Digital simulation helps practitioners spot signs of abuse

• Scenarios are school-based and targeted at those working in education but can be applied more widely
• Tool had registered 2,000 users in the first month, with 96 per cent saying it boosted their skills to respond

ACTION

An interactive learning simulation is helping practitioners that work with children to better identify and support those who could be victims of abuse.

The online tool, Talk to Me, has been developed through a joint venture between the NSPCC and Attensi, which describes itself as a “gamified simulation training provider”.

A pilot to launch the scheme began in December after Attensi won its bid for a share of Innovate UK’s £20m funding earmarked for its national response to Covid-19.

The government’s innovation agency announced the grants last year specifically for projects that would address and mitigate the health, social, economic, cultural and environmental impacts of the pandemic.

The 3D simulation, primarily aimed at professionals in education settings, allows users to build their knowledge and confidence to talk to children about abuse through interactive scenarios using fictional characters.

Attensi is making the software available to download for free until the end of 2021.

The impetus for the project can be linked to rising concerns raised over children’s safeguarding as a result of the pandemic, says Neel Parti, a senior analyst at the NSPCC.

According to Department for Education data, there has been a 23 per cent fall in referrals to council children’s services during January and February compared with the same period in 2020, a level of decline similar to that seen in the first national lockdown in spring last year.

“Children are just not being seen as much [in lockdown] and so there is data to indicate there are delays in reporting [concerns],” explains Parti.

He says the NSPCC’s involvement in the project is being driven by data that suggests there has in fact being an increase in instances of abuse and neglect during this time.

“Talk to Me is in response to Covid but I think the tool has benefit regardless and that is even greater now because of the challenges we are facing and are aware of,” he adds.

Three key findings from the charity’s Covid-specific research highlighted increased stress among parents and caregivers; increased risk from online abuse; and a reduction in normal protective services as reasons exacerbating a rise in cases.

Previous research has also shown that children feel they are often not noticed and heard when making disclosures about abuse and neglect.

With so many children hidden from sight during lockdown, there is the risk much of this abuse could go undetected. In addition to helping practitioners to improve their skills to identify signs of abuse, the tool can also provide a preventative benefit, explains Parti.

“If professionals are more able and open to having these sorts of conversations at an early point, then it may prevent things from escalating,” he says. “It gives them the confidence to ask open questions, to be inquisitive.”

Parti says the tool is most useful “at the point where children are already experiencing abuse and neglect and making a disclosure” because it takes them “through that process”.

School-based scenarios

The pilot version of Talk to Me features two scenarios both of which are based in schools because education settings are where children spend most of their time and so teaching staff are best placed to recognise changes in behaviour (see box). This targets the tool at teachers, designated safeguarding leads and school leadership teams.

In its initial development, Attensi says it focused on all adults that interact with children – around 1.5m people – primarily teachers and nursing staff.

“But there’s adults that work across health, sports and leisure sectors who also regularly interact with children as well who would find this training useful,” explains Madeline Porter, the organisation’s director of business development.

She says Attensi worked closely with the NSPCC and its safeguarding team to create authentic dialogues for the scenarios which feature fictional characters but are based on real casework.

In one of the scenarios, users meet Lily, a nine-year-old girl who is experiencing sexual abuse from her grandfather.

A second scenario involves a 12-year-old boy called Lucas whose father has subjected him to domestic abuse.

In both of the scenarios users play the role of a concerned teacher because each child has displayed worrying behaviour at school.

In Lily’s case, she has drawn a concerning picture whereas Lucas has shown some antisocial behaviour in the playground resulting in his parents being asked to come into school.

Users are asked to select a series of appropriate responses for each scenario that encourage the child to talk about what they are experiencing.

“It’s about building trust for you as the ‘player’ to choose the right responses by judging those cues that the child is giving you such as facial expressions or changes in body language.

“From our perspective, these games are designed to be tricky and to be repeated. We know that when people train multiple times, they expand their learned skills and, in this case, how to build trust with a child,” says Porter.

Crucially, the simulation provides users with a realistic environment where it is “safe to fail”, she adds.

When users select less appropriate responses they are given feedback to help them learn from the choices they have made.

“Very few people are going to get this right first time regardless of how much experience they have in this particular area,” says Porter.

“We are trying to get the user emotionally engaged in a safe environment where the stakes have no practical consequences.

“This means they’ll employ more than just the analytical part of the brain which then ensures there is a higher level of reflection and increased retention of both the skills and the knowledge.”

Parti, who has extensive experience in social work, says he did not “get it right” the first time he played the simulation.

“From the responses you can select, some of them are obviously not correct or appropriate but actually some of them may be appropriate,” he explains.

“But what you are looking to select is the optimum solution so there are quite small differences which really make you think.

“Only by selecting the optimum response can you build trust and move forwards and it’s that subtlety that really helps to build the learning.”

Porter says the next stage in the project is to identify other scenarios and additional features with help from feedback collected from a user survey.

The current simulation uses a “static” environment with a child in a classroom talking to a teacher but Porter says the technology is available to allow such characters to interact on the move.

“This could be young people walking along a sports pitch with a football coach for example having moving dialogue,” she explains.

IMPACT

Following a launch in December through a schools marketing campaign, Porter says the simulation had nearly 2,000 unique users by early February. Of these users, almost half work in the primary school sector, she adds.

Data collected by Attensi showed the simulation had been played around 4,000 times, fulfilling its intended outcome that users would engage with the training repeatedly.

Survey feedback also indicates a high level of satisfaction, with 96 per cent of users saying the training made them feel more confident in having conversations about experiences of abuse with children.

The NSPCC says it intends to carry out short interviews with survey respondents to collect more qualitative feedback and to help shape the next steps of the pilot due to end in March.

While the simulation will remain free until the end of this year, both the NSPCC and Attensi are considering the cost implications of providing this type of specialised training.

“We are mindful when it comes to digital technology there is investment needed,” says Parti.

“We need to think about how we can create something that is sustainable, that we can grow and evolve to meet the needs of those who are using it.”

TALK TO ME
SCHOOL SCENARIOS AND POSSIBLE TEACHER RESPONSES

TEACHER: Hi Lily, I’d really like to talk to you about this drawing of yours.

LILY: Okay…

• I’m curious about who that is in the picture. Tell me about the drawing.
• Did you draw a picture of yourself?
• Can you tell me what’s in the picture?
• Okay, well… I think you should start by telling me what it is you have drawn.
• [Don’t say anything]

TEACHER: I’ve thought a lot about you crying in the picture where your grandad is reading you a story.

LILY: I don’t like to sit in his lap.

• Is there a reason you don’t like sitting in your grandad’s lap?
• You don’t like to sit in your grandad’s lap?
• Have you told your grandad that?
• Why not?
• But you’re lucky to have a grandad who cares about you, Lily.

TEACHER: You say you get scared when it’s like that at home. What are you afraid of?

LUCAS: I’m just scared of, you know… Of what he’s going to do to Mum…

TEACHER: What he’s doing?

LUCAS: I’m afraid he’s going to kill her. It wasn’t so bad. Before. But now we never leave the house and… He’s always there…

• What is it you’ve seen that makes you afraid he’s going to kill your mum?
• That sounds quite dramatic. Are you sure it’s as bad as that?
• My God… What are you saying?
• That has to be a horrible feeling. It makes sense that you might have some trouble focusing in class sometimes.

Read more in CYP Now's Digital Innovation in Social Care Special Report