Theatre of Safeguarding (noun, performative ritual)

Theatre of Safeguarding (noun, performative ritual)

Pronunciation: /ˈθɪə.tə əv ˈseɪfˌɡɑː.dɪŋ/

“No actual safety will occur, but

1. A performative display of concern, typically enacted by professionals who must be seen to safeguard, even when no one is actually being protected.

2. In SWANKian usage:

An elaborate production staged by institutions to appear ethical while avoiding real intervention. Cast includes social workers, designated safeguarding leads, risk assessors, and the ever-silent chorus of management.

Features:

1. Overuse of the phrase “acting in the best interests.”
2. Dramatic repetition of “we are concerned.”
3. Endless documentation of concern with no material support.
4. Obsession with thresholds.
5. A refusal to exit stage left—even when asked.

Plot Summary:

A vulnerable person seeks help. The system responds with concern. Meetings are held. Forms are completed. Reports are filed. Nothing improves. Curtain falls. Encore begins.

Etymology:

Borrowed from the dramaturgical model of social interaction—except here, the audience is traumatised, the script never changes, and the actors never leave character.

See also:

Trauma by Protocol, Professional Pretence, Negligent Kingdoms, Institutional Gaslighting, Paper Warfare