Disabled children who are at risk but cannot verbalise their concerns will be able to express themselves better with the help of a new vocabulary of symbols and pictures
A vocabulary resource, How It Is, which will enable better communication with disabled children about their needs, rights and feelings, including concerns about abuse, has been launched by the National Society for the Protection of Children (NSPCC) and Triangle, an organisation that works closely with disabled children, their families and the disability movement.
The images were designed by Tri- angle to be used as a flexible, child-centred resource, relevant for everyone involved with disabled children or children with language difficulties - parents, social workers, childcarers, police, teachers, psychologists, speech therapists, nursing and medical staff. It will also help police and social workers undertaking child protection investigations to better understand what disabled children wish to tell them.
Sadly, disabled children are particularly at risk of abuse. An American study published in 2000, Maltreatment and Disabilities: A Population-based Epidemiological Study, found that disabled children were 3.4 times more likely to be abused and neglected than their non-disabled peers. This is likely to be similar for the 3 per cent of children who are disabled in the UK, but there is a lack of research on prevalence here.
The Government's 1999 report, Working Together to Safeguard Children, states that the available UK evidence suggests that disabled children are at greater risk. It also says that one of the reasons for the increased vulnerability of disabled children to abuse is that disabled children 'may have communication difficulties which may make it difficult to tell others what is happening'. Safeguards the report recommends include 'making it common practice to help disabled children make their wishes and feelings known in respect of their care and treatment' and 'making sure that all disabled children know how to raise concerns if they are worried or angry about something... those disabled children with communication difficulties should have available to them at all times a means of being heard'.
Ease of expression
How It Is was designed mainly for working with disabled children who use symbols, pictures or images to communicate. However, the resource may also be useful in communicating with very young children, very distressed children and disabled adults. NSPCC project manager David Miller says, 'There are widely recognised gaps in existing symbol vocabularies in these areas. These gaps both reflect the social position of disabled children and contribute to their increased vulnerability to abuse.
'This new set will place more emphasis on children expressing their feelings and wishes and help them to communicate their rights, issues of safety, personal care and sexuality that they may have been unable to convey previously.' Triangle has worked with many children who have a wide symbol vocabulary but are missing some of the basic symbols that are essential for effective communication, for example:
- children who have more than 20 symbols for body parts but no symbol for bottom (or any other private body part);
- children who can communicate about the national curriculum but cannot say 'leave me alone'; and
- children who have 15 different colours in their communication system but can't ask for a cuddle.
Ruth Marchant who led the project with Merry Cross, both from Triangle, says, 'We asked children what they most wanted to communicate. We listened to the language of young children and looked at books popular with them. From this we built a vocabulary list. We included phrases such as "Go away", "It's not fair", "I'll do it myself", as well as feelings such as happy, sad, angry, excited and jealous, and actions such as cuddle, hug, tickle, giggle, smack and kick. "Bottoms", "willies", "wee" and "poo" were also high on the list.' How It Is consists of a collection of 384 images divided into five searchable categories. Around half the images have been developed especially for How It Is; the others are primarily Rebus images, some pre-existing, others developed in parallel with this project.
The new How It Is images are designed to:
- support children to communicate about their feelings, their bodies, their rights and their basic needs
- assist adults to work with children on these issues
- facilitate children, when necessary, to communicate about abuse in evidentially safer ways
- assist adults and when necessary, to investigate concerns about children's safety in more valid ways.
Individual choice
The new images were drawn by an experienced symbol designer and were developed and put on trial with children and young people aged from 20 months to 20 years with a range of experiences and abilities, and from a range of ethnic backgrounds, as well as with parents, carers and experienced professionals.
Images of private body parts, sexual activity and those related to physical abuse are included in the image set as well so that, where appropriate, disabled children can communicate their concerns, experiences and feelings about potential or actual child abuse.
Images can be introduced into children's existing sets on communication boards, computers or books in conjunction with a trusted parent, carer or professional. They are individually chosen according to the child's needs, wishes and understandings. Images that work well with one child may not be preferred by another child.
The NSPCC says that many professionals, including social workers, childcarers, police, teachers, psychologists, speech therapists, nursing and medical staff are aware of the resource and the range of images available. Some of these may work directly with children on a regular basis, introducing images into their communication systems. Others can discuss the inclusion of images for particular purposes with those who are familiar with the child's communication system.
Critical aid
A critical part of the NSPCC's Full Stop campaign to end cruelty to children is for as many children as possible to have the means to tell others about child abuse. Three-quarters of children don't report sexual abuse at the time, and this is likely to be greater for disabled children, who face more difficulties in being heard.
It is also hoped that the image set will be used to produce materials such as specialised programmes to help disabled children to develop awareness of their rights, safety and sexuality and empower them to express any concerns.
A full set of images and guidance notes are available free to download from www.nspcc.org.uk/inform/howitis,or www.howitis.org.uk.Users can search online for the images they need. The How It Is booklet with accompanying CD-Rom is also available for 8 (postage included) from the NSPCC Publications and Information Unit, Weston House, 42 Curtain Road, London EC2A 3NH. A small number of CD-Rom sets are also available separately.
Other resources for communicating with disabled children and young people produced by the NSPCC and Triangle include 'Two Way Street', a video and handbook. To order see http://www.nspcc.org.uk/inform/ch_Publications.asp/
