Looking Beyond Compliance: The What and the How of Safeguarding

We were recently invited to facilitate a discussion on safeguarding, focusing on the what and the how of safeguarding.

This wasn’t a safeguarding qualification or a session on legislation. Instead, it explored the practical questions that every organisation, business and practitioner should be asking themselves.

• Are our current safeguarding processes effective?
• Are we recognising concerns early enough?
• Do our staff feel confident about what to do?
• How do we support the person at the centre of a safeguarding concern?
• How do we look after ourselves and our colleagues after dealing with a difficult safeguarding situation?

Too often, safeguarding is seen as a policy that sits on a shelf or a box to tick. Effective safeguarding is about creating a culture where people know what to look for, understand how to respond appropriately and feel supported throughout the process.

Our session encouraged delegates to reflect on their current practice, identify gaps and consider practical ways to strengthen safeguarding within their own organisations.

Whether you work in health, social care, education, coaching, therapy, the voluntary sector or any role where you support people, safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.

If your organisation would benefit from a practical, interactive safeguarding workshop that goes beyond compliance and helps your team build confidence in recognising, responding to and managing safeguarding concerns, we’d be delighted to have a conversation.

To find out more about our safeguarding workshops, please get in touch.

Thrive Wales network joined our workshop

Understanding the military mind in a civilian environment (online)

We took the group through and explored:

Identity, expectations & self-narratives

How experience shapes the way you operate

Habits, sub-routines & behaviour over time

Neurodifference, trauma & habituation

Environment & transition

The workshop was practical and interactive. The group shared their experience and filled in the gaps together. People left with a clearer understanding of how to support veterans and their families.

Therapists and caseworkers asked real questions and worked through real situations. They found answers that fit their roles and identified new ways to help the people they work with.

Pathways of Purpose: Co-Creating a Transformative Woodland Experience with the Veterans Community Working Party

Location: Fishponds Woods (Whitewoods), Bewley

Delivered by: Veterans Community Working Party CIC https://www.vcworkingparty.com/ and What Makes the Difference CIC

In the heart of Nidderdale’s serene landscape, nestled within the tranquil setting of Fishponds Woods (also known as Whitewoods), something remarkable happened. Over one powerful weekend, What Makes the Difference CIC collaborated with the Veterans Community Working Party (VCWP) to co-create an experience that was as restorative as it was reflective.

This wasn’t just another woodland retreat. It was a carefully designed workshop rooted in community voice, environmental metaphor, and practical transformation – for the land and for the lives of those who took part.

Co-Designing with Purpose: Veterans Lead the Way

From the very beginning, this wasn’t our workshop – it was theirs. Before a single log was moved or a fire lit, we sat down with members of the VCWP to explore one key question:
“What would you like this weekend to feel like?”

By placing veterans at the centre of the planning process, we ensured that every part of the experience reflected their hopes, values, and needs. The result was a co-created event, tailored to support reflection, purpose, and personal insight – while honouring the natural beauty and restorative power of Fishponds Woods.

Exploring “Pathways of Desire”: The Environment as Metaphor

The central theme of the weekend was “environment and pathways of desire” – a concept borrowed from environmental psychology that describes the instinctual routes people create to move efficiently through space.

But we took this idea deeper.

Participants explored how these invisible paths show up in home life, work, relationships, and mental wellbeing. Are the paths we take always the ones we want – or just the ones that are easiest? Are we following familiar tracks, or carving our own way through life?

In partnership with Dr Peter Brambleby’s ecological restoration project, veterans physically shaped the land – building small waterfalls, clearing invasive species, and engaging in mindful woodland activities like whittling and wild cooking. These tasks, though grounded in nature, mirrored internal journeys:

“As we changed the flow of the stream, we asked: where might I reroute the waters of my own life?”

Connection, Reflection, and Real Talk: The Closing Circle

To close the weekend, we invited everyone into a circle to reflect on core questions:

• Were your expectations for this weekend met?
• What worked well for you?
• What didn’t work well for you?
• What would you want more of, or done differently?

This final conversation wasn’t just about the event – it was a consolidation of learning. It allowed participants to name their insights, share their growth, and identify practical changes to bring back into their families, communities, and other working parties.

Many veterans spoke of a renewed clarity about the small shifts they could make at home – just as they had done in the stream. Others reflected on how the co-creation process gave them a deeper sense of agency and ownership – something many had longed for after service life.

Why This Matters: Veteran Wellbeing Through Nature and Narrative

At What Makes the Difference CIC, we believe deeply in the power of place-based wellbeing and veteran-led co-production. Our collaboration with VCWP at Fishponds Woods brought both to life.

This wasn’t therapy – but it was therapeutic. It wasn’t a lecture – but it was deeply educational. And it wasn’t about “fixing” veterans – it was about honouring their strengths, stories, and contributions, and walking alongside them on a shared journey of purpose and possibility.

Join the Movement

As VCWP and What Makes the Difference CIC continue to build community-led, nature-based experiences for the Armed Forces community, we invite others to join us. Whether you’re a veteran, a partner organisation, or simply someone seeking a more meaningful way to connect with nature and self – there’s a pathway waiting for you too.

One small change can make a big difference

October 24, What Makes the Difference CIC delivered two half-day workshops on neurodifference or neurodivergence (ND). This workshop collaborated with Thrive Together Network (formerly known as VPPP).

Mission Motorsport hosted a National Transition Event at Silverstone race track (you may even get the opportunity to be driven in a supercar!) that shows service leavers, veterans, reservists and spouses/partners unbelievable wide-ranging careers that are in both automotive and renewable industries.

Most jobs hidden and “under the table” attending events like this help to build your networks with potential employers and with others who may be able to help you out if you ever become stuck for work.

Rich was kindly invited to give a talk to the Bristol RAFA branch. I took them through what moral injury is and who it can not only affect you and your family.

Army Welfare Services South West event

We were kindly invited to the AWS event, which is to inform various representatives of the army around the South West about what resources are available to them and their soldiers. We went there to inform them about our services, which were originally called Rethinking Trauma and Transition.

Interview with Radio Bath

We were cordially invited to come to Radio Bath by the show’s host Stephanie Hill. We talked about what we do and why as well as the Forcer Protocol that is to save lives from death by suicide. Audio will be coming shortly.