challenging behaviour is often seen in people with health problems that affect communication and the brain, such as learning disabilities.

What can you do to help?

As a carer, try to understand why the person you look after is behaving in this way. For example, they might feel anxious or bored, or be in pain.

If you can recognise the early warning signs, you may be able to prevent behavioural outbursts.

For example, if being in a large group of people makes your child feel anxious and they become agitated, you could arrange for them to be in a smaller group or have 1-to-1 support.

Some people find a distraction can focus a person's energies elsewhere and prevent them displaying challenging behaviour.

Your child might behave in a challenging way to get your attention.

If this is the case, consider not responding directly to their behaviour - although you should not ignore them completely.

But if their behaviour puts them or someone else at risk, you'll need to intervene as calmly as possible.

Professional help

If you're finding it hard to cope with the behaviour of your child, ask a GP to refer you to a specialist.

The specialist will want to know what situations or people trigger the behaviour, what the early warning signs are, and what happens afterwards.

In extreme circumstances - for example, if your child's behaviour is harmful to themselves or others and all methods of calming them have been tried - a doctor may prescribe medicine.

If you're concerned about the side effects of medicine, speak to your child's GP.

Tips for carers

seek support - many organisations for children with learning disabilities have schemes to connect carers with others in a similar situation

share your experiences - contact your local carers support group or call the Carers Direct helpline on 0300 123 1053

get respite care for your child so you can take a break. Your local council can provide respite care after a care needs assessment, or a carer's assessment for you. Find your local council on GOV.UK

keep in touch with friends and family members - they can be an important source of practical and emotional support

do not be tempted to restrain the person you look after unless you believe their behaviour is putting them at risk and they do not have the mental ability or capacity to make a decision

Sexual behaviour in children

Sexual exploration and play is a natural part of childhood sexual development, and helps children develop physically and emotionally.
Read the NSPCC's information on sexual behaviour in children Read the NSPCC's information on the normal behaviours typical of each development stage
Sometimes children show sexual behaviour that's inappropriate or unexpected for their age. This can be because of:

curiosity

anxiety

a traumatic experience

a learning disability

a mental health problem

If a child acts inappropriately in public, try to distract them with another activity. This can be a useful way to defuse the situation.

If you think a child's behaviour is related to an illness, speak to the healthcare professionals involved in their care and ask for advice on how to manage their behaviour.

They can tell you about local or national organisations that could help.

If you're concerned about the safety or welfare of a child, contact the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000.

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How to deal with challenging behaviour in children - Social care and support guide

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Read some tips on how to deal with challenging behaviour in children.

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Coping with challenging behaviour in adults

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Coping with challenging behaviour in adults

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A person's behaviour can be defined as "challenging" if it puts them or those around them (such as their carer) at risk, or leads to a poorer quality of life.

It can also impact their ability to join in everyday activities.

Challenging behaviour can include:

aggression

self-harm

destructiveness

disruptiveness

Challenging behaviour is often seen in people with health problems that affect communication and the brain, such as learning disabilities or dementia.

What can you do to help?

As a carer, try to understand why the person you look after is behaving in this way. For example, they might feel anxious or bored, or be in pain.

If you can recognise the early warning signs, you may be able to prevent behavioural outbursts.

For example, if being in a large group of people makes the person you care for feel anxious and they become agitated, you could arrange for them to be in a smaller group or have 1-to-1 support.

Some people find a distraction can focus a person's energies elsewhere and prevent them displaying challenging behaviour.

The person you care for might behave in a challenging way to get your attention.

If this is the case, consider not responding directly to their behaviour - although you should not ignore them completely.

But if their behaviour puts them or someone else at risk, you'll need to intervene as calmly as possible.

Professional help

If you're finding it hard to cope with the behaviour of the person you look after, ask a GP to refer you to a specialist.

The specialist will want to know what situations or people trigger the behaviour, what the early warning signs are, and what happens afterwards.

In extreme circumstances - for example, if the person's behaviour is harmful to themselves or others and all methods of calming them have been tried - a doctor may prescribe medicine.

If you're concerned about the side effects of medicine, speak to the person's GP.

Tips for carers

seek support - many organisations for people with learning disabilities or dementia have schemes to connect carers with others in a similar situation

share your experiences - contact your local carers support group or call the Carers Direct helpline on 0300 123 1053

get respite care for the person you look after so you can take a break. Your local council can provide respite care after a needs assessment for the person you care for, or a carer's assessment for you

keep in touch with friends and family members - they can be an important source of practical and emotional support

do not be tempted to restrain the person you look after unless you believe their behaviour is putting them at risk and they do not have the mental ability or capacity to make a decision. Find out about Lasting Power of Attorney and restraint

Sexual behaviour in adults

Sexually inappropriate behaviour in adults who need care can be a result of a mental health or neurological condition, such as dementia.

It may include:

undressing in public

fondling genitals

touching someone inappropriately

For more information on sex and disabilities, call the The Outsiders Trust helpline on 07872 681 982.

You may not be able to stop a person engaging in inappropriate sexual behaviour, but there are ways you can address it:

think about or ask the person why they're acting in a certain way. For example, if they start to undress in public, are they hot or uncomfortable?

stay calm

treat the situation with humour, rather than getting angry

distract their attention, rather than getting confrontational

if other people are present, explain to them that the behaviour is because of an illness and is not personal

keep a diary to see if you can find a pattern in their behaviour - for example, whether it's more likely to occur in certain situations, with the same people present, or at certain times of the day or night

If you're finding it difficult to control the behaviour of the person you look after, speak to social services or their GP.

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How to deal with challenging behaviour in adults

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A person's behaviour can be defined as "challenging" if it puts them or those around them (such as their carer) at risk, or leads to a poorer quality of life. It can also impact their ability to join in everyday activities.

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Shocking new statistics out today show that there are still 2,295 [1] adults and children with a learning disability or autism locked away in inpatient units.

This is around 600 [2] more than the target set by Government in 2015 to move between 35- 50% of people with a learning disability and/or autism out of institutions into community-based support by March 2019.

Mencap warns that today's data is further evidence that the current system is still failing and that there is not enough of the right support in the community being provided. As a result, people with a learning disability continue to be admitted to inpatient units and people are not able to be moved back home, near to loved ones. Mencap says that it is simply unacceptable.

NHS England's recent announcement that it will extend the deadline for closing inpatient beds by 5 years, is further cause for concern around the lack of urgency given to the issue, says the charity.

The figures show that in February of this year 2,295 people were still living in institutions, which is around 600 more people than the minimum target for reduction, set by Government. The number of children in these units has more than doubled since 2015, increasing to 250. Disturbingly, the number of reported incidents of restrictive interventions e.g. physical restraint, for one month, is over 2,505, 820 of which are against children [3].

Despite small decreases month on month since 2011, Mencap warns that it is "nigh on impossible" that targets will have been met this month ahead of Government's deadline in just a few weeks. Mencap is calling on the Government to remove the red tape and funding barriers that are preventing so many people from returning home. It wants Government to prioritise social care reform and demand that NHS providers and Local Authorities work together to reunite families and develop and provide suitable care for people with a learning disability in their communities.
Dan Scorer, Head of Policy at Mencap, says:

"Eight years on from the Winterbourne View scandal, where the public were made aware of the shocking abuses happening in an inpatient unit, it is clear that the Government has failed to deliver on its promise to 'Transform Care'. Thousands of vulnerable people are being detained in institutions, often hundreds of miles away from their families, subject to physical restraint, overmedication and being kept in isolation. Their families are powerless to get them out. This is a domestic human rights scandal. We want to see them back home in their communities, living fulfilling lives with proper support. NHS England acknowledged its failures when it pushed back its deadline to 2023/24. We need to know urgently what the Government will do differently, having failed over the last eight years to release people unfairly kept in institutions."

For Isabelle Garnett, mother of Matthew, aged 18, who has autism and a learning disability, this news will come as no surprise:

"Matthew spent 15 months under section, during which time, his mental and physical health deteriorated catastrophically, and we became more and more concerned about his safety and wellbeing. Matthew thought he was in prison, and to us, it felt like he was being punished for being autistic. Rather than his behaviours being seen as a communication of what he might not be coping with, or struggling to understand, Matthew was over-medicated, secluded and restrained. It took many months of fighting for our son, to get him out of a secure mental health hospital. We know we're the lucky ones, being able to get him out, there are so many people we know still fighting to get their loved ones out after years and years."

Mencap is increasingly concerned that new generations who need support and services locally, are instead being sent to inpatient units. In many cases it costs the same or less to support someone in the community rather than keep them in an inpatient unit [4], but the money needed to set up local support and services is not being made available. With Local Authority social care budgets so stretched, there is a perverse financial incentive for people to remain trapped in units which are paid for by the NHS. There needs to be a pipeline of good quality community support, housing and professionals with the right expertise and capacity to support people with a learning disability and their families at an early stage to help prevent needs escalating and getting to crisis point.
Dan continues:

"It is outrageous that such large amounts of money are being spent sending people away to services that fail them and in many cases damage people rather than help. All too often, these extremely expensive units, some run by the NHS and others by the private healthcare sector, are simply being used as 'dumping grounds' by commissioners looking for an easy 'solution' at any cost. As a result, people can be sent many miles away from home and then left there for many years. Money is being spent on the wrong type of care. This needs to shift from inpatient units to health and social care services in the community. Report after report has said what must be done but the Government has failed to tackle the blocks to progress, allowing this scandal to continue before our eyes. We need to hear now, what the Government is going to do differently."

The charity is calling on Government to shift its 'shortsighted' focus from simply closing down existing inpatient beds, without the right community support in place, and instead implement a national programme across departments, beyond just Health, to put long term and effective solutions in place to meet the needs of people with a learning disability and learn from failures to date.
-ENDS-
For further information or to arrange interviews, contact the Mencap press office:

Notes to Editors

[1] The Assuming Transformation data from NHS Digital ( https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/learning-disability-services-statistics/provisional-statistics-at-february-2019-mhsds-december-2018-final), is the most accurate and up to date account of people with a learning disability and autism in institutions. It is a record of how many are in an institution, how long they have been in for, when their care and treatment is checked and what kind of unit they are in.

[2] Building the Rights Support, 2015 PDF Pg 6, para 1.9 - meeting the 35% target would equate to 1,700 people https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ld-nat-imp-plan-oct15.pdf Transforming Care Programme targets were initially set in 2012 with a deadline for delivery of June 2014. When these targets were not met, a new deadline of March 2019 was established.

[3] Figures for restrictive practices quoted from NHS Digital MHSDS Data: December 2018, published March 2019.

[4] The average weekly cost of inpatient care for an individual is around £3,500. According to NAO, in 2012-13 NHS spent £557m on people with a learning disability in mental health hospitals.

Following the Winterbourne View scandal, the Government formally recognised that these 'hospitals' are not homes and that most people with a learning disability should never need to go into an inpatient unit; they should be able to get the support they need in their local community. It committed to a programme of work - the Transforming Care Programme - aimed at supporting people to move out of units and back to their local communities, with the right support and services available to them in their local areas. The NHS and local authorities were given a deadline of 1st June 2014 to make this happen. This target was missed and March 2019 was set as the new deadline to meet this objective. In January 2019 NHS England moved the deadline to 2023/2024.

In NHS Digital Assuring Transformation data up to January (published in February 2019), the number of children and adults in ATUs was 2,305. The average length of stay was 5.4 years.

Mencap is asking the Government to focus on:

Developing local expertise, support and services

Ensuring there is joint oversight and ownership of the national programme by the Ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care, Department of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Department for Education.

Removing the red tape and funding barriers that are preventing so many people from returning home.

Figures for March 2019 are due to be reported on 18 April 2019.

Independent Evaluation of Building the Right Support: short summary of the main recommendations from the research done so far, published in October 2018. Research led by the University of Birmingham, BILD, The Strategy Unit and ICF: www.strategyunit.co.uk/publications/building-right-support. The findings support our concerns.

About Mencap

There are 1.4 million people with a learning disability in the UK. Mencap works to support people with a learning disability, their families and carers by fighting to change laws, improve services and access to education, employment and leisure facilities. Mencap supports thousands of people with a learning disability to live their lives the way they want. www.mencap.org.uk

What is a learning disability?

A learning disability is a reduced intellectual ability which can cause problems with everyday tasks - for example shopping and cooking, or travelling to new places - which affects someone for their whole life. Learning disability is NOT a mental illness or a learning difficulty, such as dyslexia. Very often the term 'learning difficulty' is wrongly used interchangeably with 'learning disability'. People with a learning disability can take longer to learn new things and may need support to develop new skills, understand difficult information and engage with other people. The level of support someone needs is different with every individual. For example, someone with a severe learning disability might need much more support with daily tasks

People who may need assessment and support

Individuals sometimes experience crisis situations that may require specialist intervention. At these times, what is needed is a good assessment of the cause of the problem, followed by a treatment plan to address those issues and access to good support that is close to home. It should rarely be necessary to admit a person to an assessment and treatment unit (ATU).

When it is necessary (for instance, when someone may have a complex mental health condition), it should be to a small unit that is close to their home. The facility should be able to provide specialist assessment and treatment, and enable the person to return to their local community as soon as possible.

Many people are admitted to assessment and treatment units (ATUs), and then detained under a section of the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA). This is sometimes referred to as 'being sectioned' or 'sectioning'. While this may sometimes be necessary, there are concerns that detention under the MHA is being used too frequently, often in circumstances where it is perceived as the last option, where local services have broken down and there is no other alternative. Too many people are being sent away to assessment and treatment units and other institutional settings that are too large and too far from home. Often, people with a learning disability end up in these places unnecessarily, because the right option for them is not available locally or because local services do not possess the skills to understand the cause of their behaviour.

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Government due to miss deadline for releasing people with a learning disability locked away in inpatient units, warns Mencap

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Shocking new statistics out today show that there are still 2,295 [1] adults and children with a learning disability or autism locked away in inpatient units. This is around 600 [2] more than the target set by Government in 2015 to move between 35- 50% of people with a learning disability and/or autism out of institutions into community-based support by March 2019.

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Preventing staff burnout is a key priority for services supporting adults with 'challenging behaviour' because of the adverse impact on clients of staff turnover, says guidance launched in response to Winterbourne View.

What is 'challenging behaviour'?

"...culturally abnormal behaviour of such intensity, frequency or duration that the physical safety of the person or others is likely to be placed in serious jeopardy, or behaviour which is likely to seriously limit use of, or result in the person being denied access to, ordinary community facilities."
Source: Professor Eric Emerson, centre for disability research, Lancaster University(1995)

The loss of important relationships with staff can increase tensions among service users with behaviour that challenges, putting a premium on staff retention and well-being in care homes, supported living and other settings supporting adults with learning disabilites, autism, mental health problems or dementia.

The guidance said managers should take action to prevent burnout by supporting work/life balance for staff, encouraging them to speak freely if they feel unable to manage tasks and working with individual staff members to identify how they can build up their resilience, backed up with regular, effective supervision.
Values-based recruitment
However, it also stressed that managers should tighten up recruitment practices to ensure they recruit staff committed to person-centred care; it suggested this could include using personality tools to identify the right people, testing candidates' values at interview stage and offering trials prior to appointment.

Skills for Care commissioned the guidance from the National Development Team for Inclusion have published the guidance as part of the government's programme to improve support for adults with learning disabilities or autism and behaviour that challenges services in the wake of the Winterbourne View scandal.

Service users at Winterbourne View were subject to inappropriate, punitive and excessive use of restraint, contrary to good practice in supporting adults with 'challenging behaviour' or 'positive behaviour support', which emphasises identifying and addressing the causes of the behaviour, person-centred support and using appropriate physical interventions as a last resort.
Communication skills key
The guidance said organisations should commit to using positive behaviour support, and to see behaviour that challenges as a form of communication on the part of service users that required a person-centred response.

Communication skills should be a core part of staff training for working with people who challenge, and they should have access to a wide range of communication techniques, such as cue cards and pictorial communication. There should also be a dedicated programme to train staff in non-punitive techniques and when and where to use them.

It said a core of staff within organisations should receive in-depth training in designing services for people with behaviour that challenges and act as a resource for the whole organisation. This should having expertise in the use of non-punitive physical interventions and supporting staff in using these where appropriate.
Commissioning the right training
The guidance places a strong emphasis on employers and managers commissioning effective training. It said they should ask themselves the following questions:

Are you clear about the outcomes you need the learning to achieve?

If using a training company or individual trainer, it is/are they accredited?

Does the training provider state how it will encourage delegates to measure outcomes?

Who is being trained and at what level?

How will you know the outcomes have been achieved?

Will the training match the learning styles of individuals undergoing it?

It pointed to the British Institute of Learning Disabilities' code of practice on the use and reduction of physical interventions for guidance on commissioning positive behaviour support training. It also said feedback from staff, and from service users, was crucial in ascertaining the effectiveness of training.
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Preventing staff burnout key to supporting adults with 'challenging behaviour'

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Preventing staff burnout is a key priority for services supporting adults with 'challenging behaviour' because of the adverse impact on clients of staff turnover, says guidance launched in response to Winterbourne View. What is 'challenging behaviour'?

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A list of warning signs that a child may be being exploited

Skipping school

Staying out late or overnight

Unexplained gifts/new possessions

Drugs and alcohol misuse

Secretive behaviour

Inappropriate or sexualised behaviour

Friendship or relationships with older adults

Significant changes in mood or behaviour changes in appearance (clothes, hygiene, etc).

Becoming withdrawn or isolated, poor mental health/self-harm etc.

Lots of time spent on social media talking to 'friends' they haven't met or that you don't know.

Unexplained injuries

They own a second mobile phone from which they are receiving a high volume of calls or need to leave urgently after receiving a text/call

Circumstances which may make a child or young person vulnerable to being exploited.

Regularly going missing from home

Connected to other vulnerable young people known to be exploited and/or involved in gangs.

Have a learning difficulty or a Special Educational Need

Misusing drugs and alcohol

Poor mental health

Experience of abuse at home including witnessing violence

Concerns about being involved in crime/anti-social behaviour

If a child is experiencing this, it does not mean that they will be exploited. However, it is important to stay aware of the possible warning signs, maintain positive communication with your child on how to keep safe and stay curious about what they do and who they spend time with.

Exploitation usually involves the child/young person receiving something in return such as alcohol, cigarettes, gifts, money, drugs an/or affection.

Children and young people can be exploited by adults; but can be exploited by other children/young people too - this is known as Peer on Peer Abuse.

Often when children become exploited they and those around them may not realise it as it happens via a process called 'grooming'. This is where someone builds a relationship, trust and emotional connection with a child or young person so they can manipulate, exploit and abuse them.

Changes in your child's behaviour can be a normal part of the process of child and adolescent development. However, there are some circumstances where changes in behaviour are an indication that something is wrong. In these situations, you should Trust Your Instinct - if things don't feel right, they probably are not.

If you think your child is experiencing exploitation do not try to deal with the issue alone. Help and support is available. Find out more on our get help page.

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Child Exploitation is where children and young people are encouraged, trapped, forced or persuaded to carry out acts for the benefit of a person or a group of people (this can be organised criminal groups or gangs).

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Recognising abuse is important. Acting on concerns is vital. But it's just as important that you keep a record of all safeguarding concerns in your organisation.

There are 10 types of harm, and as part of your duty of care, you should learn to recognise the signs of abuse. If you have any concerns, you should record them, and report them to the appropriate person, authority, or organisation.

This is where a safeguarding policy will help. It should be accessible to everyone. You can define the procedures for reporting, and ensure that they're communicated and integrated across your organisation. That way, you can let all staff know their responsibilities in recognising, reporting and recording safeguarding issues.

Your safeguarding policy should outline:

How to record concerns.

Who to record to.

What action will follow.

You could create a safeguarding reporting form to ensure that you receive all the information you need for accurate and useful reporting.

Recording Concerns

Note that poor practice concerns need to be recorded as well as instances of more serious abuse. This is because, if you don't address them, frequent poor practice incidents can escalate into more serious situations.

Communication is essential. The way that you or your organisation document and keep records can make all the difference. Whether through individual log books or shift reports, sharing information can build a picture that could help identify poor practice or abuse. A good care plan means that staff can understand the needs of each person being supported by the service.

It is also important that you record the right kind of information. A person's demeanour, what they are wearing, or what they have eaten that day can all be tell-tale signs of abuse. Patterns of behaviour are also a good way to check wellbeing. For example, an individual may behave different whenever a certain member of staff is present. Could this mean they're being bullied?

Recording should be impartial. So write down what you see and not what you feel.

Whenever a concern is raised, consider the available evidence, and whether you need to gather any additional evidence. You should retain any physical evidence to keep it safe from tampering. This is yet another process you could outline in your policy. Also keep records of relevant evidence that you may need at a later date.

As part of your policy, you should review regularly the numbers and types of concerns raised. Any significant differences in reporting from one quarter to the next need to be considered and evaluated.

Reporting Concerns

Local authorities, the Charities Commission and the Care Quality Commission each have varying reporting requirements. So it is important that you know the legal requirements of each, and report to them in a timely fashion.

Local authorities do not share the same thresholds for reporting. So while in one county they may accept a safeguarding referral, in another they may not. Take some time to understand your local authorities reporting thresholds.

Different Roles and Different Levels of Responsibility

Support Workers

Support workers must report any abuse or poor practice to their manager. If the abuse or poor practice carries on, then support workers should report their concerns to a more senior manager. Support workers can also report their concerns directly to the local authority adult safeguarding team, or directly to the Care Quality Commission.

Front Line Managers

Front line managers must give staff clear guidance about how to do their job. This can help prevent abuse from happening in the first place. If poor practice does take place, managers must tell staff what has to change. If abuse takes place, front line managers must report to senior managers. Front line managers can report their concerns directly to the local authority adult safeguarding team, as well as directly to the Care Quality Commission.

Senior Managers

Senior managers must act on any reports of abuse. They must report all alleged abuse to the local authority adult safeguarding team, and they must help that team with any investigation. If staff are found to have abused the people they support, they will face disciplinary action. If a crime has been committed, then staff may be suspended while the police investigate.

Local Authority Adult Safeguarding Teams

Local authority adult safeguarding teams have to investigate safeguarding concerns. They can ask for staff to be suspended from work while they investigate the abuse. They can also recommend changes to the way that support is provided. The local authority will report allegations of abuse to the police if they think that a crime has been committed.

Care Quality Commission

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator for health and adult social care in England. It sets standards that all care homes and home care services must meet. The CQC has the power to shut down services which do not meet the required standards.

What Happens When One of the Organisations Investigate Safeguarding Concerns?

Once a concern's been raise, the organisation's policy and procedures should set out how to report and investigate it. If the local authority accepts the safeguarding referral they will have responsibility to investigate. This is called an enquiry, and they may ask you to assist with it. If they do not accept the referral, your organisation may decide to do an internal investigation. The process for this needs to be both clear and transparent, with defined roles and responsibilities for everyone involved.

Already completed this assessment and want to further your knowledge? Check out our list of useful resources and guides:

An essential guide to writing a safeguarding policy. Learn more.

"Nothing about me without me." A guide to making safeguarding personal. Read it here.

Creating a process to report and refer. Learn more.

Your organisation's evaluation and action plan. Learn more.

A directory of useful organisations and contacts. Learn more.

Downloadable Resources

A good example of an organisation's reporting form from MacIntyre. Download here .

MacIntyre's safeguarding policies information sheet. Download here
Want to know more about reviewing and assessing your safeguarding policy? Click here.

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Reporting & Recording Safeguarding Issues - Ann Craft Trust

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Recognising abuse is important. Acting on concerns is vital. But it's just as important that you keep a record of all safeguarding concerns in your organisation. There are 10 types of harm, and as part of your duty of care, you should learn to recognise the signs of abuse.