WSSCP Monthly Email Bulletin - November 2021

West Sussex County Council sent this bulletin at 22-11-2021 01:33 PM GMT

WSSCP Monthly Email Bulletin - November 2021

The Amber Project - Still some places available for online event!

What is The Amber Project? The Amber Project is a multi-agency partnership that seeks to enhance the response to child abuse linked to faith and belief at a Local Authority level. Partners include specialists who work in the field of ‘abuse linked to witchcraft and spirit possession’ from the Metropolitan Police Service, University of Chester, University of Cambridge, Barnardos National FGM Centre and Redbridge Local Authority.

A two-hour free training webinar has been developed that clearly explains: (a) what abuse linked to witchcraft and spirit possession is, (b) the factors and indicators professionals need to look out for and (c) what safeguarding actions need to be taken by those identifying cases. There is an explicit focus on those within the education sector, policing, social care and health. It is also of benefit to those who are from faith communities and communities working with families and children.

The overarching aim is to increase awareness and reporting of this complex form of abuse and improve the multi-agency response when cases are identified.

This is a free resource and can be delivered anywhere in the country. Material has been pre- recorded with a resource pack available for those attending sessions delivered locally.

Why is the Amber Project needed?

Belief in witchcraft and spirit possession is common and exists across the world. Knowledge and awareness need to be enhanced, and a wide range of professionals need to be supported to recognise the potential for abuse in certain situations.

The Amber Project team acknowledge the positive role of many faith communities and people of faith in safeguarding. The project does not seek to isolate certain religious belief and practices as harmful, or try to change them. Nevertheless, abuse can sometimes follow when a person is accused of being a witch or possessed by an evil spirit. Efforts to ‘exorcise’ or ‘deliver’ the person from witchcraft or an evil spirit can sometimes inadvertently lead to significant harm to the person accused. Preliminary evidence suggests that the disruption caused by the Covid pandemic has increased the risk of this form of abuse, both nationally and internationally. In 2021, the UN passed an historic resolution on harmful practices related to accusations of witchcraft that result in human rights violations. The Amber Project seeks to partner with practitioners and enhance and knowledge to enable more effective safeguarding of children, young people and families from this form of harm.

The Amber Project Enhancing the response to child abuse linked to faith & belief Tuesday 23rd November – 2pm till 4pm on MS Teams - Book a place here

New adult safeguarding resource pack

The West Sussex Safeguarding Adults Board (WSSAB) has created a safeguarding resource pack to support learning and understanding of safeguarding. This is for use by community groups and organisations to support formal safeguarding training but is also a useful resource for anyone who would like more information about adult safeguarding.

The resource pack has been published on the WSSAB website. If your team, or anyone you know, would benefit from using these resources please share this information with them.

The resource pack includes:

A bespoke presentation which details who safeguarding applies to, types of abuse, and how to raise a safeguarding concern in West Sussex.

Links to 4 safeguarding posters.

Links to a Making Safeguarding Personal Leaflet.

An adults safeguarding leaflet (easy-read version).

Links to the WSSAB website, where more information can be found.

Links to WSCC website for raising a safeguarding concern.

If you would like to access formal adult safeguarding training, West Sussex County Council’s Learning and Development Gateway offers staff free Basic Awareness training for Safeguarding Adults.

Safe in Sussex regretfully announces the closure of their Domestic Abuse Helpline

Safe in Sussex regretfully announces the closure of our Domestic Abuse Helpline.

The Helpline (telephone, email, live chat) will close on Friday 17^th December 2021 at 2.30pm. Safe in Sussex originally had an outreach service funded through the MHCLG, which transitioned into a helpline during the start of the pandemic in 2020. The Helpline includes a ‘live chat’ and offline messages via our website and a dedicated email address. The funding for this service, encompassing all the above facilities has now come to an end.

Domestic Abuse Support Services continuing to be provided by Safe in Sussex:

Refuge accommodation

For women (and their child/children)

Dispersed refuge accommodation

For adults (with/without children)

Group programmes

Freedom Programme, Domestic Abuse Recovery Toolkit, Hope to Recovery Programme, Adverse Childhood Experiences Recovery Toolkit

Community services

Homeless Women’s Support Service (Littlehampton), Men’s Service, LGBTQ+ IDVA and Eastern European IDVA

Children and Young Peoples’ support in schools

Visit our website for more details safeinsussex.org

Other Domestic Abuse Services:

National Domestic Abuse Helpline: 0808 2000 247

Free and open 24 hours a day

Women’s Aid online chat support: https://chat.womensaid.org.uk/

Open 7 days a week from 10am to 6pm

Male Domestic Abuse Helpline: 01823 334244

Open weekdays 10am to 4pm

West Sussex Domestic Abuse Services:

Worth Services: 07834 968539 or 03302 281281

Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm / DomesticAbuseServicesCentral@westsussex.gov.uk

Victim Support: South East Helpline 0845 389 9528

My Sisters’ House Coastal West Sussex Helpline 01243 697800

Monday to Friday 9.30am to 1.30pm

Have you seen all of the training the WSSCP offers?

We have a wide range of training available, designed to improve your safeguarding knowledge and understanding and ultimately improve your practice in keeping children safe. There are often new courses promoted to meet the broad needs of the children's workforce. For example the following sessions have recently been added to the WSSCP Training Calendar: Working Together to Recognise and Respond to Child Exploitation, Recognising and Responding to Child Exploitation Using a Contextual Safeguarding Approach and Child Protection Conference Reports and Plans. There are also lots more sessions available on the WSSCP Training Calendar

More training resources will soon be added to the WSSCP website including podcasts. These will be designed to share key messages from Child Safeguarding Practice Reviews (formerly known as Serious Case Reviews) and will involve a range of professionals from different agencies giving brief overviews of cases, what we have learnt from these and also how to change your practice in relation to these reviews. Watch this space!

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