This course has been developed by Youth Scotland in response to the needs expressed by member groups over the past years. It became apparent during ‘Child Protection Awareness’ training, a course Youth Scotland offers to all workers in the network, that many small, volunteer run organisations were unaware of their responsibilities around reporting and referral of child protection concerns or that someone in their group should take the lead on child protection.
Prerequisites:
- Completion of Child Protection Awareness Course in the past 1-2 years
- Currently in a designated Child Protection Officer role or have been asked to take on the role
Course objectives:
- Understand the role of a CPO officer in a voluntary youth group, covering two fundamental issues:
- Understand the key areas of responsibility that are covered by this role, including reporting and referral to appropriate agencies
- Know what steps the organisation needs to take to ensure the safety and welfare of the young people it works with, including reviewing their current policies and promoting an organisational culture that puts the needs of young people first.
Learning Outcomes:
- Understand what prevents young people from disclosing abuse and how to support young people to disclose
- Understand what prevents staff/volunteers from responding appropriately/reporting disclosures and how to overcome this
- Understand the processes and procedures that follow a referral and what further role they may have