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Join Willow and the team of consultants at Safeguarding Children as they bring some of the ’hard to talk about’ safeguarding and child protection topics to the table with the hope of inspiring listeners to have similar conversations in their communities.
Episodes
Wednesday Aug 21, 2024
Wednesday Aug 21, 2024
In this episode of Together, the team at Safeguarding Children discuss the critical role that training plays in preventing child abuse and neglect, particularly in light of the recent findings from the New Zealand Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry. They explore the need for sector-specific, ongoing training that is not only tailored to the unique needs of various settings—such as state care, faith-based institutions, and sports—but also extends to leaders and decision-makers within these organizations. The conversation addresses common barriers to effective child protection, such as misconceptions and the fear of making mistakes, and stresses the importance of external oversight to ensure that training leads to real, actionable change. This episode underscores that while training is just one component of a comprehensive child safeguarding strategy, it is a foundational step towards creating a safer future for all children in Aotearoa.
Last week, we unpacked the New Zealand Abuse in State Care Report and its key findings.
In today’s follow-up episode, we go deeper into a core recommendation outlined in the Inquiry: The critical role that training plays in preventing child abuse and neglect.
Topics include:
- The Urgent Need for Comprehensive Training: Why mandatory, sector-specific training in safeguarding and child protection is critical across all settings, including state and faith-based care, sports, health, and education.
- Leadership's Role in Safeguarding: The importance of training not just frontline staff, but also high-level managers and leaders to create a culture of safety and ensure the implementation of child protection policies.
- Addressing Misconceptions and Barriers: How training dispels myths, builds confidence, and provides practical tools for recognising and responding to signs of abuse
- External Oversight and Accountability: Why independent audits and external oversight are crucial to ensure that safeguarding practices are not just theoretical but are effectively embedded into everyday practice within organisations.
Enjoy the show!
To learn more about how you can help safeguard children, visit our website https://www.safeguardingchildren.org.nz
Feel free to reach out via the website, or connect with Willow and Safeguarding Children on LinkedIn.
Join the Conversation:
We are all stakeholders in the safety and well-being of children. Whether you are a professional working with children, a parent, or a concerned citizen, your voice matters. Share your thoughts, experiences, and questions with us. Together, we can make a difference in creating a safer world for children.
Contact Us:
- Website: Safeguarding Children
- Email: office@safeguardingchildren.org.nz
- Social Media: Join us on Facebook and Instagram for updates and discussions.
Subscribe and Rate Us:
If you found this episode informative and empowering, please subscribe to "Together" on your favorite podcast platform and leave us a rating. Your support helps us reach more listeners and continue our mission to safeguard children.
Thank you for tuning in to "Together." Remember, every child deserves
Thursday Aug 29, 2024
Thursday Aug 29, 2024
In this episode of Together, Safeguarding Children consultant Jessica McQuoid, and guest Brent Carey, CEO of Netsafe, explore the evolving landscape of online safety for children and young people. They discuss Netsafe's growth and its critical role in protecting New Zealanders from online harm, with a particular focus on scams targeting youth. The conversation underscores the importance of family involvement in digital safety, offering practical tools and resources to help manage online risks. They also introduce Netsafe's Innovate for Impact Fund, designed to further develop safety tools and programs.
Online safety is one of the most critical and challenging issues for protecting our children and young people in today’s digital world.
In this episode of Together, we talk to Brent Carey, CEO of Netsafe, to explore the evolving landscape of online safety for children and young people.
Topics include:
- Netsafe's Role in Online Safety: Netsafe has evolved into New Zealand's leading online safety organisation, providing a range of resources and support for different age groups, from children to seniors.
- Scams Targeting Youth: The episode highlights the growing concern of scams targeting young people, especially on platforms like Facebook Marketplace, and the regional efforts being made to combat this issue.
- Empowering Families: Netsafe emphasises the importance of family discussions around online safety, advocating for social media plans and utilising family safety centres on platforms to protect young users.
- Innovate for Impact Fund: Netsafe has launched an Innovate for Impact Fund to develop more educational tools and programs, with significant initial support already raised to further their mission.
- Practical Next Steps: Listeners are encouraged to explore Netsafe's resources, such as social media planning tools and reporting mechanisms, to stay informed and proactive in managing online safety.
And more.
Enjoy the show!
To learn more about how you can help safeguard children, visit our website https://www.safeguardingchildren.org.nz
Feel free to reach out via the website, or connect with Willow and Safeguarding Children on LinkedIn.
Join the Conversation:
We are all stakeholders in the safety and well-being of children. Whether you are a professional working with children, a parent, or a concerned citizen, your voice matters. Share your thoughts, experiences, and questions with us. Together, we can make a difference in creating a safer world for children.
Contact Us:
- Website: Safeguarding Children
- Email: office@safeguardingchildren.org.nz
- Social Media: Join us on Facebook and Instagram for updates and discussions.
Subscribe and Rate Us:
If you found this episode informative and empowering, please subscribe to "Together" on your favorite podcast platform and leave us a rating. Your support helps us reach more listeners and continue our mission to safeguard children.
Thank you for tuning in to "Together." Remember, every child deserves
Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
In this episode of Together, guest Dr Emma Barker-Clarke, a specialist in violence prevention education, delves into the nuanced experiences of young people facing online harms, particularly peer-to-peer digital sexual harassment and sextortion. The conversation underscores the importance of centring young people’s voices, providing education that is tailored to their realities, and challenges the adequacy of existing legislative measures to protect youth in digital spaces. Emma also shares valuable insights from her research with young people, advocating for a collaborative approach involving parents, educators, and policymakers to foster safer online environments for children and young people.
Cyberbullying is a common issue impacting young people today. It includes everything from hurtful messages, to image-based sexual harassment and sextortion.
In today’s episode, we interview Dr Emma Barker-Clarke, an educator and researcher specialising in sexual violence and family violence prevention. Emma has focused her career on understanding and addressing online harm, particularly how these issues manifest and impact youth.
Topics include:
- Understanding Peer-to-Peer Harm: Emma explains how young people's experiences of online harm, particularly through image-based sexual harassment and sextortion, often occur between peers rather than strangers, creating complex social dynamics.
- The Role of Education in Digital Safety: The discussion highlights the importance of schools and educators in providing comprehensive, non-judgmental education on digital sexual ethics, consent, and recognising online harm.
- The Gap in Current Legislation: Emma discusses the limitations of current legal frameworks like New Zealand's Harmful Digital Communications Act and the need for reforms to keep up with evolving digital threats, such as deepfakes and sextortion.
- Youth-Led Research Insights: Emma shares findings from her youth-led research on online harms, emphasising the need to involve young people in shaping the questions and narratives around their digital experiences.
- Empowering Young People and Families: Emma discusses practical strategies for parents and caregivers, including open communication and knowing where to seek help, like Netsafe and other online safety resources.
And more.
Enjoy the show!
To learn more about how you can help safeguard children, visit our website https://www.safeguardingchildren.org.nz
Feel free to reach out via the website, or connect with Willow and Safeguarding Children on LinkedIn.
Join the Conversation:
We are all stakeholders in the safety and well-being of children. Whether you are a professional working with children, a parent, or a concerned citizen, your voice matters. Share your thoughts, experiences, and questions with us. Together, we can make a difference in creating a safer world for children.
Contact Us:
- Website: Safeguarding Children
- Email: info@safeguardingchildren.nz
- Social Media: Join us on Facebook and Instagram for updates and discussions.
Subscribe and Rate Us:
If you found this episode informative and empowering, please subscribe to "Together" on your favorite podcast platform and leave us a rating. Your support helps us reach more listeners and continue our mission to safeguard children.
Thank you for tuning in to "Together." Remember, every child deserves
Thursday Sep 05, 2024
Thursday Sep 05, 2024
Our children and young people are growing up in an increasingly online world.
Digital safeguarding is crucial in a school context given that students are spending more and more time on devices. Teachers can no longer rely on just their eyes and ears to detect harm that may be occurring for their students.
In today’s episode, Safeguarding Children consultants Jessica McQuoid and Ruth Browning are joined by Saunil Hagler, Education Director for Linewize in Aotearoa New Zealand to discuss how schools can better safeguard children and young people when they are online. Hear about the challenges schools are facing and solutions for promoting student wellbeing.
Topics include:
- The current landscape: Hear about the digital risks to children and young people when they are online, and the issues schools are facing when safeguarding their students in digital spaces.
- Safeguarding in an online context: What does it mean to safeguard children and young people online? How do we put appropriate safeguards in place?
- The safeguarding services Linewize provides schools: Filtering, blocking harmful content, monitoring students’ online behaviour, surveying student wellbeing…and more.
- Schools’ obligations to responding to online harm: Find out who is responsible within the school context to recognise and respond to online harm happening to students and the actions we should take.
And more.
Enjoy the show!
To learn more about how you can help safeguard children, visit our website https://www.safeguardingchildren.org.nz
Feel free to reach out via the website or connect with Willow on LinkedIn.
Join the Conversation:
We are all stakeholders in the safety and well-being of children. Whether you are a professional working with children, a parent, or a concerned citizen, your voice matters. Share your thoughts, experiences, and questions with us. Together, we can make a difference in creating a safer world for children.
Contact Us:
- Website: Safeguarding Children
- Email: info@safeguardingchildren.nz
- Social Media: Join us on Facebook and Instagram for updates and discussions.
Subscribe and Rate Us:
If you found this episode informative and empowering, please subscribe to "Together" on your favorite podcast platform and leave us a rating. Your support helps us reach more listeners and continue our mission to safeguard children.
Thank you for tuning in to "Together." Remember, every child deserves
Wednesday Sep 03, 2025
Wednesday Sep 03, 2025
In this special episode, we’re focusing on one of the biggest challenges for parents today - navigating the digital world with their children. Recently, we surveyed parents about their top concerns and the questions they most want to ask experts about online safety, wellbeing, and resilience. Their honest, anonymous responses highlight both the struggles families face and their deep commitment to protecting and supporting their children.
We’ve brought these questions to a panel of experts who share practical advice, insights, and solutions to help families thrive in the online space.
Join us as we learn, share, and work together to make the digital world safer for every child.
Panel of experts:
Tim Houston is Manager of the Digital Child Exploitation Team (DCET) at New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs. Since 2014, he has led investigations into child sexual exploitation material (CSEM), victim identification, and major domestic and international operations, including the largest in New Zealand’s history.
A former Customs Officer and founding member of the Child Exploitation Operations Team. Tim is a dedicated child protection advocate. As well as his DIA role, he’s a member of the board of Safeguarding Children, and a member of the Thorn Law Enforcement Advisory Council.
Nikki Denholm MNZM, is Director of The Light Project, founded in 2017 by sexual and public health professionals to address the changing online porn landscape and the lack of resources for young people in Aotearoa. Nikki specialises in emerging sexual health and gender issues and works to equip young people, their families / whānau, and communities to build porn literacy and foster healthy sexuality and relationships.
Sean Lyons is Netsafe’s Chief Online Safety Officer, media spokesperson and head of Netsafe Lab, the organisation’s innovation arm. From 2022-2024, he served as Vice President of INHOPE, the global network of helplines combatting the distribution of child sexual exploitation material.
With a background in both IT and education, including time as a classroom teacher and school leader, Sean brings deep expertise on online safety challenges and leads Netsafe’s work to prevent and respond to child sexual exploitation material.
Thursday Nov 13, 2025
Thursday Nov 13, 2025
In this episode, Willow talks with Gloria Masters – survivor, author, founder of Handing the Shame Back, and the woman behind the Global Hand Sign for under-16s, a silent cry for help for children who are not safe.
Together they explore why Gloria created the sign, how it is already helping to protect children around the world, and what every adult needs to know if a child uses it with them. They also talk about her work supporting survivors and shifting the shame off children and back to where it belongs.
Listen in to learn the sign, understand how to respond safely, and become the kind of adult a child can turn to.