THIS month, the NSPCC has launched a new campaign to empower everyone to learn more about preventing child abuse and small ways to help keep children safe.

Half a million children in the UK suffer abuse and neglect every year. In West Yorkshire, police recorded 6,902 child sexual abuse offences in 2021/22.

We want to help the public gain the knowledge of how to spot signs of neglect or abuse, and the confidence to know how they can help a child who needs them to speak up.

The campaign, Listen Up, Speak Up, offers practical advice anyone can use if they’re concerned about a child. It involves a 10-minute digital training session over your smartphone, computer or tablet, followed by a series of emails from experts with actions you can take to help keep children safe.

West Yorkshire also includes one of the campaign’s three pilot sites for face-to-face workshops, with community groups, shopkeepers, taxi drivers and traders in Leeds able to sign up for free sessions with our experts to help empower their communities to safeguard children.

In the last year, the NSPCC Helpline has seen a 14per cent increase in the number of contacts across the UK about in-person sexual abuse. While it is positive, we’re receiving more calls reporting concerns, and there are many young victims at the centre of those calls. But we believe abuse and neglect are preventable, and everyone can play their part in keeping children safe. Listen Up, Speak Up encourages anyone who can spare a little time to gain a little knowledge to sign up. The 10-minute digital training session uses relatable scenarios showing what to do if you think a child is in trouble. These include a father concerned about messages his son is receiving, a hairdresser who notices bruises on a child and a friend worried about a new parent.

In the long-term, we want to equip at least a million people with practical advice and confidence. The advice is based on DOTS: Don’t ignore it, Observe the situation, Think: if not you, then who? and Speak up. By highlighting concerns with our Helpline or local authorities, you can help child safety experts build a picture of that child’s life and situation, and possibly ensure they and their family get the support they need earlier. You might never need to use the training, but it’s beneficial. Child protection needs to be a national priority, but there’s so much we can do in local communities. Listen Up, Speak Up can change the way we keep children safe. Search online for ‘NSPCC Listen Up Speak Up’.