Contextual Safeguarding is an approach to understanding, and responding to, young people’s experiences of significant harm beyond their families. It recognises that the different relationships that young people form in their neighbourhoods, schools and online can feature violence and abuse. Parents and carers have little influence over these contexts, and young people’s experiences of extra-familial abuse can undermine parent-child relationships. Therefore children’s social care practitioners need to engage with individuals and sectors who do have influence over/within extra- familial contexts, and recognise that assessment of, and intervention with, these spaces are a critical part of safeguarding practices. Contextual Safeguarding, therefore, expands the objectives of child protection systems in recognition that young people are vulnerable to abuse in a range of social contexts.
Please take a look at a video explaining What is Contextual Safeguarding?
For more information see the Contextual Safeguarding Network.
Assessment Tools from Hackney Contextual Safeguarding Project What’s Happening tool and guidance – this tool helps practitioners gather information about a parent or carer’s understanding of the strengths and vulnerabilities of a young person across each of the identified contexts. All Around Me tool and guidance – this tool is designed to help practitioners gather information from a young person to build a picture/understanding of the people and places that matter most to that young person in each of the identified contexts.
Also refer to our page on Child Exploitation