Safeguarding at Shout
At Shout, we have a dedicated team that works on safeguarding; it plays a crucial role in the delivery of our service.
The team is there to identify and protect children and adults who are at risk of harm. While most people who text Shout won’t need external help or support outside of the conversation they have with our Shout Volunteers or clinical staff, if someone does, our safeguarding team plays a key role.
Georgia, a member of the safeguarding team, explains how safeguarding works at Shout, and talks about why the job is so rewarding.
What is safeguarding and who is it for?
Safeguarding is the work we do to identify and protect children and adults who are at risk of harm. This work consists of understanding if a texter is at risk of harm from themselves or others, such as through bullying, abuse and sexual assault. This may be when someone has an intention to self harm or die by suicide, that we aren’t able to safety plan with, or if someone informs us they are at risk of being harmed by someone else, for example telling us a family member physically abuses them. If we identify that someone needs help to stay safe as outlined above, then we would need to take action. This would include passing on details to professional agencies such as police or social services. That way, professionals can act to help the texter be safe or arrange support for them. These decisions are made by the safeguarding team who oversee conversations that our volunteers are having with texters. We always try to let our texters know when we will need to take action.
Why is safeguarding important for the Shout service?
Safeguarding is vital for Shout because keeping our texters safe is our number one priority. We understand that sometimes the support received from texting us isn’t enough to keep a person safe in the long term, so other agencies may need to help support them.
Safeguarding can prevent texters from experiencing significant or further harm. It is important for us that we always make sure our texters understand every step we’re taking, and that we support them on a pathway to being safe.
Shout Volunteers will always aim to work with each texter to come up with a plan for how they will keep themself safe if they are at risk of harming themself. The vast majority of our texters are able to make a plan to stay safe, or may not be at risk of harm from others, so there’s no need to pass their details on to professional services, but if we are worried about someone’s safety - as determined by our risk assessment - then we may need to do this.
What do you find rewarding about working on safeguarding?
It is rewarding to know that the work we do may prevent serious harm to the people who reach out to us for help, and also support better outcomes and development for our texters. Everyone has the right to be protected from others and safeguarding is working to uphold people’s human rights. It is our moral duty as a society to look after our most vulnerable people, and working in safeguarding means we get to be a part of that.
What training do we give staff and volunteers on safeguarding?
We provide safeguarding training to staff and volunteers that lets them know how to be alert to whether our texters are at risk of harm. It also helps them to understand different types of abuse and what processes might be applied when someone is at risk of being unsafe or hurt. We aim to have our volunteers and staff understand that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.
Is there anything else you think it’s important that we highlight?
It can seem daunting to have a safeguarding referral made on your behalf, but this is always done with the your best interest at the forefront, so that we can plan for their safety. Reaching out is a brave first step and we’re here to make sure every texter gets the support they deserve.
