Getting prepared: Identifying and assessing safeguarding risks
SAFEGUARDING RESPONSE
This is a practical guide for safeguarding providers and professionals, focusing on Risk Identification and Assessment.
It aligns directly with the workforce capability expectations under Te Aorerekura National Strategy, the Entry to Expert (E2E) Capability Framework.
Developed as part of Te Aorerekura National Strategy, the Entry to Expert (E2E) Capability Framework outlines the skills and knowledge required to respond to, and work effectively with, people impacted by family violence and/or people who use violence.
The guidance provided here is designed for entry level practitioners.
It enables the early recognition of risk
It guides safe and co-ordinated responses.
While it focuses on some of the information needed to inform an initial risk assessment, it does not require expertise in assessing risk, which is intended for more experienced colleagues. Those more complex areas of risk assessment are therefore not covered here.
The guidance has been carefully assessed against the E2E framework and it strongly meets those requirements.
It therefore provides a well-structured and reliable guide to your capability development.
The Human Rights Commission notes there are significant gaps in:
how services are being designed to reduce risk of violence, abuse and neglect for disabled people
staff skills, knowledge, and attitudes
how well services work together.
These gaps make it harder for disabled people to get help and harder to stay safe.
They add to the risk.
Source: Human Rights Commission - Acting now for a violence and abuse free future. Lead author Dr Debbie Hager.
Purpose of this guidance
This guidance supports professionals to:
identify and assess risks related to violence, abuse or neglect
recognise possible safeguarding concerns
respond safely and appropriately
take the right action within your role
refer appropriately.
At E2E entry level:
When assessing risk, you are not expected to make final risk decisions.
Your role is to identify concerns and ensure the right people are involved.
What is safeguarding risk?
Safeguarding risk refers to the possibility that a person is experiencing, or at risk of experiencing:
family violence
sexual violence
coercion, control, or exploitation.
Risk may be:
emerging (providing early warning signs)
chronic (persistent and ongoing risk, often characterised by repeated patterns of harm or coercive control over time)
static (staying more or less at the same level)
immediate (presenting urgent danger)
escalating (increasing in severity or frequency, or both)
Note:
Safeguarding professionals who are trained to assess risk consider severity, alongside indicators of probability and patterns or urgency.
Assessing severity requires skills at the Expert level of the capability framework. As this guidance is designed for entry‑level roles, detailed analysis of severity, probability, and risk patterns is out of scope and not included here.
Preparing for your role in identifying and assessing risk
Before exploring your role in risk identification and assessment, please become familiar with these topics in Safeguarding: Foundational Information.
They will help prepare you for your role.
Types of abuse
Know the definitions of violence, abuse and neglect
Refresh on the various types of abuse.
Risk Factors
Become familiar with the risk factors that might be involved.
Understand compounding risks and how they might impact the person.
Barriers or Concerns
Be aware of the barriers people experience when trying to access services.
Actively aim to dismantle those barriers at your place or in your practice.
Your role in identifying and assessing risk
Recognise – Respond – Refer
Recognise
Notice signs that something may be wrong.
Identify the risk.
Act in a way that prioritises safety, dignity and respect.
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1. Consider & document:
Physical indicators
Behavioural indicators
Situational or contextual indicators
Compounding risk factors.
2. Is the risk:
Emerging
Chronic
Static
Immediate
Escalating?
What’s contributing to that?
Listen to your intuition.
Consult with others.
Respond
Assess the risk.
Act in a way that prioritises safety, dignity and respect.
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1. Source & document key information
to provide further data and insights
2. Assess & document:
What is the concern?
How serious could the harm be?
What is the context?
What information is sensitive?
What should happen next?
Listen to your intuition.
Consult with others.
Take the Right Action / Refer
Share concerns with appropriate services or professionals.
Act in a way – and encourage others to act in a way - that prioritises safety, dignity and respect.
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Be prepared
Know when to act immediately
Know when to seek advice
Know what to document
You do not need proof of harm to act on concerns.
Sources
Human Rights Commission - Acting now for a violence and abuse free future. Lead author Dr Debbie Hager.
Te Puna Aonui (2022) - Family Violence Entry to Expert Capability Framework (E2E).
Te Puna Aonui (2022) - Family Violence Risk and Safety Practice Framework (RSPF).
Te Puna Aonui - Specialist Organisational Standards (SOS).
Note: Te Puna Aonui is now called The Centre for the Prevention of Family Violence and Sexual Violence (FVSV).New Zealand Government Digital Office - Risk Assessment Guidance (Information Sharing Standard).
Oranga Tamariki - Te Aorerekura: National Strategy to Eliminate Family Violence and Sexual Violence.
Ministry of Social Development - Family Violence Safety and Stability Services Guidelines.