THIS week I'd like to speak about the brilliant work of our Schools Service staff and volunteers.

Thanks to their work in primary schools, thousands of children have been given essential knowledge to recognise signs of abuse and confidence to speak to a trusted adult about it.

The programme is called Speak Out Stay Safe, and is delivered through age-appropriate language, workshops and exercises, by volunteers and staff with the help of our friendly mascot Buddy. The service is vital to ensuring children and young people know they have a right to be safe from abuse and neglect, as well as building their confidence to get help from trusted adults.

During the pandemic, because of social distancing restrictions, we redesigned our programme so it could be shared virtually through videos and online resources. We called on Ant and Dec to take part in our virtual assembly, which is now delivered in classrooms. In recent weeks our volunteers have been able to get back into schools to deliver this vital messaging face-to-face.

Our interactive Key Stage 1 and 2 assemblies help primary schoolchildren recognise different types of abuse including online abuse. We also have a version of the service adapted for children with special educational needs and disabilities, which can be tailored by teachers in SEND schools.

Last year we shared Speak Out Stay Safe with nearly 1.8 million children in almost 8,000 schools, but we're not done yet. We're looking for volunteers in Bradford, Calderdale, and Kirklees to help us spread our Speak Out Stay Safe messaging in primary schools. It's just a few hours a week, but you can play a vital role in ensuring children understand different types of abuse and feel empowered to speak out if they're worried. As a Speak Out Stay Safe volunteer, you'll be given training and will visit schools twice a month to give our assemblies, working alongside other volunteers.

To take the first step go to the 'support us' section of the NSPCC website. It all starts with a short information event where you can find out more about what we do and how you can help. For more information contact our Volunteer Recruitment Team at VolunteerRecruitment@NSPCC.org.uk The closing date is Friday, July 8, but you can register interest for future volunteering opportunities.

This is essential knowledge for children, and we'd love to have your support. If you don't have the time to volunteer but want to find out more visit the NSPCC website.