Showcase Magazine Summer 2026 - Flipbook - Page 7
SAFEGUARDING
T H E
Designated Safeguarding Officer:
Ellen Roberts
07715 658036
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In our Spring 2025 edition, we explored reporting in reality: the emotions and conflicts that often occur when faced with making a
disclosure. However, safeguarding does not begin with a report, and it certainly does not end with one. This time, we shift the focus:
safeguarding is not just about what we write down; it’s about what we notice, what we question, and crucially, what we do next.
In early years, our focus is rightly on the child. But children do not exist in isolation. They are part of families, environments, and wider
contexts that shape their experiences every single day. When we talk about safeguarding, we must widen the lens.
A child presenting as neglected raises questions not only about their care, but about the adult’s capacity to provide that care. Is that
parent overwhelmed, unsupported, or struggling themselves? In cases of sexualised behaviour or abuse, we must ask difficult
questions. Why might an adult believe this behaviour is acceptable? What has shaped their understanding of relationships, boundaries,
or power? When we see signs of distress, inconsistency, or risk, it is not about blame. It is about understanding what has happened and
what is happening now.
This is where adult safeguarding and child safeguarding intersect. Sometimes, the adult is also at risk. Sometimes, the wider family
system is under pressure, unsafe, or contributing to harm. Safeguarding is not about finding a single cause. It is about recognising
patterns, contexts, and risks that sit all around the child.
Professional curiosity is often spoken about, but in practice, it can feel uncomfortable. It means not accepting things at face value,
noticing when something does not feel right, and being willing to ask, gently but directly. In practice, it might look like questioning if a
parent appears under the influence at pick-up, noticing a change in language used towards a child, or picking up on tone, tension, or
behaviour that others might dismiss. Most importantly, it does not stop at the setting door either.
Our responsibility as safeguarding professionals extends beyond our immediate environment. What we see in passing, what we hear in
conversation, what we observe in the community, all of it contributes to our understanding of a child’s lived experience.
There are moments in safeguarding that do not wait for a staff meeting, a form, or a second opinion. A parent arrives visibly under the
influence. A child is handled roughly. A comment is made that crosses a line. In those moments, we face a choice: do we wait? Do we
hope someone else will act? Or do we step forward? Acting in the moment takes courage. It requires us to move beyond discomfort
and into responsibility because safeguarding is not always neat or convenient. It is often immediate, human, and unpredictable. A
difficult but necessary reflection is this: how would you feel if something happened that you could have prevented? What could
happen if you do not act?
Safeguarding situations can trigger strong emotional responses. As humans first and foremost, we might feel shock, anger, disbelief,
sympathy. These reactions are natural, but as practitioners, we must also draw on our training, our policies, and our professional
judgement. The challenge is not to remove emotion, but to manage it. The goal is balance: compassionate, but clear; curious, but
respectful; decisive, but informed. You are not
