Nohilly, Margaret (2011) The experiences and perceptions o f the Designated Liaison Person for Child Protection in Irish Primary Schools. Doctor of Education thesis, Dublin City University.
Abstract
The aim o f this research was to explore the ‘lived experience’ o f Designated Liaison
Person (DLP’s) for Child Protection in Primary Schools in Ireland, and the purpose of the
research was to use the learning from the investigation to ensure that vulnerable children will
be protected more adequately.
Following a review of the literature on child protection and the role o f teachers and
schools in the area, a survey questionnaire was distributed to thirty two DLP’s in primary
schools. From the questionnaires returned, sixteen DLP’s were selected for interview; eight
from schools designated as disadvantaged, and eight from non DEIS schools. The decision to
choose eight DLP’s from DEIS schools was taken in order to embody the richness o f the
lived experiences o f DLP’s. The other DLP’s were selected to represent a variety of size and
type of school and overall the DLP’s had varying years of experience in the role. While
several qualitative approaches were considered for this study, Interpretative
Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was deemed the most appropriate for this investigation.
The qualitative analysis produced a master list of themes, and superordinate and
subordinate themes emerged, referring to major and minor themes. The superordinate themes
were: ‘The DLP Role’, ‘Experience of Dealing with Outside Agencies in relation to Child
Protection Issues’, ‘The School Story’, ‘Children Telling’ and ‘Guidelines and Training’.
This study highlighted the role of the DLP as multifaceted and complex and open to
interpretation in various circumstances. The greatest challenge faced by DLP’s in this
research was knowing when they have enough evidence and information to report an incident
to the HSE. The tension exists for schools between supporting parents and reporting parents.
Many educational implication for child protection work have been highlighted through this
study and ultimately this work has uncovered the role of schools in child protection work in
Ireland, which has been relatively unexplored to date.
Metadata
Item Type: | Thesis (Doctor of Education) |
---|---|
Date of Award: | November 2011 |
Refereed: | No |
Supervisor(s): | McLoughlin, Liz |
Subjects: | Social Sciences > Education |
DCU Faculties and Centres: | DCU Faculties and Schools > Institute of Education |
Use License: | This item is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. View License |
ID Code: | 22546 |
Deposited On: | 07 Aug 2018 12:52 by Thomas Murtagh . Last Modified 07 Aug 2018 12:52 |
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