GWERU DIOCESAN CHILD SAFEGUARDING & OVC DESK

Doing Nothing is Not An Option of Our Life

Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these” (Matthew 19:14)

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Child Safeguarding Activities

The Child Safeguarding and Orphaned & Vulnerable Children Department’s overall objective is to promote a safe space for children and promotion of their basic rights as outlined by successive conventions and statutory instruments. In order to achieve this the Commission has set in place activities to carry out with children in schools, orphanages and the Parishes that:

Encourage children to explore feelings associated with being safe/unsafe including situations and environments that are safe and those where personal safety may be at risk

Encourage children to identify simple strategies for keeping safe as well as to identify adults and institutions that help them to keep safe.

The activities will follow a general structure of:

The Commissions officers providing a key message and explanation of the function of OVC’s and how this ties to child safeguarding and children’s rights.

Group activities which can include games or tv programmes that relay some of the themes highlighted below. The group activities are meant to teach children about their safety by allowing them to take a leading role in the conversation.

Debriefing as OVC tries to answer any questions the children might have, provide resources and information that will assist the children should they feel that their rights are being violated as well as ask leading questions that will provide a picture as to the children’s level of understanding.

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OVC Activities

Our overall activity plans are the same between children of Primary School going age and those of High School going age with only a difference in the games or programmes the children will engage in during the second part of the activities as well as in wording and tonne of the activities in order to ensure engagement and understanding from the children.

Understanding Children’s Rights

Highlight the United Nations Children’s Rights. Create different scenarios that allow children to identify what children’s rights are. rights are being violated in each scenario Encourage children to think and talk about situations that they have experienced/seen/heard that violated children’s rights in order to have an understanding of what they are facing in their communitie

Feeling well in my body

Highlight the correlation between the way we take care of our bodies with our wellbeing and how that is necessary to keep our bodies safe and healthy by loving and embracing the way our bodies are. Encourage children to identify physical body boundaries as well as good and bad touches on their physical touches with how they make them feel Encourage children to have their own rules regarding people and their physical GWERU DIOCESE: OVC & Child Safeguarding Dept. 18 body boundaries

Explore the concept of personal space and how to respect our own and others personal space Help children explore how they feel in their personal space and the people allowed to enter their personal space and how those people make them feel Identify potential risks in the personal environment Encourage children to create a personal safety network and safety plan

Mapping Safety In The Community

Help children to understand what child protection is and to understand that protection is their right Encourage children to identify sources of safety and support in the community Encourage children to explore ways of self protection Assist children to identify sources of protection, people that should and could protect them.

Responding to Abuse and Sexual Violence

Identify types of violence and abuse they can be confronted with Identify different kinds of sexual violence Learn to identify appropriate and inappropriate behaviours in order to help children identify what sexual abuse is Help children prepare an action plan in case of exposure to sexual violence

Safe and Unsafe Feelings

Identify different situations as either safe, unsafe or practice caution Recognise and name how it feels when we are in safe or unsafe spaces

Wants and Needs

Differentiates between wants and needs. Create different scenarios that allow the children to identify their wants and needs. Emphasize that children’s rights are based on children’s needs.

Alison Gopnik

Caring for children has always been one of the deepest and most satisfying things that a human being does, and yet it is hard to keep a healthy attitude toward it in our competitive, outcome-oriented society.