Child Protection Training for Teachers and Mandatory Reporting Responsibilities

It is widely recognised in child protection literature that teachers have a significant role to play in both detecting and reporting child abuse .This paper considers the role of teachers in child protection work and the challenges that exist in reporting abuse. The training needs of teachers in the area of child protection are also outlined. Recent changes in legislation, following the commencement of the remaining provisions of the Children First Act specify teachers registered with the Teaching Council as ‘Mandated Persons’. The requirements of mandated persons in the school environment are outlined. Given the responsibilities of this role, a renewed focus on training in child protection seems very timely. The paper draws on interviews completed with sixteen Designated Liaison Persons (DLPs) for child protection in Irish primary schools, illustrating the training requirements of both DLPs and teachers. The current training models that are available to schools are also outlined.