Sally Ann, Author at Sally Ann Hart

Busy, Busy, Busy!

17 January 2016

Categories: News

Oh my – what a busy start to 2016 and apologies for not finding the time to even wish A Happy New Year!

All good in my world which feels like it has become PB-land with so much training, practice and network development going on. All fab in my opinion and feel so privileged to be doing so much of what I believe in and know makes a difference to people both professionally and personally. So just time to say a BIG ‘Thank You’ to all that have attended recent courses including those that focus on how Protective Behaviours can be used as a Child Sexual Exploitation intervention and also with children in their earliest years to support well-being and enable their voices – more information to follow….

I’d also like to thank Judith Staff and Ann Seal for being on my PB Buddy network and sharing some of the load in delivering courses. Great to have people who really know their stuff and so generously share their energy, enthusiasm and expertise with others which demonstrates so well what people can do to make a difference.

More soon I promise. In the meantime you might like to follow us on Twitter as this way updates will definitely be more regular 😉

Update from Edinburgh

1 November 2015

Categories: News, Protective Behaviours

As mentioned in a previous post, I was invited to speak at the Moira Anderson Foundation ‘Not On Our Watch’ Conference. This took place in Edinburgh last week and I feel so chufffed to have been there, not only to talk, but also to listen to whole range of inspirational speakers including Dr Matthew McVarish (the guy who walked 10,000 miles around Europe to raise awareness of child sexual abuse and challenge governments to do something about the statute of limitations), and also Mike Stevenson, who is doing all he can to raise awareness of what people, including children, can achieve rather than setting limits on what’s possible.

My talk was entitled ‘Helping Young People Feel Safe & Heard’ and started off the afternoon session. I had 40 minutes to share so much ‘stuff’ and feel pleased that I got most of it in bearing in mind the expression ‘less is more’ is one I find particularly difficult to grasp. It felt great to hear people laughing and then go quiet as contrasting images were shared reinforcing the PB idea that serious work can be done while having fun.

Once again RockStarDinosaursPiratePrincess‘ script comparing ‘Sex & a Cup of Tea’ alongside Blue Seat Studios animation left people realising how simple it really can be to understand what consent does and doesn’t mean. I accompanied this with our family mantra of “You don’t squirt without asking” to illustrate how younger children can be encouraged to think about the person on the receiving end of their idea of ‘fun’ (in this particular case relating to an incident involving a ‘super-soaker’ water-pistol 🙂 ) remembering “Is my fun, fun for everyone?”.

So thank you so much Sandra Brown OBE for inviting me to ‘risk on purpose’ and share a key element of the Protective Behaviours process, namely the Language of Safety, with 300 people who I would have probably never got to meet another way. And thank you too to an audience who were prepared to join with me to sing and sign the following:

We all have the right to feel safe all the time.
Kind* hands are good for us all.
We can talk with someone about anything,
Even if it feels awful or small!

_{*Now realise we could replace the word ‘kind’ with ‘safe’ and this would fit perfectly with the Moira Anderson Foundation Protective Behaviours ‘Safe Hands‘ Project}

Sandra Brown OBE, Mike Stevenson and me at the MAF 'Not On Our Watch' 2015 conference, Edinburgh — Sandra Brown OBE, Mike Stevenson and me at the MAF ‘Not On Our Watch’ 2015 conference, Edinburgh

So much ‘Stuff’!

19 October 2015

Categories: News

I’m certainly feeling a bit confused at the moment and think this is because there is so much ‘stuff’ going on and I’m finding it difficult to decide where to start. This could also be to do with the fact it’s all fairly good ‘stuff’ in my opinion and I want to do it all! So how fortunate is that apart from the fact that there are still only 24 hours in each day and I really like sleep?

I’m also aware that due to the abundance of ‘stuff’ I may well have not done some of the things I said I would, so if you’re one of the people waiting on me to do something, perhaps an email or information following on from training, please persist and remind me – I really won’t mind and I can then move it to the top of my ‘stuff’ pile.

So what is all this ‘stuff’ and where is it coming from?

Well, it’s mainly to do with Protective Behaviours which seems to have suddenly appeared on a number of people’s radar. Training courses and conference appearances are being requested from as far afield as Cornwall and Edinburgh and across all educational key stages. Local Authority projects geared at raising awareness of Child Sexual Exploitation and using Protective Behaviours as both a preventative tool and intervention have generated lots of interest and are currently being delivered by a team of three trainers. And all this is on top of existing commitments to provide regular training for a growing number of agencies and develop new courses with Protective Behaviours at their core. So it’s no wonder I’m finding it hard to decide where to start because I love it all! And why wouldn’t I? Being able to share a process that helps people feel empowered and discover safer ways forward is such a healthy antidote to all the negativity and scaremongering that accompanies news bulletins and most media articles. So despite feeling confused, I also feel honoured and excited about being surrounded by so much ‘stuff’. And I’m trying really hard to remember the advice often offered by some of my dearest friends: ‘Don’t sweat the small stuff!’

Risking on Purpose

26 August 2015

Categories: Protective Behaviours

It won’t be long now until many children and young people are either starting or returning to schools and other educational establishments following the summer break, (wondering if perhaps this might need to be renamed as certainly can’t describe the weather outside right now and for the majority of the holidays as ‘summery’). And trying something for the first time or moving on to a new class or phase of education and life can feel both unsettling and exciting.

I’m also mindful of how some of the things I have recently chosen to do have also felt a bit scary and challenging, but also liberating and positive. And these actions remind me of the term in Protective Behaviours called ‘risking on purpose’ which is part of a continuum of safety and can be described as feeling the fear and choosing to do it anyway because the outcome could be well worth it.

When trying to talk about future events, having a term like ‘risking on purpose’ to describe an action, I think, can feel and be really helpful – I have vivid memories of hearing many young children telling me how they ‘risked on purpose’ today by, for example, walking across a balance beam, putting their hand up to answer a question posed in class or trying a new food, especially if it was something I’d cooked!

So I would like to take this opportunity to send well-wishes for whatever comes next in terms of education. learning and life. I’d also like to urge people of all ages and stages of development to consider ‘risking on purpose’ within the context of personal safety and find ways to feel brave enough to ‘give it a go’ even in terms of challenging established practice when our early warning signs tell us it doesn’t feel safe to either ignore or leave things the way they are: just because things have ‘always been done that way’ doesn’t mean it’s ok to carry on that way!

This poem called ‘Risk’, which can also be found in the Training Room area of the PBPeople website, I think sums it up beautifully:

Risk

To laugh is to risk being a fool
To weep is to risk being sentimental
To reach out for another is to risk involvement
To show feelings is to risk showing yourself
To place your ideas, your dreams
Before a crowd is to risk their loss
To love is to risk not being loved in return
To live is to risk dying
To hope is to risk despair
To try is to risk failure
But risks must be taken because the greatest
Hazard in life is to risk nothing
Those who risk nothing, have nothing
They may avoid suffering and sorrow
But they cannot learn, feel, change
Grow, love, live
Chained by their certainties, they are slaves
They have forfeited their freedom.
Only a person who risks ………. is truly free.

Anon

Thank you ‘Anon’.

An Invitation?

21 June 2015

Categories: News, Protective Behaviours

I’ve received an invitation to speak at the Moira Anderson Foundation ‘Not on our Watch’ Partnership Conference on the 26th October 2015. Sandra Brown is the founder of the Foundation and was awarded an OBE in 2006 for her contribution to child protection. Sandra is also an endorsed trainer in Protective Behaviours and it is through this that our paths met 🙂

Sandra was eight when eleven year old Moira Anderson disappeared from the small town of Coatbridge, near Glasgow, in 1957. Twenty-seven years later, at a family funeral, Sandra’s estranged father confessed to her that he had been involved in the girl’s disappearance. Appalled and fascinated by his curious half confession, Sandra began to delve into the case and in so doing discovered that her father was an acknowledged molester of children and his activities were known not just to everyone in Coatbridge but also to the police

As a result of her experiences, Sandra founded The Moira Anderson Foundation in 2000. She has remained deeply involved and assisted them to grow to where they are today.

Sandra Brown was educated at Coatbridge High School, Hamilton College and the Open University, which awarded her an Honours Degree in 1978 and a Masters in Education in 1996. A primary Deputy Head Teacher, then a Senior Lecturer in Further Education, she is the author of the bestselling book ‘Where there is Evil’.

I am so looking forward to being part of this amazing event and hope as many of you as possible can be there too 🙂

Feeling Sound :)

24 May 2015

Categories: News

I’m in Ireland at the moment leading a further 2 day PB Foundation Course – this time I ‘plerked’ with another group of amazing people and the training had a focus on how to empower our youngest children. Last time I was here, (October 2014), the people of Ireland were using their voices to record their concerns regarding the introduction of water charges. This time, voices and votes are being used to send a message that inequality is no longer ok. And I feel so chuffed to have witnessed first hand such a momentous day in Irish history. It felt fantastic that friends & family networks pulled together, with people being prepared to travel ‘home’ to vote and thereby support equality. For me this is such a wonderful example of people seeing others as people first and not using prejudice, religion or labels to exclude.

Thank you to the people of Ireland for showing the world how to work together to change the way a country treats its citizens.

Early Warning Signs!

10 May 2015

Categories: News

Hi there,
A quick post as feeling a tad down as a result of the outcome of this week’s opportunity for people to use their voice in line with ‘We can talk with someone about anything, even if it feels awful or small’ and make a difference to help people feel safe all the time.

I’m aware that I am experiencing an awful lot of early warning signs regarding the future of both the NHS and the education system: 0-19. I feel strongly about both as they were designed to recognise and acknowledge that first and foremost we are all people and therefore deserve to be seen as this in terms of equality of opportunity and accessibility. I’m hoping my fears will be unfounded – however so many people on my networks admit to feeling the same and have information that reinforces these ‘unsafe’ feelings. So, I urge you to listen to your feelings and challenge behaviours that are currently eating away at the systems put in place to help all people feel safe all the time.

I am also reminded that we all make a difference and if we review our networks and persist we can do our best to ensure our feelings and thoughts are heard. Again, please listen to your early warning signs and use your voice to ‘make a noise’, because the voices of children and people with vulnerability are rarely heard so we need responsible and respond-able adults to speak out on their behalf.