Responding to aggression in youth care
Training for youth care staff starts with teamwork and a clear division of responsibilities.
Agree on roles for the shift
During a group conflict, several staff members may address the same young person at once. The exercise explores who leads the conversation, who watches the wider group and who arranges support. Roles should be clear when a colleague is covering a shift too. Use the actual layout of the premises as the basis for the scenario.
Observe the communication
An observer records the words used by the person leading the conversation and when others join in. During the debrief, compare the intended meaning with what the other person may have heard. Participants can repeat the scene with shorter statements. This gives room to improve without judging a colleague on one sentence.
Consistency across the staff team
During a tense incident, several adults may give conflicting instructions. A scenario can clarify who communicates, who observes the surroundings and who arranges support. Roles must fit the team’s actual responsibilities and the institution’s procedures, rather than introducing arrangements that cannot be used at work.
What happens afterwards matters as well. Staff need time to share facts and agree next steps. The review should avoid stigmatising the young person or reducing the incident to one employee’s fault. Its purpose is to identify what worked, what was missing and what organisational changes could help before a similar situation occurs.
Share lessons across shifts
After the workshop, agree on the information passed to the next shift and who records it. Connect the exercises with the centre’s procedures. In your training enquiry, describe the institution, the ages of the young people and situations in which staff usually need support. This helps tailor examples to the team’s daily work.
WCSiB · Samoobrona Poznań · Samoobrona Warszawa