We’re excited to be joining organisations across the country to celebrate Safeguarding Awareness Week, which runs from Monday 18 to Friday 22 November.

The main themes of this year’s Safeguarding Awareness Week in Barnsley are neglect, preventing harm and abuse in an adult’s own home, children’s mental health, domestic abuse, bullying and online harms.

Our Safeguarding Adults Board and Safeguarding Children’s Partnership have been busy organising lots of events, activities and training sessions for people to get involved in.

Thanks to our Safeguarding Children’s Partnership, all our schools will be taking part, with events led by students and staff, as well as our Family Hubs.

These key centres in the heart of our communities are organising whole-family events all week long for parents and children to get involved with, sparking conversations about safeguarding.

You can catch up on how we’re celebrating, including events with our partners, and share your activities with us by following the Barnsley Children’s Safeguarding Partnership on X.

Our Safeguarding Adults Board are inviting residents to join us throughout the week as we take over Barnsley Market, putting Barnsley’s brilliant support in the spotlight.

With services and partners changing daily, come along and speak to our friendly teams. Visit Barnsley and District Markets’ Facebook page to see which services are joining us this week.

Among those attending will be our Housing Options team, who will be collecting donations to help those who are facing homelessness or sleeping rough in Barnsley this winter. Please give if you can while enjoying Safeguarding Awareness Week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

We want to bring people together to better understand the role we can all play in keeping our communities safe, with a host of other activities planned:

• Awareness videos about keeping children safe, early help and domestic abuse will be shown in key spaces, such as sports venues, Barnsley Market and GP surgeries.
• Our Family Hubs will proudly present safeguarding displays, covering key topics like online safety, bullying and domestic abuse.
• We’re hosting a series of drop-in information sessions, both online and across Barnsley, looking at coercive control, online safety and contextual safeguarding for parents.
• We’re hosting two conferences, looking at child neglect and domestic abuse, featuring inspiring stories from survivors of childhood abuse who’ve turned their lives around.
• We’re working with the South Yorkshire Safeguarding Adults Board to deliver a regional conference on person-centred safeguarding and an event, led by Professor Michael Preston Shoot, to help workers with self-neglect and hoarding.

For those working in Barnsley, we have lots of informative training sessions planned, covering everything from learning from reviews to understanding the impact of neglect on young people.

These events are a great way to learn more about what safeguarding means, how to spot the signs of abuse and what support is available to help and protect adults and children in Barnsley.

Councillor Trevor Cave, Cabinet Spokesperson for Children’s Services, said: “In Barnsley, we want to make sure our children and young people live healthy and happy lives, with wonderful opportunities to achieve. This would not be possible without Barnsley’s Safeguarding Children’s Partnership, which brings together organisations at the heart of keeping our young people safe and well.

“I’m delighted to see so many events taking place in Barnsley to help families learn about safeguarding issues and local support, including at our Family Hubs, sparking supportive conversations across the borough. Come along and speak to our friendly teams.”

Councillor Jo Newing, Cabinet Spokesperson for Adult Social Care, said: “In Barnsley, we believe everyone has a part to play in safeguarding our communities, helping adults to be and feel safe. It’s great to see another jam-packed Safeguarding Awareness Week planned in Barnsley, putting speaking up when something doesn’t feel right in the spotlight.

“I’m looking forward to welcoming a wide range of services and organisations to Barnsley Market, showcasing the brilliant support that’s available to help you and your loved ones. A big thank you to everyone who has helped organise this year’s festivities – it wouldn’t be possible without the great partnerships at the heart of our Safeguarding Adults Board.”

Throughout the week, we will be sharing information about our safeguarding support on Barnsley Council’s social media channels. From reflections on our safeguarding children’s events to updates about our D’Clutter Club, follow the Healthy Barnsley Facebook page.

Alongside our events, we will be running safeguarding radio adverts on local stations, focused on encouraging residents to tell us if they’re worried about someone’s safety in Barnsley.

Safeguarding our communities is everybody’s business, and together, we can help make our borough a safer place to live, work, grow up and grow old.

For more information about keeping adults, children and young people safe, including how you can report any concerns, please visit our safeguarding webpage:

• If you’re worried about an adult’s safety or wellbeing, call 01226 773300.
• If you’re worried about a child’s safety or wellbeing, call 01226 772423.
• If it’s an emergency, always call 999.