Friday 29 May 2026 marks the start of Child Protection Week in South Africa under the national theme Working together in ending violence against children. Universities are increasingly being called to move beyond academic instruction; South Africa’s child protection systems require that these institutions become active partners in strengthening communities affected by violence, trauma, and inequality.
“Universities must move beyond the walls of lecture rooms and commit to engaged scholarship, where institutions become active partners in communities,” says Prof Nel. “In South Africa specifically, where the gap between institutional knowledge and community reality can be vast, universities have a responsibility to position themselves as resources rather than only academic institutions.”
At the University of the Free State, this approach increasingly includes structured service-learning opportunities that place students within schools, clinics, and community organisations. These institutions provide spaces where they engage directly with the lived realities shaping childhood experiences in South Africa.
Training practitioners to see the child behind the behaviour
For Prof Nel, effective child protection training requires far more than theoretical knowledge. A psychologist trained only in theory, without contextual awareness, risks misreading distress signals and misapplying assessment tools. Without cultural sensitivity, practitioners may also provide treatment that does not adequately respond to a child’s lived reality. She therefore believes that training must be grounded in the lived realities of South African childhood.
Children presenting with behavioural difficulties may often be responding to trauma, violence, instability, neglect, or educational disruption. These behaviours should not automatically be interpreted as purely clinical behavioural disorders.
In forensic child psychology, students are exposed to the ethical and professional realities of working with vulnerable children whose circumstances may directly influence legal outcomes, custody decisions, or prosecutorial processes.
Students who are exposed to this field during training learn to navigate complex assessments that may directly influence legal outcomes, custody decisions, or prosecutorial processes. The training equips students to approach these sensitive cases with both ethical responsibility and professional rigour. Even students who do not ultimately practise in forensic settings benefit enormously, as they leave with an awareness of the indicators of child vulnerability and a sharper ethical conscience.
Students also develop competencies, including trauma-informed interviewing skills, ethical rigour, cultural competence, self-awareness, and reflexivity. These are essential in communities where violence and trauma continue to shape childhood development.
Building child protection systems through collective action
Importantly, the training encourages students to think beyond immediate crises. Students learn that abuse does not end when the incident ends and that its effects travel throughout a child’s development.
Yet, while universities play a critical role, Prof Nel stresses that no single sector can protect children alone. South Africa’s child protection landscape is marked by systemic underfunding, overloaded social work caseloads, inadequate school counselling infrastructure, and vulnerable communities.
She believes that, in this context, collaboration is a survival strategy for children.
Collaboration is essential to protect vulnerable children. Educators may notice signs of withdrawal in learners, while health-care professionals identify indicators of abuse. Universities can therefore strengthen communities by embedding students within schools, clinics, and support structures. Faith-based organisations and community leaders also play a critical role in recognising and responding to child vulnerability.
Child protection is a collective mission; communities must continue to challenge the silence that protects perpetrators and should support families under pressure.
For Prof Nel, future practitioners must approach every child with both scientific rigour and humanity. She believes that children do not need perfection but rather presence and safety.
At the University of the Free State, child protection is increasingly approached as more than a professional responsibility. It forms part of the university’s broader commitment to engaged scholarship and societal impact. By developing graduates equipped to respond to human vulnerability with competence, compassion, and ethical responsibility, the university is contributing towards stronger, more responsive, and more compassionate child protection systems in South Africa.