The 5 different types of abuse in childhood

INTRO

What are the 5 different types of abuse in children and some of signs and symptoms of abuse in early years that you should be looking out for.

This is what we will go over in this video.

But first welcome to the channel.

INTRO VID

Welcome to the channel open a nursery, with myself Curtly Ania.  Where I teach you to open run and grow your own childcare business.

Today we’re going over the 5 main types of abuse you are likely to observe in early years.  There are a lot more different types of abuse than the 5 listed in this video but these are the main ones that you will encounter working in a nursery or childminders or other childcare provision.

As a nursery practitioner, or someone who works in childcare you are well positioned to notice and spot signs of abuse or neglect in the children the children you care for.  Children may experience abuse and neglect at any age and it may have a profound impact not only on their immediate safety and health but on their long-term development and wellbeing.

The signs of abuse and neglect can be difficult to detect. Children can be seen as easy targets for abuse this can be because they are still developing their communication and understanding of what actually constitutes abuse and what mistreatment means.

They may also have greater difficulty alerting others that abuse or maltreatment may happen.

Children also have a greater reliance on those that may cause harm like their parents and other family members which may also mean that it is easier to conceal harm or coerce a child into not disclosing it to others.

Despite this, we as childcare professionals may be the only adults outside the child’s family that have significant contact with them and so it is especially important that all those working with children have a good understanding of abuse and neglect and how to recognise the possible indicators.

This video will hopefully equip you with a better understanding of the different types of abuse and enable you to better recognise if a child has been abused or maltreated.  As we will be going over some of the different signs of abuse.

Though, it is important to note that evidence of any one indicator from the following lists should not be taken on its own as proof that abuse is occurring. However, it should alert practitioners to make further assessments and to consider other associated factors. The lists of possible indicators and examples of behaviour are not exhaustive and people may be subject to a number of abuse types at the same time.

Physical Abuse

The first type of abuse we will discuss is physical abuse.  This is any intentional or deliberate harm or bodily injury to a child.

This can include:

• Assault, hitting, slapping, punching, kicking, hair-pulling, biting, pushing
• Rough handling
• Scalding and burning
• Physical punishments
• Inappropriate or unlawful use of restraint
• Making someone purposefully uncomfortable (e.g. opening a window and removing blankets)
• Involuntary isolation or confinement
• Misuse of medication (e.g. over-sedation)
• Forcible feeding or withholding food
• Unauthorised restraint, restricting movement (e.g. tying someone to a chair)

Injuries caused by accidents are not uncommon in children, becoming less common as the child develops and grows. This means that recognising the signs of physical abuse in children can be especially difficult and leave practitioners unsure of what may be abusive.

The following is a guide to injuries that are more likely to be accidental or abusive. However, it is not absolute and it is important that those working with children consider the child’s stage of development, any pattern of injuries and the account given by the child, parents, carers or others of how the injury was sustained.

There are areas of a child, whereby they are more likely to get injured and are less cause for concern, this includes areas like their forehead, their knees, their elbows etc.  Injuries here are more likely to be caused by an accident.  These are injuries more likely to be caused by slips and falls and will match the child’s level of development and should match the parents and child’s story of event.

There are however areas children are less likely to receive injuries and injury here should rase greater cause for concern.  These are generally areas which are more difficult to damage through a trip or fall and include injuries to the:

• upper arm
• forearm (defensive injuries)
• chest and abdomen
• thighs or genitals
• facial injuries (cheeks, black eyes, mouth)
• ears, side of face or neck and top of shoulders (also known as the ‘triangle of safety’)

Abusive injuries may be seen on both sides of the body and match other patterns of activity. They may not match the explanation given by the child or parent/carer and there may also be signs that injuries are being untreated, or at least a delay in seeking treatment.

Sexual Abuse

The second type of abuse is sexual abuse.

A child is sexually abused when they are forced or persuaded to take part in sexual activities. This doesn’t have to be physical contact, and it can happen online. Sometimes the child won’t understand that what’s happening to them is abuse. They may not even understand that it’s wrong.

Sexual abuse can take place in two forms, either as contact abuse or non-contact abuse.

Research by the NSPCC found that 72 percent of sexually abused children do not tell anyone about what happened at the time, and that 31 percent still have not told anyone by early adulthood.

Some examples of sexual abuse include:

• Forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, which may or may not involve violence
• Penetrative acts
• Non-penetrative acts (kissing, masturbation, rubbing or inappropriate touching)
• Sexual photography or forced use of pornography or witnessing of sexual acts
• Some non-contact examples include looking at or producing pornography or sexual images, watching sexual activities, grooming in preparation for abuse

Signs of sexual abuse that you should be looking out for are:

• Bruising, particularly to the thighs, buttocks and upper arms and marks on the neck
• Bleeding, pain or itching in the genital area
• Difficulty in walking or sitting
• Sudden change in behaviour or school performance
• Displays of affection that are sexual or not age-appropriate
• Use of sexually explicit language that is not age-appropriate
• Alluding to having a secret that cannot be revealed
• Bedwetting or incontinence
• Reluctance to undress around others (e.g. for PE lessons)
• Infections, unexplained genital discharge, or sexually transmitted diseases
• Unexplained gifts or money
• Self-harming
• Poor concentration, withdrawal, sleep disturbance
• Reluctance to be alone with a particular person

Emotional Abuse

The third type of abuse is emotional abuse which is also known as psychological abuse.  It is a form of abuse whereby a person subjects or exposes a child to a behaviour that may result in psychological trauma, including anxiety, chronic depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder. It is the persistent mistreatment of a child that has a severe and negative impact on their emotional development.

Emotional abuse usually happens at the same time of other abuse.  Though, it may also appear alone.

Some examples of emotional abuse include:

• Overprotection – preventing someone accessing educational and social opportunities and seeing friends
• Intimidation, coercion, harassment, use of threats, humiliation, bullying, swearing or verbal abuse
• Conveying feeling of worthlessness, inadequacy or that a child is unloved
• Threats of harm or abandonment
• Placing inappropriate expectations on children
• Witnessing or hearing the abuse or ill-treatment of others
• Preventing the expression of choice and opinion
• Failure to respect privacy

Spotting signs of emotional abuse is usually more difficult, unless you actually witness the emotional abuse in person.  Though, some things you can look out for are:

• Concerning interactions between parents or carers and the child (e.g. overly critical or lack of affection)
• Lack of self-confidence or self-esteem
• Sudden speech disorders
• Self-harm or eating disorders
• Lack of empathy shown to others (including cruelty to animals)
• Change of appetite, weight loss/gain
• Signs of distress: tearfulness, anger
• being emotionally upset or agitated
• being extremely withdrawn and non-communicative or non responsive
• unusual behaviour usually for example starting to suck, bite, or rock
• nervousness around certain people
• an individual’s report of being verbally or mentally mistreated

Neglect

The fourth common type of abuse that we should be aware of is neglect.

This is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs. It is likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development.

Neglect is found to be a factor in 60 per cent of child deaths that are investigated through Serious Case Reviews. However, even though it is often suspected by those who work with children, it is under-reported.

Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born it could involve a parent or carer failing to:

• provide an adequate environment, food, clothing, shelter, (including exclusion from home or abandonment)
• protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger
• ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers)
• access appropriate medical care or treatment.
• meet or respond to a child’s basic emotional needs.

Some things you may notice about a child who has suffered neglect is:

• Excessive hunger (you may notice a child frequently taking other children’s food or constantly asking for more)
• Inadequate or insufficient clothing
• Poor personal or dental hygiene
• Untreated medical issues
• Changes in weight or being excessively under or overweight
• Low self-esteem, attachment issues, depression or self-harm
• Poor relationships with peers
• Self-soothing behaviours that may not be age-appropriate (e.g. rocking, hair-twisting, thumb-sucking)
• Changes to school performance or attendance

Witness to domestic abuse

Domestic abuse can have a devastating impact on the victims and their families, with children and young people at risk of serious harm to both their emotional and physical health. 

Domestic abuse is any incident of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse, between people in a domestic setting (such as marriages or cohabitation). 

Witnessing domestic abuse can seriously harm children and young people.

Most cases of domestic abuse are between partners or ex-partners; however, it can also happen between family members who aren’t necessarily in a relationship.

Since the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, children that have been exposed to domestic abuse are now recognised as victims of domestic abuse in their own right, rather than just witnesses.

Recognising whether a child has been a victim of domestic violence can be challenging.  Though some signs to look out for include:

• withdrawn or detached behaviour
• ambivalent feelings towards both the abuser and the non-abusing parent
• constant or frequent sickness
• frustration or aggression
• bullying peers
• problems in school or with learning
• anxiety, depression, or suicidal thoughts
• drug or alcohol use
• easily startled or seem on edge
• fear of leaving the home
• bed-wetting or increased soiling
• nightmares or insomnia
• withdrawal or struggles with separation
• difficulty identifying feelings or communicating needs
• difficulty developing positive peer relationships

Disguised Compliance

Our role in recognising these signs of abuse and the different types of abuse is crucial in protecting our children and getting the support and protection as early possible.

Abuse often happens over a period of time, rather than as a one-off event, and can have a devastating effect on a child’s development and society as a whole.

It can be difficult for us as practitioners to suspect parents and/ or carers as we usually have a relationship with them and their behaviour with staff can be the polar opposite to the suspected behaviour.

A parent’s or carer’s behaviour can make it difficult for nursery staff, childminders or other childcare professionals to recognise abuse or neglect at an early enough stage which can cause delay reporting it.

Something you should be looking out for with potential abusers, is disguised compliance.

Disguised compliance involves care-givers presenting an appearance of being co-operative and supportive in order to avoid scrutiny, suspicion or concern.  This can mean that social workers and other practitioners may be unaware of what is happening in a child’s life and the risks they face may be unknown to local authorities.  These behaviours may include:

• Misdirecting so this can involve focusing on one particular issue – parents make sure one thing goes well to deflect attention away from other areas like in the example of Daniel Pelka whereby his school attendance improved whilst the abuse continued or they may agree to certain targets and then avoid further contact with professionals.
• They may also attempt to dominating discussions
• Doing just enough
• Failing to engage with services – parents will promise to take up services offered but then not attend appointments due to other problems.
• Being critical of professionals – parents will seek to blame other professionals for things not happening, again deflecting attention away from things they have not done and seeking to split the professional group working with the family.
• Giving different accounts of events to their child or children

By doing this parents/ carer will use disguised compliance to mask or hide signs of abuse.

Improving our practice

Ways we can improve our likelihood of spotting signs of abuse include:

• Keeping good records of any safeguarding concerns, any discussions and meetings and using this to build a chronology of events that can help to identify parenting capacity over time
• Not accepting presenting behaviour as fact: seek evidence to make sure that you get a balanced view of what is happening
• Challenge the views of staff: being overly optimistic of what parents can achieve means that support is offered too late
• Most importantly you should Be child-focused: keep the child at the centre of planning and information gathering and always seek and record their perspectives

THE EFFECT OF ABUSE

It is so important that we try to prevent any abuse as early as possible and be proactive if we have any concerns.  Being child focused means, we seek to protect the child over any fears of offending any parents.

We have to do this as the effects of abuse can be very severe.

Over the long term, children who are abused or neglected are also at increased risk for experiencing future violence victimization and perpetration, substance abuse, sexually transmitted infections, delayed brain development, lower educational attainment, and limited employment opportunities.

Chronic abuse may result in toxic stress, which can change brain development and increase the risk for problems like posttraumatic stress disorder and learning, attention, and memory difficulties.

Children who have suffered abuse are more likely to have

• mental health problems, such as becoming anxious or depressed. Low mental health can also lead to big impacts on physical health, including self-harm or developing an eating disorder
• a lowered sense of self-worth
• use alcohol and other drugs as unhealthy coping mechanisms
• repeating behaviours seen in their domestic setting.

If you have concerns that a child in your care has been a victim of any of the types of abuse mentioned in this video then you should follow your nurseries safeguarding procedures.  Though, if you feel that a child may be at imminent risk of abuse then contact the police immediately.

If a child speaks to you about domestic abuse it is important that you: 

• provide a safe space for the young person to share
• let them know they’ve done the right thing telling you 
• tell them it’s not their fault
• listen to them and understand their needs
• do not push the child for answers, allow them to share as much as they are comfortable with 

• do not confront the alleged abuser
• explain what you’ll do next
• report what you’ve been told immediately

if you want further guidance on safeguarding in childcare then watch this video that’s on the screen now, but before you go over to that video make sure you hit that like button and don’t forget to subscribe, I post regular videos all around the topic of childcare. So, ill see you on the next video.  God bless.