

NSPCC Learning Podcast
NSPCC Learning
Welcome to the NSPCC Learning Podcast - a series of episodes that cover a range of child protection issues to inform, create debate and tell you about the work we do to keep children safe. At the heart of every episode is the child’s voice and how what they tell us informs the work we do. If you are looking for more safeguarding and child protection training, information and resources, please visit our NSPCC Learning website.
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Episodes
Mentioned books

Dec 9, 2019 • 24min
22: Supporting young people with learning disabilities
The NSPCC developed Love Life in partnership with Dr. El Stannage and Connecting Youth Culture for young people with learning difficulties or special educational needs.
The films and resources help support adults in starting conversations with young people aged 11 to 25 about topics such as feelings, privacy and boundaries, relationships and online safety.
Listen to our episode to find out:
why and how the films and resources were developed
how the resources can be delivered
the benefits these resources provide for young people with learning disabilities
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Helen Westerman is joint acting Head of the Safeguarding in Communities team at the NSPCC and has been working at the charity for the past 13 years. She is also the Local Campaigns Manager in the North of England, running local and regional campaigns in partnership with health, social care, police, education and voluntary sector agencies which aim to safeguard children and young people.
Elanor Stannage has a PhD in Arts in Mental Health and has worked as a theatre practitioner, director, writer, and producer for over a decade. This involves creating projects and performances with marginalised communities and specialising in the areas of mental health and learning difficulties. She has also developed and worked with Connecting Youth Culture on Fuse Theatre - an inclusive youth theatre for over 10 years - which has helped inspire the concept for Love Life.
📚 Related resources
> Access our Love Life resources
> Read more about safeguarding children with SEND
> Hear about our study into safeguarding disabled children from sexual abuse
> Read our blog on exploring emotions and relationships with young people with SEND
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Nov 25, 2019 • 30min
21: Steps to Safety programme
Listen to this week’s episode to learn about:
the Steps to Safety programme, including the research behind the service and its development process
what the outcomes were from the feasibility study and what we learnt from the service
how practitioners assessed parents, delivered sessions and modules and used Video Interaction Guidance (VIG)
the challenges practitioners encountered whilst implementing the pilot programme
how children’s voices were considered at each stage to ensure the service was delivered safely.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Nicola McConnell is a Senior Evaluation Officer within the NSPCC’s Evidence Team who has over 20 years of experience in evaluating health and social care services for children and families, including training and supporting others to undertake this work. She has researched and published a range of evaluation reports across different topic areas such as child protection, domestic abuse and preventing child abuse.
Roberta Neill is a qualified social worker and Children’s Services Practitioner working at the NSPCC’s Belfast Service Centre. During her time at NSPCC she has delivered domestic abuse services including DART and Steps to Safety as well as a number of different sexual abuse services. She has also been delivering a Video Interaction Guidance (VIG) service since 2011 across Northern Ireland.
Paula Telford is a qualified social worker with over 40 years’ experience in both delivering services and managing teams. She has largely worked in child protection, especially sexual abuse and in mental health. She is currently a Development and Impact Manager at NSPCC and led on the Steps to Safety Service among others. Paula is working with a team of colleagues to take forward the learning from Steps to Safety into other services.
📚 Related resources
> Discover how to recognise, respond and prevent domestic abuse happening to a child
> Learn more about what early intervention services are and the benefits of early help
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Nov 11, 2019 • 31min
20: Protecting disabled children from sexual abuse
Joining us for this episode, Sarah discusses:
our report findings including the key issues for parents and carers
the need for accessible relationships and sex education for children and young people with disabilities
how parents and carers can work with schools to provide children with consistent messages around relationships and sex education
involving children, young people and their parents and carers in the development of services and approaches to preventing sexual abuse
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Sarah Goff is Safeguarding Disabled Children Services Manager at the Ann Craft Trust. She carries out research; delivers training to agencies and local safeguarding children partnerships; and, provides consultancy to organisations about safeguarding disabled children. Her recent work has focused on seeking the views of disabled children and young people placed away from home; the experiences of deaf and disabled children and young people facing domestic abuse and child sexual exploitation; and, developing training to support practitioners in keeping children safe.
📚 Related resources
> Read more about safeguarding children and young people with SEND
> Download our resources for young people aged 11 to 25 with learning disabilities
> Browse our PANTS guides for children with learning disabilities
> Read more about how you can protect children from sexual abuse
Intro/outro music is Lights by Sappheiros

Oct 28, 2019 • 23min
19: What is the Underwear Rule?
Tune into our episode for more about:
the impact PANTS has had since it launched in 2012
having conversations around PANTS and embedding the messages into daily life
how local safeguarding boards, parents, schools and local communities are helping to raise awareness of the campaign
what children have said about the PANTS campaign and future developments to materials and resources.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Ally Sultana is the Local Campaigns Manager for the NSPCC covering the East and West Midlands and is involved in keeping children and young people safe from all forms of abuse, including child sexual exploitation and online risks. She has played a pivotal role in the NSPCC’s PANTS campaign - working with hundreds of parents and professionals to help safeguard children from abuse.
📚 Related resources
> Download our PANTS teaching resources for schools
> Find out more about Talk PANTS for parents and carers
Intro/outro music is Lights by Sappheiros

Oct 14, 2019 • 22min
18: Together for Childhood in Stoke
In this episode, we speak to Leila Canay, one of Stoke’s Children Services Practitioners about:
what evaluation activities are currently being run in Stoke
how the initiative has invited change and developed over time working with the community and partners
establishing professional and community partnerships, including embracing collaboration and co-creation
how young people can be involved in influencing and informing Together for Childhood in their local area.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Leila Canay is a Children’s Services Practitioner at the NSPCC’s Stoke Service Centre and a qualified social worker. She has a background in delivering child sexual abuse services, including Letting the Future In (LTFI) and Turn the Page (TTP). She is currently seconded into the role of Community Engagement Officer for Together for Childhood in Stoke.
📚 Related resources
> Find out more about Together for Childhood
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Sep 30, 2019 • 29min
17: Charity trustees’ responsibilities
In this episode, our contributors discuss:
the role and responsibilities of a charity trustee
the key to good governance in a charity
the importance of complying with legislation and guidance around keeping children safe
top tips to ensure charity trustees and managers are working well and playing an active role in safeguarding.
This series was carried out as part a partnership led by NCVO, funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the National Lottery Fund within the Safeguarding Training Fund programme.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Chris Cloke was the Head of Safeguarding in Communities at the NSPCC for over thirty years. He has a huge wealth of experience and knowledge in safeguarding, particularly within the voluntary and community sector where he has been a trustee and advisor to several voluntary groups. He has been a member of and worked closely with a number of local safeguarding children boards and was chair of the Anti-Bullying Alliance for many years.
Cate Meredith has been working for the NSPCC for 10 years as a Senior Consultant in our Safeguarding in Communities team. She continues to lend her expertise to organisations in the voluntary and community sector to ensure their safeguarding responsibilities are supported, understood and met, so that children and young people are safe.
Kathy Evans joined Children England in 2010 as Deputy Chief Executive and she became CEO in April 2013. During her career Kathy has been the Chair of the Standing Committee for Youth Justice, a trustee of the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, a member of the ACMD Hidden Harm group and DCSF Care Matters advisory group. She was also consultant to the Police Foundation and Justice, devising potential alternatives to Youth Courts, to support the Independent Commission on Youth Crime and Anti-Social Behaviour.
📚 Related resources
> Find out more about safeguarding in faith communities
> Find out more about safeguarding children and young people as a charity trustee
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Sep 16, 2019 • 25min
16: Safeguarding in faith-based communities
We are almost reaching the end of our series on safeguarding children and young people within local communities. Tune into this week’s episode to find out more about:
the role faith-based communities and groups have in children and young people’s lives
why it’s essential groups and communities understand their safeguarding responsibilities
how to address safeguarding challenges and develop a safeguarding culture that works alongside cultural beliefs, values and customs
the importance in listening to children and young people and ensuring children always feel listened to.
These episodes were produced as part of a partnership led by NCVO, funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the National Lottery Fund within the Safeguarding Training Fund programme.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Cate Meredith has been working for the NSPCC for 10 years as a Senior Consultant in our Safeguarding in Communities team. She continues to lend her expertise to organisations in the voluntary and community sector to ensure their safeguarding responsibilities are supported, understood and met, so that children and young people are safe.
Mike Williams has been working in evaluation for 20 years and joined the NSPCC in 2007. During this time, he has evaluated a range of initiatives relating to the prevention of child sexual abuse which includes working with the Somali community in East London and more recently the NSPCC’s child sexual exploitation programme, Protect & Respect.
Shirley Maginley is the NSPCC’s Senior Consultant for Faith and Minority Ethnic Communities. She works across communities to support and promote good practice in keeping children safe, facilitate learning and develop safeguarding initiatives that reflect cultural and ethnic diversity.
📚 Related resources
> Find out more about safeguarding in faith communities
Intro/outro music is Lights by Sappheiros

Sep 8, 2019 • 29min
15: Schools’ role in safeguarding overview
In this podcast episode, you’ll learn about:
good safeguarding practices for schools
the barriers children can face when talking about their experiences of abuse
managing relationships with parents
supporting students and staff and promoting positive mental health
how to work with other organisations and statutory services in the community to ensure pupils feel safe and supported.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Kay Joel is a Senior Consultant at the NSPCC who works closely with schools to provide external consultancy. This includes undertaking safeguarding policy audits and visiting schools to verify safeguarding practices. She has also worked for over 25 years as a qualified teacher in primary and special education.
Our guest speaker, Helen, is the parent of a child who is in year one and provides us with an insight into what she has experienced as a parent.
📚 Related resources
> Take our child protection online course for schools
> Safeguarding responsibilities of schools in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales
> Read the updated statutory guidance on Keeping children safe in education by the DfE
> Discover what makes an effective anti-bullying policy
Intro/outro music is Lights by Sappheiros

Sep 2, 2019 • 32min
14: Enhancing online safety for children overview
Our host Chris Cloke and Gawain Griffiths, a Website Supervisor for the NSPCC discuss:
how to run online services safely and manage an online presence effectively adopting professional and personal life boundaries online, particularly, with social media and email accounts
the impact of bullying and how to prevent it online and respond appropriately
who organisations can go to for resources, guidelines, templates and support
what children and young people tell Childline about keeping safe online.
These episodes were produced as part of a partnership led by NCVO, funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the National Lottery Fund within the Safeguarding Training Fund programme.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Chris Cloke was the Head of Safeguarding in Communities at the NSPCC for over thirty years. He has a huge wealth of experience and knowledge in safeguarding, particularly within the voluntary and community sector where he has been a trustee and advisor to several voluntary groups. He has been a member of and worked closely with a number of local safeguarding children boards and was chair of the Anti-Bullying Alliance for many years.
Gawain Griffiths is a Website Supervisor for the NSPCC and focuses on content development on the Childline website. Gawain has worked at the NSPCC for nine years and has developed a wide range of online resources to help keep children and young people safe in the online and offline world.
📚 Related resources
> View our safeguarding resources for voluntary and community groups
> Learn more about online safety
Intro/outro music is Lights by Sappheiros

Aug 19, 2019 • 29min
13: Safeguarding adults and children
Through this episode, you’ll find out more about:
the similarities, differences and challenges in safeguarding adults and children
how organisations working with mixed-age groups can safeguard children and adults in their care
the importance of separate policies and procedures for adults and children
safer recruitment and changing organisational culture so that safeguarding is a priority
the support and resources available to mixed-age group organisations.
These episodes were produced as part of a partnership led by NCVO, funded by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the National Lottery Fund within the Safeguarding Training Fund programme.
Read the podcast transcript on the NSPCC Learning website.
💬 About the speakers
Chris Cloke was the Head of Safeguarding in Communities at the NSPCC for over thirty years. He has a huge wealth of experience and knowledge in safeguarding, particularly within the voluntary and community sector where he has been a trustee and advisor to several voluntary groups. He has been a member of and worked closely with a number of local safeguarding children boards and was chair of the Anti-Bullying Alliance for many years.
Sarah Stanley is the Education and Development Co-ordinator for Brass Bands England and has created a safeguarding training course for its members with the help and guidance of the NSPCC. She now delivers this training to bands across the country.
Lisa Curtis is the Safeguarding Adults at Risk Manager and Deputy CEO of the Ann Craft Trust and has worked on various projects including the provision and development of services for adults with learning disabilities. She has continued to influence safeguarding and the delivery of quality services to vulnerable adults.
📚 Related resources
> View our safeguarding resources for voluntary and community groups
Intro/outro music is Lights by Sappheiros