Appendix C - Recognising signs of abuse

Recognising signs of abuse in children

The first indication that a child is being abused is not necessarily the presence of a severe injury. Concerns that a child is being abused may be raised by the signs of bruises or marks on a child’s body or by remarks made by a child, his/her parents or friends, or the observation of a child’s behaviour or reactions, from an awareness that a family is under stress and may need help with caring for the children or from a number of other factors.

Physical

Physical abuse may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing significant harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when a parent fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces illness in a child

Emotional

Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional ill treatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child’s emotional development. It may involve conveying to the child(ren) that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person. It may feature age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children. These may include interactions that are beyond the child’s capability, as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration or learning, or preventing the child participating in normal social interaction. It may involve seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another. It may involve serious bullying causing children frequently to feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children. Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, though it may occur alone.

Sexual

Sexual abuse involves forcing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, including prostitution, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening, the activities may involve physical contact, including penetrative (e.g., rape, buggery or oral sex) or non-penetrative acts. They may also include non-contact activities, such as involving children looking at, or in the production of pornographic material; or watching sexual activities or encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways.

Neglect

Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. Neglect may occur in pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to provide adequate food and clothing, shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment), failing to protect a child from physical harm or danger, failure to ensure adequate supervision including the use of inadequate caretakers, or the failure to ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment. It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a child’s basic emotional needs.

Recognising signs of abuse in adults

Physical

Similarly, to physical abuse against children and young people, this may include any unjustifiable physical discomfort such as pushing, shoving, pinching, slapping or punching. It may also involve withholding care or force feeding, or the application of inappropriate methods of restraint or physical intervention.

Neglect

This would involve the withholding or failure to provide the support necessary for the adult to carry out the activities of daily living. This may include withholding food, care or service. Neglect may also include a failure to intervene in situations that are dangerous to the person concerned or others, particularly when the person lacks the mental capacity to assess risk.

Sexual

This would include any form of sexual activity that the adult does not want and which they have not consented to (or do not have the capacity to consent to). Any sexual relationship that develops between adults where one is in a position of trust, power or authority in relation to the other would constitute abuse. Specific activities may include rape, buggery, incest, touching without consent or exposure.

Psychological

This would include any behaviour which might lead to the adult’s choices or opinions being negated. This could involve the use of intimidation, indifference, hostility, threats, humiliation, shouting, swearing or the use of discriminatory or oppressive language.

Financial

This would involve the exploitation, inappropriate use or misuse of a person’s financial resources or property. It could include withholding of money, online fraud and identity theft. “Silver Surfers” are particularly vulnerable to this due to their lack of internet awareness.

Discrimination

This can be described as the intentional, wilful or unintentional abuse of a person based on their protected characteristic, for example, race, religion or gender.

Institutional

This would involve abuse or mistreatment by an organisation or by any individual within a building where the person is living or receiving care. Possible signs may be the person having no personal clothing or possessions or frequent admissions to hospital. You may note instances of professionals having treated them badly or unsatisfactorily or acting in a way that causes harm to the person.