AIBU to think that people without safeguarding training shouldn't be giving advice about safeguarding on MN?

[calmandcaffeinated]

As the title says. I've read so many posts regarding a safeguarding concern on MN, and the amount of people commenting to do nothing or to mind your own business is sickening.

It's clear to me that none of these people have had safeguarding training, and in no way should comment as it puts children at risk. I'm not sure what the answer is, but given how heavily policed MN is anyway I think more moderation is needed.

Perhaps IABU, as we should have balanced views on things and it's free speech, so please let me know if I am. I just want to know the general consensus on this matter.

YABU. People are expressing opinions.

MN is v clear that nothing on here should be taken as a professional opinion.

This is a general interest forum, if people want professional advice then they need to go get that.

Meh, it's an internet chat forum, people give their opinions. If you want to correct someone, do so, but in general the message should be "Don't expect a free internet forum to have expert advice on it"

You're so right! There a lot of people on MM commenting on things they know nothing about.

I'm a safeguarding officer, 95% is actually common sense and whilst there is an element of specialist knowledge, it's sometimes still subjective - commenting on a post is also so dependent on information shared. Any advice here should always be considered opinion not fact!

Completely agree. I must prefer and trust the woo threads.

Your desire to regulate those opinions smacks of authoritarian overreach

I disagree - because I believe the OP is referring to all the 'Ooh, no, mind your own business, don't interfere, there's no point, nobody will do anything, I had a 49 year old boyfriend when I was 14 and I knew exactly what I was doing, they'll just snatch the child up for adoption if you say anything, you fancy her husband, don't you/you're the ex wife/new stepmother/sibling with their nose out of joint aren't you' types of posts.

The fundamental of safeguarding is report it. If it's nothing, it's nothing. And if it isn't nothing, then you've done something to help protect a vulnerable person.

Yeah but this isn't a forum for safeguarding experts. No one should be regarding what anyone posts on here as perfect advice, whatever they claim their background to be. This is equivalent to asking your friends' opinions over coffee, not a meeting with a solicitor/accountant/teacher.

If an OP takes bad advice, that's on the OP, not the poster who gave the advice.

YABU. In my line of work most people are required to do “safeguarding training”. But this varies from an hour’s online course in the absolute common sense basics, to three half days in more depth. I’ve done the highest level available but this absolutely does NOT make me an expert in safeguarding and I am acutely aware that I must report any and all safeguarding concerns to someone who is.

I am therefore not qualified to offer advice on safeguarding on this forum just because I’ve had “safeguarding training” and would not do so. And someone else in my type of work who’s done an hour online and a multiple choice quiz, certainly isn’t. You know what they say about a little knowledge.

Presumably you are talking about certain threads op. Which ones? What was said? Most stuff I see doesn't go against safeguarding training. Most of which is common sense anyway.

The value of this site is the range of opinions from different types of people. Every post ends up with loads of replies and it generally is a balance of viewpoints. I think most people realise that it's not professional, regulated advice. To be fair relying on a single professional, however well trained, isn't always a great idea either, for nuanced situations.

It's insulting people's intelligence to say that they are going to accept a single response telling them not to report when other responses are saying the opposite. Most people are just posting here to test their own thoughts on an issue before taking the next step. If they weren't planning to do anything they probably wouldn't bother posting. Even if you are definitely going to report something, getting a range of opinions on here can be a helpful guide to how others might perceive your actions.

MN isn't moderated. I don't know why people keep saying more moderation is needed.

Report posts.

I agree but in a different way. I think many topics on mumsnet are fairly common eg safeguarding children, domestic abuse, health complaints etc and I wonder whether it would be helpful to have a ‘fact check’ in the main forums linking to the main helpful credible sources eg mumsnet, childline etc with a short summary.

There is a use for views, support and opinions but sometimes it seems that if enough people pile on with one view, it can seem like ‘the factual view’ but it’s not.

I disagree actually. Safe guarding training is designed to protect an organisation as much as a vulnerable person so said training is not always applicable to a situation away from that organisation.

Also as somebody who has had safeguarding training I'm not convinced that it makes somebody more qualified than the average person with common sense. Some of it is nonsense.

There are layers of "safeguarding training. As a DSL, I might inwardly roll my eyes at suggestions (on Mumsnet) to report to school. Right thing to do, but I may read it and know DSL will do nothing of worth with the info. Equally, MASH social workers likely roll there eyes knowing that more than half the MASH referrals (in my LA) from DSDSLresult in no action.

There is filtering of urgency at every level:

• Those with no safeguarding training (say a school yard mum) reports to someone with safeguarding training (say a teacher)

• The teacher filters on if this is enough to need reporting to DSL. Many teachees don't need to go to DSL with these "safeguarding" reports ftom parents, usually when they aren't actually safeguarding.

• The DSL then filters the safeguarding reports that are made to them, to decide if further referrals are needed, say to a MASH social worker. Many reports just sit in file or have in-school outcomes.

• MASH social workers then deem if an assessment is needed, large proportions of MASH referrals close with no action, even though a DSL has viewed a referral necessary.

• Assessment social workers then do the assessment and take advice from Social Care Managers if social care involvement is needed longer term and create a plan. Lots of assessments result in no further action.

The above is oversimplified for the lay person. My point is that it would be hard to draw a line. The line on when safeguarding action is necessary and urgent changes depending on your role.

It should.

How is anyone to know whether there is any truth in the post?
The police are thinly stretched, and won't have the resources to try to find out if a Mumsnet post is true or not.