Let's talk about safeguarding - What is abuse?

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What is safeguarding?

Keeping people safe from being hurt, abused, or neglected is called safeguarding.

A woman in a red beanie hat is writing something down at a desk

Write or draw what safeguarding could look like:

Abuse is when someone bullies you and does or says something to you that makes you feel hurt, upset or scared.

Some forms of abuse are also criminal acts, and the police may need to be involved .

A man is sitting down trying to get the attention of a support worker who is ignoring him

Neglect is when you are not being cared for or supported.

What are the different types of abuse?

A man is about to hit a girl who has her hands in front of her face in terror

1 Physical abuse

Physical abuse is when someone hurts you.

This can be things like hitting you, biting you or kicking you.

The person hurting you may use a weapon or an object to hurt you.

A group of young men in hoodies are taunting an old woman with a walking stick

2. Emotional abuse

This is when someone makes fun of you or makes you feel bad.

This can be saying things that hurt you, shouting at you or threatening you.

It could be where someone is manipulating you to do things.

3. Neglect and self-neglect

Neglect where someone is not cared for properly and is not given what they need. Neglect is often by someone else,

Self-neglect is where the person does not take care of themselves.

A support worker giving a man in a wheelchair a drink with a red cross over him.

Examples of neglect could be:

Not being given food that the person can eat
Not washing the person or supporting their personal care
Not being given medicines the person needs.

A man is touching a woman's breast and she is trying to move away from him

4. Sexual abuse

This is when someone touches your private parts or body in ways you don't want or like.

It is also when someone makes you do sexual things that make you feel angry, scared or sad.

It is wrong for someone to show you films or photos of sex that you don't want to see.

5. Financial abuse

This is when someone takes your money or things that belong to you without asking.

This is also when someone convinces you to spend money on them.

Two people talking to a man in an electric chair looking for money

6. Mate crime

Mate crime is when someone says they are your friend, but they do things that take advantage of you, like asking you for money a lot.

7. Hate crime

Hate crime is when someone does something to hurt someone because of who they are.

This could be because of things like their race, sexuality or disability.

Read our Mate and Hate crime page for more information.

A picture of lots of different people doing different types of work. Next to this picture is a pile of money with a red cross over it.

8. Modern slavery

This is when someone forces you to work for very little money or no money at all.

9. Domestic abuse

This is when a member of your family or someone you are in a relationship with, threatens , hurts or abuses you.

An injection and a folded piece of paper with brown powder in it

10. County lines

County lines is where illegal drugs are moved from one area to another. This could be different parts of the country.

Sometimes vulnerable people are forced into this by gangs.

The County line is the mobile phone used to take the order of drugs.

11. Cuckooing

Sometimes a criminal might take over a vulnerable person's home to sell drugs from.

This is known as cuckooing .

Cuckooing may happen with County lines and Financial abuse .

A woman being forced into becoming part of a dangerous group by other gang members

12. Radicalisation

Radicalisation is when a person comes to believe, and be involved with, very bad and violent groups.

It can happen when a person becomes involved in terrorism.

This can also happen after watching certain videos on the internet.

Try our quiz about abuse

What type of abuse can you see?

Write what kind of abuse you think is happening in each of these pictures.

The first one has been done for you.

Someone wearing a hoody kicking someone lying on the ground.

If someone kicks and punches you.

If someone steals your money.

If someone makes you sell drugs.

A woman holding up an open book that says Easy Read on the cover

To find out more about abuse, and how you can report it, read our Let's talk about safeguarding - Responding to abuse Easy Read page.

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If you need help urgently we have some useful contact numbers on our Crisis advice page, but where there is an immediate risk of harm you should call 999.

For safeguarding advice you can contact the Learning Disability Helpline.