NICOLA Sturgeon has been urged to take action following reports that children who have experienced domestic abuse are being denied support in school because of coronavirus restrictions.
In a report published last week by the Scottish Government, specialist domestic abuse recovery services revealed that they had “experienced significant challenges in negotiating access to school buildings”.
While some schools allowed children to leave for planned sessions, they wouldn’t be allowed to return. Some teachers wouldn’t allow children to engage in group work with children from other schools.
As there is no one rule for the whole of Scotland, it seems that access to both primary and secondary schools is dependent on either the local authorities or on the head teacher.
A number of specialist children’s services told report authors that they had significant concerns for the “generation” of children who had experienced domestic abuse but were currently missing out on recovery work.
Some groups said not having access to a safe space in school restricted the support they were able to offer children, “particularly in cases where their homes were not safe spaces”.
While some organisations organised sessions in outdoor public places, such as parks, it “was recognised this was not a long-term solution, particularly over the winter months.”
And though virtual support services are available in many cases “children did not have access to devices.
One specialist children’s organisation told the report authors that virtual recovery work “was simply not effective”.
Joanna Barrett, policy and public affairs manager for NSPCC Scotland, called for the government to take action:“We know that domestic abuse has a significant negative impact on children. With families spending more time at home due to lockdown restrictions, it has brought this issue into even sharper focus.
“After lockdown measures were first announced in March this year, there was a significant increase in contacts to our NSPCC helpline from adults worried about the impact of domestic abuse on children. Our Childline service also delivered over 500 counselling sessions during the first two months of lockdown with children and young people across the UK who were worried about domestic abuse.
“Looking after children’s welfare was a key factor in the decision to work to keep schools open, so reports about children unable to access support while there are of concern. The Scottish Government must do all it can to ensure that children who have experienced domestic abuse can access the support they need to help them recover.”
Aberdeenshire East MSP Gillian Martin said the report raised “real concern about children and the access they have to domestic abuse recovery services.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said it was a “major concern that referrals to services have increased during the pandemic.”
“We are focused on ensuring that frontline services can meet the increased demand for support and have provided an additional £4.25 million to help to ensure these vital services are still able to provide support to people across the country, including our children and young people.”
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