The Exploitation of Children with Learning Disabilities or Difficulties

This course is about developing awareness of child exploitation and learning disabilities and difficulties.

The course will explore your role and multi-agency practice in;

• Placing the child/young person at the heart of our work, listening to their experiences
• Supporting parents and foster parents to be a resource for protection
• Working with and alongside parents and carers
• Working as a team across agencies
• Making assessments and finding out about the child’s life and needs
• Working with the police and trying to ensure that young people are seen as credible witnesses
• Understanding behaviour as communication

Young people with SEND may often be isolated which makes them more vulnerable. Many young people never have a diagnosis, some are in mainstream schools, some in Pupil Referral Units, some are off-rolled or not in school at all.

We will look at the combined challenges faced by children and young people with learning needs, or who may have Autism or development delay, who have experienced trauma.

We will explore how young people with learning needs are seen and understood.

We will look at how we might pick up indications that a young person is being pushed around, at online risks and at how harm may be discovered or come to light and our role in this.

Recognising that there is no blue print for safety, and that these are challenges for workers, this course aims to open up discussion and change practice towards young people with learning needs.