FGM - FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION
Female Genital Mutilation is illegal and is a form of child abuse and as such, is dealt with under the school' s Safeguarding Policy. At Robin Hood, the Headteachers and Governors expect Safeguarding to be everybody’s responsibility and expect all staff to adhere to and follow these policies.
World Health Organisation definition of FGM:
“Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) comprises of all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia or other injury to the female genital organs whether for cultural or non-therapeutic reasons.” (World Health Organisation-1997)
FGM is illegal in the UK.
The UK Government has written advice and guidance on FGM that states:
- “FGM is considered child abuse in the UK and a grave violation of the human rights of girls and women.
- In all circumstances where FGM is practised on a child it is a violation of the child’s right to life, their right to their bodily integrity, as well as their right to health. The UK Government has signed a number of international human rights laws against FGM, including the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
- “Girls are at particular risk of FGM during school summer holidays. This is the time when families may take their children abroad for the procedure. Many girls may not be aware that they may be at risk of undergoing FGM.”
- “UK communities that are most at risk of FGM include Kenyans, Somalis, Sudanese, Sierra Leoneans, Egyptians, Nigerians and Eritreans. However women from non-African communities who are at risk of FGM include Yemeni, Kurdish, Indonesian and Pakistani women.”
From 31 October 2015 onwards, regulated health and social care professionals and teachers in England and Wales have a mandatory requirement to report visually confirmed or verbally disclosed cases of FGM in girls under 18 to the police.
It is a practice which takes place worldwide in at least 30 countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. It also takes place within parts of Western Europe and other developed countries, primarily among immigrant and refugee communities.
FGM has been classified by the World Health Organization into four types; these are described in more detail on the World Health Organization website .
FGM is a complex issue - despite the harm it causes, some women and men from affected communities consider it to be normal to protect their daughters and their cultural identity.
Further guidance can be found here: http://nationalfgmcentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/FGM-Schools-Guidance-National-FGM-Centre.pdf
