Maisey, Daryl (2018) Early years safeguarding and child protection in practice : an enquiry into the experiences of newly qualified practitioners. (Ed.D thesis), Kingston University, .
Abstract
Much has been written about challenges facing early years practitioners in a time of rapid policy implementation affecting the children’s workforce, and the introduction of graduate professional accreditation (NCTL, 2013) for those tasked with leading quality developments in the early years sector. Tensions have emerged across the children’s workforce particularly in the fields of health and social care, concerning the implications for safeguarding and child protection (Munro, 2011; Lumsden, 2012). Whilst research illuminates workforce challenges, as policy is imposed on professional practice, little is known about the actual experiences of safeguarding and child protection from the perspectives of those practitioners with Early Years Teacher Status (EYTS) who are new to the sector. This small-scale research project sought to examine the safeguarding and child protection experiences of ‘change of career’ Graduate Entry (GE) EYTS trainees in their first year of employment in an early years setting. The study took an empirical phenomenological approach (Schütz, 1962) to reveal the lived experiences of Early Years Teachers (EYTs) in the context of their settings. It revealed that notions of safeguarding and child protection were conceptualised as interrelated but different elements of practice that affected confidence as EYTs experienced situations over time. This was related to emotions that inhabited and affected behaviours as EYTs experienced tensions between statutory policy, procedural requirements, partnership working and what they considered to be appropriate practice for working with young children. The conclusions suggested the need for further policy developments in safeguarding and child protection in the early years sector, so that EYTs might not be compromised in their practice. New ways of educating GE EYTs in safeguarding and child protection were identified to better enable contextualisation of their learning and to develop personal and emotional agency in order for them to confidently navigate this complex aspect of professional practice.
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