New child safety guidance

Everyone working with children should be alert and ready to report risks to their safety, a new government action plan on childhood says.

People working with children should know how find out what other authorities the child is coming into contact with, and how to go about sharing information with them.

More than 1,000 people, most of them children, gave their views for the Staying Safe action plan.

It was produced in response to concerns that childhood is being blighted by threats such as the risk of street violence and by children not being able to play freely outside.

The action plan states that “children should not be wrapped up in cotton wool” and a balance must be found between protecting them and allowing them the freedom to develop and enjoy their childhoods.

Guidelines will also be sent to schools so that they can plan school trips without fearing health and safety repercussions.

The main input from children was that they want to feel safer when they are out with their friends and want safe, well-lit places to go.

Staying Safe Action Plan

TV parenting programmes "harming children"

Child protection charity the NSPCC has issued a warning about the welfare of children on reality TV shows about parenting.
After a TV nanny on the Channel 4 series Bringing Up Baby advised parents to resist cuddling a crying baby, the charity is to set up a panel of experts to advise TV companies on how to look after the safety and well being of children in parenting programmes.
The NSPCC says it is worried that "the rapid growth in reality parenting TV is exposing young children to potential harm.
"Recent programmes have shown the promotion of limited cuddling, infants left to cry alone for long periods, babies being subjected to strict, inflexible routines regardless of their distress, and a complete disregard to the wealth of research that shows the importance of early, sensitive care for health and well being."
The charity is also concerned about the BBC3 series The Baby Borrowers in which it says babies are left in the care of inexperienced teenagers, and both babies and teenagers are put in "stressful situations designed to provoke for the purposes of entertainment".
NSPCC boss Mary Marsh says a group of professional experts is needed to advise on standards for parenting programmes.

Child trafficking

Guidance on how to spot children who may be victims of child trafficking has been issued by the government.

The information is targeted at all professionals and community groups that come into contact with children, and explains how to offer help and long-term support to victims.

Three hundred and thirty cases of suspected child trafficking were identified in a recent report by the Child Exploitation and Online Protection (CEOP) Centre.

Children affected may become involved in sex work, sold as domestic servants, used as sweat shop labour or in crime.

Department for Children, Schools and Families Minister, Kevin Brennan, said: “Child trafficking is a particularly ugly and pernicious crime, with serious consequences for the young people caught up in it.

The new guidance is available for consultation for five weeks at www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations.

Testing for happiness

Primary school children will face ‘happiness tests’ to assess their well-being as part of the government’s £20million emotional literacy initiative.

Children will be asked to respond with ratings to questions such as whether they have been feeling ‘close to other people’, ‘optimistic about the future’ or whether they have been ‘dealing with problems well’.

The process will be simplified for younger children.

The questionnaire is being developed by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), an independent body producing guidance on public health, along with Warwick and Edinburgh universities.

NICE say that five to ten-year-olds are at an eight per cent risk of being diagnosed with a mental disorder, rising to 12 per cent for 11 to 16-year-olds.

Since the Education and Inspections Act 2006, primary schools have a specific duty to promote the well-being of pupils.