Catch up with the latest in safeguarding for schools: best practice, thought leadership, and all the latest insights within single central record management.

SCR Tracker Blog

The Department for Education published two case studies on flexible working solutions in trusts and schools on the 12th of May 2021. Below are the findings from two case studies: the first from United Learning with insights from High Hazels Academy, Shoreham Academy and Guildford High School, and a second case study from Reach2 Academy Trust's White Meadows Primary School.

Schools group United Learning has taken a trust-wide approach to designing and delivering innovative flexible working solutions.

United Learning is a large group of schools with over 80 primary and secondary schools across the UK, predominately academy schools and a smaller number of independent schools.

Part-time rates for teachers across the trust are similar to national averages, but vary greatly from school to school, with some schools taking a more proactive approach than others.

United Learning’s leadership sees a role for their trust in addressing recruitment and retention challenges. They are specifically working to attract and keep high quality teachers, as well as increase numbers of teachers in subjects where graduates are in high demand.

Additionally, the trust is keen to ensure that it is an inclusive employer with a diverse employee body, a minimal gender pay gap and a set of working practices which work for all.

In 2018, the trust’s leaders carried out a strategic planning exercise which identified that flexible working could address both these issues. As a result, they sought to improve the understanding and implementation of flexible working across the trust, through a 2-stage project.

From the end of 2018 to spring 2019, the trust carried out a review of policies and guidance related to flexible working across the group. This included:

rewriting the trust’s flexible working policy, highlighting the role of informal dialogue and proactive leadership to inform decisions and move away from a request-response model

new tools and guidance for leaders and staff on how to plan and discuss flexible working options

training for the HR team, carried out by Timewise, providing the skills needed to support and drive conversations about flexible working

sharing of best practice across the trust, including video case studies from headteachers with a good record for enabling flexible working, and a discussion led by a school with a high proportion of flexibly-employed staff

Starting in October 2019, United Learning launched a research project with 7 volunteer schools which demonstrated positive attitudes towards flexible working. This included:

an introductory meeting to bring the schools’ leaders and HR teams together, encouraging inter-school dialogue and sharing of best practice

training and workshops for headteachers, delivered by Timewise, including a focus on the role of job design and how to use it successfully

in-depth training on adapting the timetabling process to incorporate flexible working, including a practical ‘how to’ session delivered by a school which excels in this area

Progress was then reviewed and priorities set for the next steps in January 2020. Areas for further exploration included:

building flexible working into recruitment plans

creating a more systematic approach to staff consultation

exploring how to consolidate planning, preparation and assessment time to allow remote working

scheduling of meetings and pastoral time to support staggered start and finish times.

The COVID-19 pandemic began midway through stage 2. The unexpected challenge of providing distanced teaching and learning for pupils put some of United Learning’s plans on hold.

However, the move to remote education for many pupils also created an opportunity for schools to explore the techniques and technology required to make remote schooling – and remote working – work. The experience also removed some of the perceived barriers, and highlighted other possibilities, such as using IT to allow remote access to team meetings.

United Learning and its member schools will be incorporating what they have learned into their post-COVID-19 strategic planning.

Examples of good practice in United Learning schools

High Hazels Academy, a primary school in Sheffield, has undergone a transformation as a result of implementing flexible working. With staff turnover above trust and national averages, the school’s leadership team undertook a programme of initiatives, including mentoring, continuing professional development (CPD), succession planning and flexible working.

Having actively engaged with United Learning’s guidance on flexible working, and taken part in the training and support they were offered, the school’s leaders have been able to increase opportunities for flexible working across all staff groups.

They are now taking an even more proactive step by recruiting new staff on a flexible basis. This, in turn, has increased the school’s diversity and improved the inclusion and well-being of staff.

The school’s headteacher, Asma Maqsood-Shah, believes that strong communication has been central to the success of their new flexible working strategy. She has built in a system for 2-way feedback around every aspect of the school, so that the senior leadership team can be clear about the impact on staff.

Following the new approach, part-time teacher rates are now higher than the national average and, according to the annual staff survey, engagement has increased from 68% in 2017 to 89% in 2019. Voluntary staff turnover rates have reduced significantly in the same timeframe, dropping from 12.2% to 2.5% in 2019 for Key Stage 1, and from 10.9% to 4.9% for Key Stage 2, and recruitment costs have reduced accordingly.

Only 2 years ago, the school needed to recruit between 6 and 8 teachers a year. in 2020 just 2 new teachers have been needed.

Faced with a high proportion of teaching staff who were approaching retirement, the senior leadership team at Shoreham Academy have taken a proactive approach. They have actively encouraged those who were considering stepping down to opt for phased retirement, which allows them to continue working in a part-time role and draw part of their pension. This has helped the school to retain these teachers’ experience and skills, and support their wellbeing, whilst simultaneously reducing budget costs.

Flexible working is now available to all staff, at every level, and the school’s leaders are rarely unable to meet a staff member’s needs. Part-time teacher rates are above the national average, and informal flexibility is also treated positively, with staff members willing and able to cover for each other when needed.

From September 2020, the school’s vice principal will be working 3 days per week, passing on some responsibilities to the assistant principal. This will in turn support the assistant principal’s CPD and the school’s succession planning.

Guildford High School’s approach is driven by the headteacher’s belief that outstanding schools are built on outstanding teachers, and that retaining them is a clear priority. Under her leadership, the timetabling process is not based on part-timers working a specific number of days, but instead on the days they wish to be in school. Their contracts are built around timetabling software. Teachers are given clear expectations about what is possible, so that everyone knows where they stand.

For example, it is understood that part-time core subject teachers will have to be in school across 4 days each week. Teachers in other subjects may be able to consolidate their teaching time together and so have fewer days on site. Additionally, if they are willing to teach a limited number of year groups, they may be able to reduce their role even further. For example, a science teacher was able to create a one-day-per-week pattern by opting to teach only biology to pupils in years 7 to 9.

As a result of this experience in implementing flexible working, as well as a proactive approach to technology, the impact of COVID-19 was less disruptive than it might otherwise have been. The school used Microsoft Teams to deliver remote lessons during lockdown, and was able to support other schools with their virtual provision.

The experience has reaffirmed the headteacher’s view that flexibility enables rather than hinders outstanding teaching. She also believes it has opened up more opportunities for flexible working.

In addition to the case studies noted above, and despite the impact of COVID-19, United Learning is already seeing a range of benefits from their flexible working project, at a trust-wide level.

Schools with high rates of part-time staff are reporting improved retention of talent and more efficient staffing costs, and the teacher turnover rate is declining across the trust as a whole. The trust’s HR business partners also report that the new policy is facilitating more positive and constructive outcomes for flexible working requests across all schools.

High Hazels Academy headteacher Asma Maqsood-Shah says,

"Despite previously being anti-flexible working, I am now a passionate advocate. It has made such a difference to retention and morale and, ultimately, to the children."

Additionally, the gender pay gap for United Learning Academy schools is reducing, and analysis by the trust suggests that greater flexible working for school leaders and teachers is a factor. Data from United Learning’s Gender Pay Gap Report 2019 suggests that there is a correlation between the reduction in the pay gap and an increase in flexible working in the workforce overall, for teachers and for women in senior roles.

The trust has put in place a range of mechanisms to continue sharing learnings and good practice, including case studies, a dedicated information area on the intranet, and training for HR business partners and school HR staff. A new recruitment and retention best practice handbook is currently in development.

Case study 2: White Meadows Primary School

White Meadows has used flexible working to recruit and keep high-calibre staff, supporting their path from special measures to a good Ofsted rating.

White Meadows is a 3-form entry community primary school based in Littlehampton, in one of the most deprived parts of West Sussex. The infant and junior schools were amalgamated in 2011, at which point they were both in special measures. It currently has just under 100 teaching and support staff.

While the shortage of teaching staff has been a national issue for many years, recruitment and retention is more difficult for schools in deprived areas. Additionally, a legacy of being in special measures makes the situation more difficult, even when a school is starting to improve. This is a challenge which the leaders at White Meadows have sought to tackle through their flexible working strategy.

Over the last 8 years, leaders at White Meadows have used flexible working to attract and keep a group of passionate, resilient teachers who relish the challenges of their roles and are prepared to go the extra mile to support their pupils.

The drive for flexible working was initially led by the school’s headteacher (now its executive head), who set out to create a culture in which people’s lives did not take second place to their jobs. In practice, this meant taking the approach that they would try to accommodate flexible working requests, for whatever reason.

The school’s leadership team openly champions flexible working, the current headteacher worked a 4-day week in her previous role as the school’s deputy headteacher. As a result, staff are confident that they can be honest about their need for flexible working.

Staff who are due to take maternity leave are asked about their return plans before they go, giving the school time to work out the best way to accommodate their wishes. Flexible staff are celebrated, not tolerated. Candidates are told about the flexible approach during their tours of the school.

Leaders work hard to match part-time roles and partnerships with staff needs and personalities, as well as the needs of pupils.

Leaders are open about how the school benefits from flexible working. For example, they are positive with staff and parents about how job shares provide a ‘fresh’ teacher part-way through the week, as well as providing some pupils with a mid-week chance to start again. As a result, parents are generally supportive.

Making the most of staff members’ outside interests

One part-time teacher runs the education unit in a local museum for the rest of her working week. The school has built strong links with the museum as a result and asked the teacher to use her experience to write the school’s history curriculum.

Leaders are careful not to assume that staff will work outside of their part-time arrangements, for example, if staff attend inset days on their scheduled day off, they are given the time back. Staff are allocated 3 days personal leave to allow them to attend their own children’s school events or take care of other personal priorities.

Leaders have noted a number of ways in which COVID-19 has changed working practices for the better.

As the school is part of a national academy trust (Reach2), leaders and staff were previously required to travel around the country for trust-wide meetings. These have been moved online, which benefits both staff and budgets, and will hopefully continue to some degree.

The school has embraced technology during lockdown, using a platform called SeeSaw to set work and engage with pupils (for example, posting videos of the nursery teacher reading stories online). They will continue to use SeeSaw to set homework and believe this technology could also support teachers’ ability to work remotely in the future.

The school’s positive approach to flexible working means that it is no longer seen as something just for staff members who are parents, and has resulted in a number of interesting developments. For example:

there are currently 3 job share partnerships, including the year 1 team leaders

a number of staff work part-time in a role designed to cover colleagues’ planning, preparation and assessment time

2 year 6 teachers don’t have a class of their own, but instead work a 0.6 contract spread across 5 mornings, taking smaller groups, set by ability, for further stretch and challenge

2 higher-level teaching assistants are working part-time while they study for university degrees

Staff retention has increased, with the number of leavers dropping from 16 in 2015 to 8 in 2018 and just 3 in 2019. Anecdotally, the improved well-being of the staff body has also been noted.

"Teachers and school support staff tend to be caring, family-oriented, values-driven people, they wouldn’t choose this profession otherwise. So it’s important that school leaders allow them to provide the same care and attention for their own families and personal lives as they do for their pupils. Flexible working allows our brilliant staff to balance the challenges of their role with the rest of their lives, and we benefit from this as much as they do. It’s simple, really, if you keep your staff happy, they will stay."

The above article was written and released by The Department for Education on the 12th of May 2021, on the following sources: Case study one, Case study two. 

Should you be interested in hearing more about SCR Tracker, the leading market solution for online single central record management, please do contact us today at sales@scrtracker.com or 020 3743 8843, to hear how we can assist you with your SCR processes and any challenges that you're currently facing in your recruitment processes.

Department for Education: Case studies in flexible working solutions

The pandemic has drastically changed the way education is being delivered worldwide. For a large part of the last year, through various lockdowns, we have inhabited a world where being safe equates with being socially distant, quarantined, and connected only virtually. 

In the process, we have embraced newer models of education dissemination, battled major safeguarding risks, and accounted for the psychological as well as the overall long-term impact of the pandemic on children. 

The bottom line is that this transition to either a hybrid or a remote learning model has come with a fair share of challenges. As a result, the school authorities have to stay vigilant, constantly. 

As we enter the next phase, we want to be ready for, and ahead of, any challenges that might arise. When we first made the transition, it was done in haste, so we worked with imperfect systems, where a plethora of safeguarding concerns raised alarm. 

Now, all school authorities and other education stakeholders wish to implement a system that is well-thought-out and tested for any safeguarding loopholes. In tandem with this goal, the Department of Education (DfE) has mandated the implementation of a secure remote learning plan by September this year. 

This plan would take into account challenges faced in educational settings related to cybersecurity best practices, equity and access, and psychological concerns. This brings the issue of cyber safety to the centre stage. As EdTech is developing exponentially, it is more important than ever to liaise with National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) and develop a foolproof structure where 

b) mitigation directives are in place if such attacks occur despite these guardrails present.

New Learning Models, New Cybersecurity Challenges

In order to fully appreciate the need for a remote learning plan and implement a safeguarding infrastructure around it, it is important to understand the challenges posed by the remote model in nuanced depth. 

The NSCS has issued warnings as well advisories in regards to the increased ransomware attacks in the education sector. In a fairly recent ransomware attack, 37000 children were unable to access their email. Since we moved to the remote mode of learning and working, hacking incidents have been on the rise: the Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2020 found a total of 54% identified breaches or attacks at least once a week for secondary schools. 

In addition to the traditional forms of cyber attacks, we also witnessed novel security breaches in the form of “zoom bombing” whereby an uninvited user accesses a private video call. In an educational setting, zoom bombing has posed several threats: 

Invasion of privacy of everyone in the video chatroom/call,

Distraction from or disruption in the lessons, and 

Exposure to inappropriate materials or sights.

Phishing — the fraudulent practice of masquerading as a person/company of repute in order to acquire sensitive information — was rampant too. 

When we first implemented a remote learning structure, it was out of urgency and uncertainty. We knew very little about the virus and how it would impact our lives. Going forward, however, we can predict with a certain degree of certainty, what precautions and safeguards we need in place to ensure a safe remote learning environment. The Chief Information Security Officer of XYPRO and Cybersecurity Expert Steve Tcherchian shares, 

“Cybersecurity awareness needs to be part of any remote learning plan. This needs to start with teachers and administrators. There is usually a huge tradeoff between security and functionality. Unfortunately, with the rush to implement this, security may have been an afterthought.” 

“Unfortunately, criminals know that and will capitalise on that. One of the biggest immediate threats to remote learning is ransomware, meeting hijacking and email compromise. These don’t take a lot of effort given the current landscape.”

So, how do we ensure that the remote learning programmes are not laden with security vulnerabilities still? That’s the answer this action plan seeks to provide. 

A robust remote learning plan would account for the safety of children online, data protection and privacy shields, access to educational resources without endangerment or mental distress. Here are a few areas that need to be considered in the creation of this plan.

Legislations to be referred & abided by 

The plan should give due regard to all relevant legislation and statutory guidance including, but not limited to, the following:  

Equality Act 2010  Education Act 2004  

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)  

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013  

DfE (2019) ‘Keeping children safe in education’  

DfE (2017) ‘Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years’  

DfE (2018) ‘Health and safety: responsibilities and duties for schools’  

DfE (2018) ‘Health and safety for school children’  

DfE (2016) ‘Children missing education’  

DfE (2020) ‘Safeguarding and remote education during coronavirus (COVID-19)’  

DfE (2020) ‘Adapting teaching practice for remote education’  

DfE (2020) ‘Guidance for full opening: schools’

Measures and tools to be included in a secure remote learning plan

For teachers, who are directly organising and scheduling the classes, it is important to have a checklist of precautionary and security measures handy. According to Tcherchian, measures on this checklist should include: password protecting your zoom meetings, using complicated passwords, creating accounts for children’s emails, Chromebooks, etc with stronger passwords that aren’t set to their name. He also suggests the admin not to share passwords and account details in public documents, and to add another layer of security, make sure the user is forced to change the password upon signing on. 

Some remote learning applications can have security vulnerabilities and leakage threats due to mobile device permissions. Our advice to mitigate this would be to firstly start with an initial audit of your information systems. Standard controls should include intrusion detection and prevention, firewall protection, content filtering, email security, antivirus software, and data loss prevention. 

The approach of network segmentation, i.e. creation of separate network segments for students, staff, and confidential data can help protect the other segments in case of an attack on one segment. A safeguarding perspective would also mean following the “least privilege” policy. According to this, you will provide tiered access to various segments/users, with no user having access to more dashboards or files than they need to. With each tier, the security settings can get tougher & prevent any attacker from escalating to the more sensitive data. 

Rahul Mahna, Managing Director of Managed Security Services at EisnerAmper’s Process, Risk and Technology Solutions points out,

“Cameras also come to mind. Most students are using Chromebooks that have integrated cameras. Those cameras are often integrated and not easily controlled by the student. In the case of a hacker getting access to the camera, we suggest that when the student is not working in an online classroom to block the camera lenses with something simple, such as tape. The other precaution is the location in the house in which the student does his/her learning. The camera is picking up items behind the student, such as household items and other personal items that could identify that particular student or his/her family, and then used by hackers for password clues to any number of that family’s devices.”

School managers could also consider an ongoing monitoring framework. This will help analyse logs for unusual activity that could indicate an attack or a potential data breach. “Moving forward, our team does see more shift to Chromebooks that are easily remotely controlled, provisioned and secured through various cloud security software offerings that assist both the school and student,” Mahna adds.

Furthermore, a single sign-on feature across all accounts within an educational institution can be useful to combat breaches. This is because a single sign-on makes it easier for users to create and maintain unique and complex passwords for logging in. This way they stay more protected across more accounts.

Finally, ensuring two-factor authentication (2FA) or multi-factor authentication (MFA) also allows you to add an extra layer of security to your accounts, using an authenticator app to prove user identity. For example, the SCR Tracker software provides MFA capability to further protect your organisation's single central record.

Not all children have the same accessibility and affordability for the remote learning infrastructure, specifically the devices and internet. According to Ofcom, children from financially vulnerable households were 89% likely to have access to a desktop or laptop as against 98% in the least financially vulnerable homes.

If children use unsafe devices or open/public connections, it might jeopardise their safety as well as that of the school systems. Therefore, it becomes extremely important to address equity from a safeguarding perspective: when children from less privileged backgrounds find it harder to access a suitable device, they miss out on schoolwork or synchronous lectures/classes. Sharing a device with other family members can also make it harder for them to take extra measures for security. Hence, equity becomes a safeguarding concern. 

Overall, it is recommended to use all measures listed above, but the final implementation of a secure framework ultimately also needs in-built education around it, and will only fully succeed when the staff and administrators are well-trained and aware of the risks, threats, and solutions. Schools are suggested to host cybersecurity training and awareness sessions for staff regularly, with updates on newer technological threats as well as the use of protective tools. 

Devising a secure remote learning plan to fortify against cyber risks

A series of conversations with students since 2018 about different forms of peer-on-peer abuse provides the first-hand context and a strong foundation for the guidance in this post.

We have outlined ways that schools and universities can prevent and respond to this form of harm, specifically looking at some of the challenges and strengths facing institutions that serve geographically mobile and culturally diverse student bodies. We’ve also been careful to reflect on the Coronavirus, anti-racism and diversity and how these may also have an impact on peer-on-peer abuse. 

We hope that the information and links to resources will help to support you in your roles as you work to protect students. 

Content Warning: This article contains information about sexual violence that might be triggering for some. The article might also make you reflect on personal or professional issues, which may be upsetting. If you would like to speak to someone after reading this article, we would encourage you to talk to friends or family members, or to talk to a counsellor. You can also call a mental health helpline or a trusted child helpline in your country, and they can point you in the direction of further support if necessary.

Peer-on-peer abuse is the ‘physical, sexual, emotional and financial abuse, and coercive control, exercised within young people’s relationships, including their intimate relationships, friendships and wider peer associations.’[1]  

Students from multiple countries and diverse cultural contexts have spoken about their experiences of peer-on-peer abuse including:

Being blackmailed to engage in sexual activities

Being threatened by knife point in the locker rooms and bathrooms

Having sexual images taken of them without their consent

The rape of students, including on campus, at parties and on trips

Being excluded from social groups because of where they come from or the languages that they speak, or don’t speak

Having rumours and ‘gossip’ spread about them and other students

Figure two: students’ experiences of peer-on-peer abuse in a school setting.[2]

Here are some actions you can take to prevent and identify peer-on-peer abuse at an early stage.

1.   Ensure that your policies address all forms of peer-on-peer abuse

Young people often experience multiple forms of harm that can intersect and overlap with each other. Having policies that address all forms of peer-on-peer abuse can be helpful. We have heard from counsellors, whose schools only had an anti-bullying policy in place, that they were ill-equipped to respond when other forms of harm occurred.

2.   Provide on-going education that enables students to identify and report harm

Providing ongoing, evidence-based social emotional skills and prevention education, tailored appropriately to the audience, is critical to helping students identify and report peer-on-peer abuse.[3] We have heard from a survivor of peer-on-peer abuse that no one had ever spoken to her about different types of harm before her abuse, which meant that she didn’t have a framework to understand what was happening to her, or a language to describe it. As she explained:

"Too many children and adolescents suffer these things in silence. After the most severe rape incident I found myself searching Google looking for the right word. It wasn’t a male, so could it really be rape? Sexual assault was too vague and didn’t encompass the actual act. But this was a peer so could it even be child abuse? It is important to me to keep telling this story so that the next teenager to go through this at least knows how to talk about it and has someone who will listen."

Rather than leading with the message ”it’s wrong to send a photo of yourself to others”, focus on the abusive and harmful aspects of image sharing. For example, that it’s wrong to put pressure on another person to send images of themselves, and to share any images of others.

"They teach you not to send images in the first place. So, if your photo gets shared around, you’re not going to speak to a teacher because they are the ones that told you not to send it” —Student engagement session on sexting, 2019.

3.   Identify and address the risks presented by the Coronavirus, and build on any protective factors that might have emerged

We are still learning about the impact of the Coronavirus on young people’s experiences of peer-on-peer abuse. Many organisations have issued warnings that with more young people online more often and for more time, the exposure to online risk is likely to be increased (UNICEF, NCA-CEOP, NSPCC, IWF, Europol).[4]

Our conversations with counsellors over the past few months indicate that some students are reporting less peer pressure and bullying, and increased time for self-reflection. A key question for schools and universities will be to ascertain what protective factors may have emerged during lockdown, and how these can be carried forwards as campuses start to reopen.

4.   Embed values of equity, diversity and inclusion throughout your institution

Inequalities and discrimination provide fertile breeding grounds for peer-on-peer abuse. We know that socio-economic inequality within a school can increase bullying rates, that young people experience peer-on-peer abuse in gendered ways, and that racial or ethnic minority status can be a risk factor for peer victimisation.[5]

Our discussions with students in some institutions suggest that where a school or university has been able to embed values of diversity and equity throughout its institution, this can help to protect students from harm.

"I think in our school we have a sort of culture of acceptance. It’s really part of the values to accept difference, so I think we support each other perhaps more”—Student engagement session, 2019

This is consistent with research studies which suggest that a school culture which is underpinned by values based on equity, diversity and inclusion, and is open and supportive, can foster a caring environment and improve reporting rates.[6] Equally, when students feel that they belong in and are connected to their school, this can reduce levels of peer aggression and violence, and the converse is also true.[7]

Embed anti-racism and consider intersectionality [8]

While racism is one way in which young people can harm each other, the ways that schools respond to peer-on-peer abuse are often embedded within systems that prioritize certain groups. For example, while schools may seek to respond to peer-on-peer abuse through the use of sanctions, evidence suggests that behaviour policies often disproportionately impact black students.[9] In order to tackle both individual and structural racism, institutions will need to look not only at the considerations set out in this article, but also at deeper social, cultural and systemic structures which have privileged voices of some groups over others, and have perpetuated inequalities. At CIS, we are hearing and learning from the personal experiences of people who are suffering from racism, in order to frame the systemic and structural challenges we need to address in international education. We are deep into listening and learning mode as we consider how we can use all the tools available to us to address systemic racism in international education.[10]

Intersectionality invites us to think about how people can experience multiple and overlapping forms of discrimination based on different aspects of their identity. For example, someone may experience racism, sexism and ageism collectively or individually at different times and in different environments. [11] Intersectionality can be a helpful lens through which to understand how different forms of prejudice and discrimination play out in education, and how we can seek to tackle these forms of harm.[12]

Ensure you offer culturally and ethnically representative support and educate your community on the role of culture

For institutions with diverse student bodies, having culturally relevant and ethnically representative psychological support is important. An Asian student attending a US College in a predominantly white environment told us the story of not seeking much-needed counselling as she could not locate any Asian counsellors, the only people she felt could understand her.

A young person’s behaviour and perceptions are informed by their cultural background and experiences. When young people from different cultural contexts come together, this can sometimes lead to misunderstandings and peer pressure to, for example, drink alcohol or engage in casual sex. Some professionals have helped students navigate these differences by creating spaces to have conversations about nuanced areas such as identity, peer pressure and consent, why someone might not want to do something but might feel pressured into doing it, and how cultural difference may play a role in someone’s understanding of how they should behave. Training in intercultural competence can also help young people to understand their own culture and strengthen their conviction to their own core values and behaviours.[13] We have heard from professionals in schools about the positive impact of staff training that focused on identifying and addressing harm across cultures and on supporting students with the impact of culture shock. Understanding how the influence of peers in adolescence differs between cultures, with it being more pronounced in some countries, for example, than in others, can also help staff to identify and manage peer dynamics.[14]

5.   Provide multiple avenues for students to report

Providing multiple avenues for students to share concerns and prominently displaying posters around your institution can help to provide students with a language to use and can encourage reporting. Engage students in all stages of this process to ensure messages are student-led.

"We would never tell our counsellors because they were asked to find out who was involved [in drinking alcohol] so they started bringing everyone in to question them.”—Student engagement session, 2019 

"The counsellors are great but they are not well represented by the school. Their office is hidden and far away, you have to make an appointment and it feels like something is wrong with you or you are sick if you go to a counsellor, it should be normal”—Student engagement session, 2020

If schools want to ensure that their responses to peer-on-peer abuse are relevant and effective, it is critical that they learn from students. This can take many forms. For example, small group sessions with students can help you to understand the forms of harm that are most prevalent in your setting. Administering student well-being surveys can enable you to spot trends over time. Carrying out a location mapping exercise with students can help you to identify the safe and unsafe areas. This can also be carried out in relation to social media platforms, online games and websites.

Any consultation with students should be done safely and ethically, with the appropriate policies and procedures in place. The International Taskforce on Child Protection is carrying out research and preparing guidance on this topic, and will be consulting directly with students as part of this.

7.   Review the ways in which you record concerns

There should be secure and confidential ways for all staff to report concerns, and for these to be recorded. Digital systems which allow for the triangulation of data, tracking trends and recording locations and times, are helpful. A small number of senior staff should have oversight of safeguarding and behaviour records in order to identify patterns at an early stage and understand when behaviour may indicate a safeguarding issue. Reviews of records can include consideration of the following:

is the threshold for recording harm set at the right level?

is there evidence of victim-blaming, racist or stigmatising language, or a lack of clear descriptions of the behaviour or incident?

8.   Implement effective transitions programmes

Transitions are periods of change and can bring with them a range of challenges as students leave one life behind and start another.[16] Effective transition programmes are critical and can support new students to integrate into their environments and help existing students to manage the grief that can arise from their friends moving on.[17] Information sharing between the institutions that students move between can also be critical in ensuring that the new institution can safeguard the incoming student. This is a complex area involving legal and ethical considerations, and CIS will be providing further guidance on this issue.

Handling allegations of peer-on-peer abuse in a way that safeguards all young people involved can be difficult. Your policies should allow you flexibility so that each allegation can be handled on a case by case basis, while at the same time ensuring that there is enough consistency that individuals have confidence in the process and an understanding of how it will be applied.

1.   Conduct a local mapping exercise and learn about your legal context

In order to respond effectively to peer-on-peer abuse, institutions need to understand the legal obligations for reporting abuse to external agencies in their country, and the support services available. A local mapping exercise whereby you identify and build relationships with external agencies can help.

2.   Intervene early to prevent escalation 

It is critical to address inappropriate and problematic behaviours before they escalate.

Student: "When we are worried about something we normally talk to a houseparent or a teacher."

Interviewer: “And how do they usually respond?”

Student: "Their response is always excellent. They always listen to us and tell us what they are going to do. They are very discreet, and they usually solve the problem."—Student engagement session, 2019.

Case reviews of institutional abuse consistently highlight that when these ‘lower level’ behaviours are present in an institution and go unaddressed, this normalises harm in the environment and creates conditions that are conducive to further harm.[18]

"I told my counsellor about the bullying, but not the assault. He assured me that there was nothing he could do without making it worse for me. I told him that it was more than I could handle and that it was contributing to my suicidal feelings. He told me to just have thicker skin. I never felt comfortable expressing the assault due to this assumption that there was nothing anyone could do."—Young person, 2019.

3.   Intervene with the contexts and not just the individuals, and be wary of zero tolerance approaches

Evidence suggests that when young people encounter harm from their peers it is often in contexts beyond their families, for example at school or university, or online. It is important therefore that professionals recognise the relationship between the harm and the context it is happening within. For example, in an instance of bullying between a group of boys at school it would be important to understand the dynamics of the peer group—the leader and followers—and how this informs interventions. If a sexual assault occurs on campus, the university should consider the physical environment, systems and structures alongside support to students affected. To support these approaches, schools and universities can consider Contextual Safeguarding approaches, which support educators, social workers and families to assess and intervene with the contexts, and not just individuals.[19] Similarly, zero tolerance policies that require institutions to take punitive actions without allowing professionals to exercise judgment or seek to understand how wider contexts might be driving certain behaviours, can be very damaging.[20]

A social media initiative Everyone’s Invited launched in June 2020 as a place where students can anonymously describe rape and assault within school communities. The number of postings (almost 15,000) has led to a special UK governmental investigation.

“As young people bravely tell their experiences of sexual harassment and abuse, it is clear that schools need to take stronger action to ensure they are safer places. But in a bid to do so I caution against ‘zero-tolerance’ approaches to sexual violence. My research in schools over the last three years has highlighted that often ‘zero tolerance’ approaches don’t work. Instead, we need proportional, contextual, and practical approaches to sexual harm in schools.”—Dr Jenny Lloyd.

4.   Do not dismiss peer-on-peer abuse that takes place away from campus, online and during the holiday

Students talked to us about the pervasive nature of online harm, and the difficulty escaping from it. Some students told us that they would be less inclined to report abuse that took place online or away from campus, because they didn’t think that their institution would do anything about it. 

"We would never tell a teacher if someone was sexually assaulted at a party. Our teachers tell us all the time that if something happens outside of school it’s not their problem.”—Student engagement session, 2020

All allegations of peer-on-peer abuse, regardless of where and when the alleged abuse took place, raise questions about the safety and well-being of students on campus and, as such, should be responded to. Policies should make this clear.

5.   Identify where the behaviour falls on a continuum: examine the power dynamics and think carefully about consent

Not all sexual behaviour between young people is harmful and when responding to instances of peer-on-peer sexual harm it is important to understand if the behaviour is developmentally appropriate and acceptable or potentially harmful or abusive. The following continuum can help.

Simon Hackett’s continuum of sexual behaviours.[21]

Is there is a difference in power between the young people involved?

Much of young people’s power comes from their social and cultural capital and understanding the power dynamics therefore requires professionals to understand what gives young people capital in their context.[22]

It is important to consider not only whether the young person made an active choice, but also whether they had the freedom and capacity to make that choice. For example, where a young person is being pressured or blackmailed into certain activities, or where the culture of the institution facilitates or condones harm, their ability to consent freely is likely to be constrained.

6.   Consider your duty to refer allegations externally

You should always seek to comply with mandatory reporting obligations to refer allegations of abuse to external agencies. Even where there is no legal obligation to report, you should always give any alleged victims the opportunity to report allegations of criminal behaviour to law enforcement directly. It may be necessary for institutions to report to law enforcement even where the young people involved do not want to report. For example, where the allegation indicates that a young person poses a risk of harm to the wider community. These cases need to be handled with care, and expert advice should always be sought.

There may be some instances where reporting an allegation to local agencies could lead to members of the community being put at risk of significant harm. For example, in some countries there may be a real risk of harm for the victim for cultural reasons, or a risk of significant human rights abuses in the legal system.[23] It is helpful in these cases to carry out and document a risk and benefits assessment whereby the risks of reporting are weighed up against the risks of not reporting.

CIS resources on intercultural competence

Farrer & Co. Safeguarding children from racism

Learning from young people: How schools and universities can protect students from peer-on-peer abuse

Come March 27th at 8am, we will be releasing a huge update to our platform, internally dubbed our Version 2. This has been under development since the first lockdown and our team are super excited to get this in front of you.

The system will be offline for a few hours while we complete the upgrade. Don't worry, all of your data will be safe.

When SCR Tracker was first built, it was designed around giving our customers the checks they needed to be compliant for their school in line with the relevant guidance. It soon became apparent that adding your own checks, applying conditions and customising the existing ones was paramount. We plugged this gap with Additional Checks but internally it's 2 opposing systems, our internal checks which cannot be tailored, and your custom checks which have limited functionality. Building anything on top of this has proved extremely complex.

We now have a new system that combines all the checks into a system, which we are calling Templates.

You will now be able to see all the built-in checks and, where allowed, you will be able to make modifications in our stunning new drag-and-drop editor. Templates are hierarchical. Your template will still be based on ours, so when legislation changes, we can update our template and it will continue to flow through to yours.

Being able to show and hide checks based on the state of another is what gave our app a unique ability to be flexible. Now that we're no longer hampered by the old dual-system, we have recreated our Condition Logic engine from the ground up around the new Template system. You can now show and hide fields based on the values of other fields such as the start date, the current date, or even if it's their birthday.

We will also now be committing to a much more rapid release cycle to get many more exciting updates out to you this year, with the biggest feature of all coming within a few weeks, custom profile types.