• This policy outlines the CAofP’s commitment to safeguarding and protecting children, young people, vulnerable adults, and older people who participate in our activities or use our services, and with whom we interact generally.

• This policy applies to all CAofP/LovePoundbury Directors, team members, volunteers and anyone working on behalf of the CAofP: safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.

3.1 CAofP recognises its responsibilities for safeguarding of all participants in the organisation’s activities, especially in relation to children, young people under the age of 18 and adults at risk (regardless of gender, ethnicity or ability) as set out in The Children Act 1989 and 2004; Working Together to Safeguard Children (HM Government 2015 – updated 2022); and Protecting Adults at risk (HM Government 2015 – updated 2023).

3.2 It is the duty of each organisational representative to prevent the physical, sexual and emotional abuse of children, young people and adults at risk and the duty of all to respond to concerns about the well-being activity participants which come to their notice. Contacts and details of how to report concerns to the relevant authorities are set out in Section 4 and Appendix 1.  A code of behaviour clearly sets out expectations of staff and representatives in Section 5.

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3.3 This policy includes policies and procedures that would be applicable for working directly with children, young people, and adults at risk/vulnerable adults. Children are defined as anyone under the age of 18. Vulnerable adults include anyone aged 18 or over who may be unable to take care of themselves or protect themselves from harm or exploitation.

3.4 CAofP will fully co-operate with any statutory investigation into any suspected abuse linked with the organisation. 

• Abuse can take many forms, including physical, psychological or emotional and sexual abuse, financial or material abuse, neglect, domestic violence, discriminatory abuse, organisational or institutional abuse, and modern slavery. 

5.1 The CAofP Directors and activity leads will exercise proper care in the selection and appointment of those working under its auspices with children, young people and/or adults at risk. All appointments to all such roles shall be subject to receipt of satisfactory references and an Enhanced DBS Criminal Records Check with barring information.

5.2 All CAofP workers who will work with children, young people or Adults at risk and the Designated Person for Safeguarding will undertake safeguarding training. They will update this training on a 3-yearly basis.   

5.3 Where safeguarding training and DBS checks are carried out through arrangements with third party organisations provision must fulfil the requirements set out in this policy.   

5.4 Under the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000, it is an offence for anyone disqualified from working with children and young people to knowingly apply, accept or offer to work with children. It is a criminal offence to knowingly offer work with children to an individual who is so disqualified or to knowingly allow such an individual to continue to work with children.

5.5 The organisation’s safeguarding policy as well as the practical expectations will be discussed with anyone appointed to the CAofP or anyone representing the organisation.  The representative will be required to sign their agreement in acceptance of and agreement to the procedures. 

6.1 The CAofP Directors will appoint a Safeguarding Officer to oversee and monitor implementation of the policy and procedures on behalf of the CAofP.

6.2 Their responsibilities will include: 

advising the CAofP Directors on any matters related to the safeguarding of children, young people and adults at risk; and

taking the appropriate action when abuse is disclosed, discovered or suspected

6.3 A copy of the policy and procedures will be held by each Director and any person acting as a CAofP representative and all will be required to follow them.

6.4 A full copy of the policy and procedures will be made available on request to any person, or group participating in the organisation’s activities.

6.5 The policy and procedures shall be monitored and reviewed annually.

• Abuse and neglect are forms of maltreatment of a child, young person, or adult at risk. Somebody may abuse or neglect a person by inflicting harm, or by failing to act to prevent harm. Children may be abused in a family or in an institutional or community setting; by those known to them or, more rarely, by a stranger. They may be abused by an adult or adults or another child or children.

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7.1 How to respond when someone wants to talk about harm or abuse:

• Action must be taken no matter if the information you received is non-recent or from an anonymous source

• Listen-and keep listening

• Don’t question

• Avoid passing judgement on what you are told

• Write down what is said (further details in paragraph 7.3)

• Don’t promise to keep information confidential between you and them. Refer to and follow your organisation’s policy and procedures to make sure information is only shared with people who need and have the right to know

• Explain what you intend to do and don’t delay in taking action

• Contact the Safeguarding Officer

7.2   Making a careful written record of what has been observed:

• Make notes as soon as possible (preferably within one hour of the person talking) including a description of any injury, its size and a drawing of its location and shape on the person’s body

• Write down exactly what the person has said and when s/he said it, what was said in reply and what was happening immediately beforehand (e.g. a description of the activity or context for the conversation)

• Write down dates and times of these events and when the record was made

• Write down any action taken and keep all hand-written notes even if subsequently typed up

7.3    Following discussion, report the concern or allegation to the Safeguarding Officer, who should consult with the relevant authorities (for local reporting arrangements relating to children and adults at risk, see Appendix 1) and any referral to the said authorities shall be confirmed back to you by the Safeguarding Officer in writing within 48 hours.  All documents including copies of everything sent to authorities, will need to be signed, dated and kept by the Safeguarding Officer.

7.4   Where possible, concerns will be passed to the Safeguarding Officer but difficulty in contacting this individual should not delay action being taken. 

7.5   If there is a concern that a child or adult at risk may have been harmed or abused, the Safeguarding Officer will act as follows. 

Where a child or adult at risk has a physical injury or symptom of neglect:

• Contact the relevant authority (see Appendix 1 for local reporting arrangements).  

• If there are concerns that a person may have been deliberately hurt, is at risk of 'significant harm' or is afraid to return home, do not tell the parents, or other people involved

• If a person needs urgent medical attention an ambulance shall be called or they will be taken to hospital; informing the relatives/carers afterwards of the action that was taken

• The ambulance/hospital staff shall be informed of any safeguarding concerns

• Where there are allegations or concerns of sexual abuse: 

• Contact the relevant authorities (see Appendix 1 for local reporting arrangements) --DO NOT try to investigate the matter

• In the case of severe sexual assault (such as rape), which may have occurred over the last few days, and where it has not been possible to get an immediate response from the relevant authorities, contact the police 999

• Do not touch or tamper with any evidence, such as stained clothing

• DO NOT tell other people including the parents / carers as they could be involved

• Keep information on a need-to-know basis so that any alleged perpetrator is not ‘tipped off’

7.6     Should the Safeguarding Officer not feel it necessary to refer the matter to Social Care Team but the worker (or anyone else) has serious concerns for the person's safety, then they shall contact the relevant authorities directly.  The safety of the person over-rides all other considerations and it is important to remember that sexual abuse is a serious crime. If the allegation is against the Director who has responsibility for implementing the Policy, you will refer it directly to another Director.

7.7    Where a third party alleges abuse towards a child or adult, your role is to gather as much information as possible from this person. The third party will be advised that the information they have provided will be shared with the Safeguarding Officer and may result in a referral to the relevant authority with their details. This is so that the relevant authority can contact them if necessary. 

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7.8    Where there are allegations against CAofP representatives:

• The advice of the relevant authority and the police will be sought before taking any action such as suspension from work, be it paid or voluntary, and details will be noted on the form in appendix 2. 

• During an enquiry, the representative will be supervised as closely as possible without raising suspicion during the period between the matter coming to our attention, the authorities being informed and the appropriate action being taken

• The suspension of a representative following an allegation is, by definition, a neutral act but may be necessary because the priority is to protect people from possible further abuse or from being influenced in any way by the alleged perpetrator

7.9 Considerations regarding a suspected perpetrator:

• When an allegation arises, it's important to remember that the investigation process can be stressful for all involved, including the accused. While the CAofP is not responsible for providing direct support, we recognize the following principles:

• The importance of maintaining neutrality throughout the investigation process

• The potential for significant stress and isolation for individuals facing allegations, regardless of the outcome

• The need for any contact or support to be carefully considered and implemented only with full knowledge and approval of the investigating authorities

• The importance of not interfering with or compromising the official investigation in any way

• If a situation arises where contact with an accused individual is deemed appropriate:

• It should be decided on a case-by-case basis

• Any such contact must be approved by and coordinated with the investigating authorities

• The primary focus must remain on the safety and wellbeing of the alleged victim(s)

• Care should be taken not to appear to be taking sides or influencing the investigation

• The CAofP recognises that if an individual is later cleared of allegations, appropriate reintegration may need to be considered, always in line with official guidance and prioritizing the safety of all community members.

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7.10 False Allegations:

False allegations are possible.  All allegations will be properly investigated in an endeavour to establish the truth. 

8.1.   The aim of these general guidelines is to ensure quality protection for people CAofP has dealings with from possible abuse and workers from false accusation. These are the behaviours expected from CAofP Directors:

• Representatives should treat all people with dignity and respect in attitude, language and actions

• Use age-appropriate language and tone of voice

• No one should normally be left working alone with children, young people or adults at risk, but in twos or as part of a team showing mutual responsibility for each team member

• If a child, young person or adult at risk wants to talk on a one-to-one basis you should make sure that:

• you try to hold the conversation in a corner of a room with other people; or

• if you are in a room on your own, leave the door open; and

• you make sure another team member know

8.2 Physical touch:

• Keep everything public: a hug in the context of a group is very different from a hug behind closed doors

• Avoid any physical activity that is, or may be thought to be, sexually stimulating to the adult or the child

• Team members should monitor one another in the area of physical contact

• They are free to help each other by constructively challenging anything which could be misunderstood or misconstrued

8.3 Electronic Communication: 

• All young people need to be aware of the protocols that workers follow in relation to email, messenger services, social networks and mobile phones including texting.  It is important to remember that as well as the parent/carer, young people will have a right to decide whether they want a worker to have their email address or mobile telephone number and will not be pressurised into divulging information they would rather keep to themselves. 

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8.4 Email and messaging is sometimes used by workers to remind young people about meetings. It is important workers use clear and unambiguous language to reduce the risk of misinterpretation, and although it should be obvious when an email is ending, workers should never use inappropriate terms such as ‘luv’ to round things off.

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8.5 Video and Photographs:  Since the introduction of the Data Protection Act, organisations must be very careful if they use still or moving images of clearly identifiable people. There are several issues to be aware of:

• Permission must be obtained, via a consent form, of all people who will appear in a photograph or video before the photograph is taken or footage recorded

• It must be made clear why that person's image is being used, what you will be using it for, and who might want to look at the images

• People should not be identified by surname or other personal details, including e-mail, postal addresses or telephone numbers

• When using photographs of people, it is preferable to use group pictures

This policy will be reviewed annually and updated as necessary. 

CAofP Safeguarding Officer: safeguarding@lovepoundbury.org

• Approved by the CAofP: 27.03.2025

• Last Updated: 27.03.2025