Learning the Lessons from Punishing Abuse: Girls, Violence and Vulnerability

Why are girls' needs are sometimes harder to identify and to meet?

In Punishing Abuse, Dr Alex Chard said of the girls in the study group: "Their abuse both within the home and the community alongside their social care profile would indicate that collectively the girls have the highest levels of need", which led him to conclude that "their involvement in the criminal justice system is in effect, punishing them for their earlier abuse".

The video at the centre of this resource includes a series of conversations focused on drawing out lessons for frontline professionals working with girls.

Description

In his hard-hitting report Punishing Abuse, Dr Alex Chard said of the girls in the study group: "Their abuse both within the home and the community alongside their social care profile would indicate that collectively the girls have the highest levels of need", which led him to conclude that "their involvement in the criminal justice system is in effect, punishing them for their earlier abuse".

This video and audio discussion illustrates what's at stake and why it's important for us to reflect on how we work with girls.

In the first part, Dr Alex Chard, in conversation with Wendy Tomlinson, reflects on the lives of the girls he studied in Punishing Abuse. 

In three further individual conversations with Dr Alex Chard, Dr Katie Ellis, Dr Gilly Sharpe and Lorraine Khan surface valuable insights from their own work with girls in secure settings and custody to provide a deeper understanding of the factors that contribute to girls' needs often going unidentified and unmet.

In the final part, Dr Alex Chard and Wendy Tomlinson reflect on the understanding that has developed through the session about girls' experiences and how they experience attempts to safeguard them. They draw on their considerable combined experience of working in children's services to highlight what it all means for building confidence on the frontline in recognising and meeting the needs of girls.

These resources will help you:

• Gain an understanding of the key findings about the girls studied in Punishing Abuse and feel what’s at stake
• Consider why girls' needs are sometimes harder to identify and to meet
• Critically reflect on your own work with girls - do you prioritise safeguarding them physically from harm over all else?
• Develop awareness of how your use of language might reinforce barriers
• Consider whether you are fearful and anxious about working with girls and understand why that might be the case
• Build an understanding of what girls need from you
• Develop confidence in your ability to make a difference

Further reading