Home Health & Wellbeing
If you need urgent support, call 999 or go to your nearest A&E. To contact our Crisis Messenger (open 24/7) text THEMIX to 85258.
Read the community guidelines before posting ✨

confidentiality?!

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
i am in year twelve and like I have mentioned before I have been wanting to speak to my head of year but wondering what rules he will have to follow about confidentiality. I dont want to tell him everything if he going to go tell someone else everything as soon as I have left. Should I just ask him when I next speak to him. I spoke to him today but I had to hold back because I was unsure and found it hard to pick the right words.

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    My teacher passed the stuff that worried her on, as it is law.

    Today i had to talk to the child protection officer... which wasn't too bad, although scarey as she knows me well from having done my work experience with her.

    Maybe next time you talk to him, just say, "look theres something i want to talk to you about, but im worried about confidentiality" He will know best what he has to do, and should be straight with you :)

    Good luck *hug*
  • plugitinplugitin Posts: 2,197 Boards Champion
    From what I know, because you're over 16 anything will be confidential providing you aren't causing danger to anyone else or yourself.
    As the poster above says, you could ask him what constitutes confidentiality in his mind.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Maybe next time you talk to him, just say, "look theres something i want to talk to you about, but im worried about confidentiality" He will know best what he has to do, and should be straight with you :)

    i think this is a good idea.

    anyone who has a duty of care over you (whether you are a child or an adult) should treat everything you tell them with confidence, unless they think that you are in danger or that you are a danger to others.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    plugitin wrote: »
    From what I know, because you're over 16 anything will be confidential providing you aren't causing danger to anyone else or yourself.
    As the poster above says, you could ask him what constitutes confidentiality in his mind.

    where does self harm fall into the situation? causing danger to myself but want it to be kept quiet.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    ive been told, that although i am harming, because im getting help, they wont tell my mum anything yet. (which is my main worry about confidentiality)

    should be okay, and just ask them if your worried :)Xx
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    where does self harm fall into the situation? causing danger to myself but want it to be kept quiet.

    if one of the students i work with told me they were self-harming i would HAVE to tell someone, or i would be guilty of neglect.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I imagine they'll tell someone from the child protection team, as they're 'trained' for that sort of stuff, this way they can have a chat with you - but they wouldnt tell your parents if you dont want them to... Based on my experience that is.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    If you're in Year 12 and you're worried about confidentiality then you can always go the doctors surgery line - as being over 16 there gives you more independance whereas in schools you'd need to be over 18.

    Generally though, they can only break confidence when necessarily, and as little as possible, to protect your health and well being, and pretty much not without telling you first, so you can easily find out what the score is before telling all.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The law's very clear on when a person in a position of care must break confidence, and it is when they disclose something that shows that they, or someone else, are in danger. The example I always use is with my clients is that if they told me they were going to stab someone, I'd have to report it.

    If your teacher acts professionally he should explain this before you disclose anything to him, and he should always seek to get your permission for disclosure before disclosing it. This would then give you the choice of disclosing or not.

    With self-injury the line is not clear as to what counts as being a danger to yourself. FWIW if someone did disclose that they were injuring themsleves I would discuss it with my line manager and decide whether to make a welfare disclosure to the University, but I would generally persuade the student to go to the Counselling Service to keep it voluntary. It isn't even that I would want to disclose, it is just that I have a legal duty to disclose information that shows children and vulnerable adults are in danger of being harmed. If someone disclosed self-injury and then became critically injured, and I hadn't disclosed, then there would be serious questions asked of me professionally.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    dont want to worry you but my teacher didnt have to ask permission she just warned me... x
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Hey there :wave:

    This is taken from our article on confidentiality:
    If you confide in a teacher, they should refer you to a counsellor or health professional that will be experienced and know how best to help and support you. Teachers have a legal duty not to keep certain things to themselves. "We can't keep anything confidential in terms of self-harming or abuse and we do have to refer it," says Jo, a secondary school teacher. "But it won't necessarily be to your parents, but within the school such as the school's designated Child Protection officer, the school nurse, or the head teacher."

    Different schools will have different systems in place but before you open up it's more than ok to ask about their policy and let him know your concerns. It's great that you have someone you feel you can confide in, Scary's suggestion about going to the doctor too might be something to consider? Take care *hug*
Sign In or Register to comment.