Investigating the experience of intrafamilial child sexual abuse and its influence on UK girls' behaviour at school
This interpretive research investigates how the impact of intra-familial child sexual abuse presents in educational contexts. The focus is the experience of pre-teenage girls who have been sexually abused by an adult within their family environment and how impact of this may present through their behaviour at school. The phrase intra-familial child sexual abuse has been chosen to describe this situation.
The UK Department for Education (2023) suggests that children not previously recognised as at risk may be identifiable while at school, so consideration of how prepared school staff feel to identify and raise concerns is included. The overall aim is to promote timely identification of victims of intra-familial child sexual abuse so early help can be given to reduce cumulative, life-long effects and enable preventative action to be taken.
From the initial proposal, through design and execution, this research uses a best practice model of participation proposed by Chevous, Perôt and Kennedy (2019). The research is survivor led and seeks understanding from lived experience of survivors. An ongoing, everyday and relational approach to ethics is adopted to balance complex ethical considerations throughout the project and enable inclusion of survivors’ voices. Iterative cycles of data collection, interpretation and analysis will generate detailed, nuanced insight, and synergise theory to be widely shared to disrupt barriers to disclosure and aid educators’ efforts in child protection.
A final aspiration is to generate conversation: to challenge secrecy, stigma and shame which marginalise sexual abuse victims and survivors and encourage practitioners to take away the message ‘it could happen here’.
Supervisors: Mr Neil Hall, Dr Sophie King-Hill
Sheona's research investigates inclusive and trauma-informed practice in education; identification of barriers to attainment and well-being and facilitation of timely support, to reduce cumulative, life-long effects and enable preventative action. She is interested in interpretive methodology and ethical application of narrative inquiry and autoethnography in research. Her teaching background is in primary and further education, management of inclusion and support for learning and she is a Dyslexia Specialist qualified to conduct diagnostic assessments
- MEd Inclusion and Special Needs, University of Birmingham
- Level 7 Diploma in Teaching and Assessing Learners with Dyslexia/Specific Learning Difficulties, Hereford and Ludlow College: Assessment Practicing Certificate, Patoss
- Level 5 Diploma in Teaching Adult Literacy, Worcester University
- Postgraduate Certificate in Education, Early Years, Worcester College of Higher Education
- BA(Hons) Ceramics, Middlesex Polytechnic
- Adverse childhood experience
- Neurodiversity
- Trauma informed practice
- Recognising alternative knowledges
- Innovative qualitative research methods
Teaching responsibilities
Post Graduate Teaching Assistant for Academic Skills Centre, University of Birmingham. Professional Practice Tutor, Access Arrangements Assessment, Professional Association of Teachers of Students with Specific Learning Difficulties (Patoss)
Goodyear, S. (2024) 'Exploring the value of vocational further education in horticulture for neurodiverse students', Good Autism Practice (GAP), 25(1), pp. 42-48.