Clare Castle Country Park | Safeguarding Policy

Introduction

Clare Castle Country Park Trust believes that all children, young people and vulnerable adults have the right to be safe, happy and healthy and deserve protection from abuse and exploitation. The Trust is committed to safeguarding from harm all children, young people and vulnerable adults involved in any of its activities, and to treat them with respect.

This Policy commits all Trust people regardless of their role, to report and refer any concerns they may have regarding the safety of any young person or vulnerable adult.

Aims of the Policy

To clarify the roles and responsibilities of all parties.
To support the promotion of a safe working environment and a culture of care in which the rights of all children, young people and vulnerable adults are protected and respected.
To promote and embed clear guidance for those employees working with children, young people and vulnerable adults, and ensure through training and support that they are aware of these and able to implement them.

Scope of the Policy

The Policy relates to the Trust’s responsibility towards:

children and young people, legally defined as any person under the age of 18, or up to the age of 25 where the young person has a disability. From this point on, the terms ‘child’ or ‘children’ will be used to refer to this group;
vulnerable adults, defined as any person aged 18 or over who (1) is, or may be, in need of community care services by reason of mental, physical or learning disability, age or illness; and who (2) is or may be unable to take care of him or herself or unable to protect him or herself against significant harm or serious exploitation.

This Policy and any related procedures and guidance applies to people who have contact with children and/or vulnerable adults. It also applies to people working on behalf of the Trust.

The Policy does not cover health and safety issues related to safeguarding children.

The Policy should be used in conjunction with the Trust’s other policies and procedures.

Review

The Policy will be reviewed annually and whenever there is a change in the related legislation. This will help ensure that the Policy is up to date and fit for purpose.

Definition of Abuse

A person may abuse a child or vulnerable adult by inflicting harm, or by failing to act to prevent harm. Children and vulnerable adults may be abused in a family or in an institutional or community setting by those known to them, by people working with them, or, more rarely, by a stranger.

Physical abuse may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating, or otherwise causing physical harm, including by fabricating the symptoms of, or deliberately causing, ill health.

Emotional abuse is the persistent emotional ill-treatment of a child or vulnerable adult such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child or vulnerable adult’s emotional development or self-esteem. It may involve conveying to the child or vulnerable adult that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only in so far as they meet the needs of another person. It may involve age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed, causing the child or vulnerable adult frequently to feel frightened, or the exploitation or corruption of children or vulnerable adults. It may involve deprivation of contact, control, coercion, intimidation or harassment.

Sexual abuse involves forcing or enticing a child or vulnerable adult to take part in sexual activities whether or not the child or vulnerable adult is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve physical contact, including penetrative (e.g. rape or buggery) or non-penetrative acts. They may include involving the child or vulnerable adult looking at, or in the production of, pornographic material, or encouraging them to behave in sexually inappropriate ways.

Neglect is the persistent failure to meet a child’s or vulnerable adult’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of their health or development, such as failing to provide adequate food, shelter and clothing, or neglect of, or unresponsiveness to basic emotional needs.

In respect of vulnerable adults this may appear to be as a result of self-neglect but still requires action.

Financial abuse is particularly relevant to vulnerable adults and may include theft, fraud, exploitation and pressure concerned with wills, property or inheritance or financial transactions. It may include the misuse or misappropriation of property, possessions or benefits by someone who has been trusted to handle their finances or who has assumed control of their finances by default.

Responsibility for the implementation of this policy lies with everyone.

Trustees are responsible for ensuring that the Trust has a Safeguarding Policy and for working within its remit.

The Designated Safeguarding Trustee, working with Managers, is responsible for:

identifying those services and posts that are likely to have an involvement with children and/or vulnerable adults.
ensuring that those people whose normal duties involve regularly caring for, training, supervising or being in sole charge of children or vulnerable adults are screened via the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) process at the appropriate level prior to appointment (as required by Statute), that two external references are collected for those persons and that they are appropriately qualified and/or trained in working with these groups.
ensuring that all necessary procedures and practices are in place to provide adequate protection both for the individuals in these groups but also protection for the employees involved with them. Safer Recruitment policies and procedures will be maintained by the Trust by using ACAS documents.
ensuring that people dealing with these groups maintain adequate training and awareness of their responsibilities in this area.
ensuring that external contractors and other bodies delivering services are aware of the Trust’s expectation.
ensuring that carers and/or parents of the children and vulnerable adults are aware that in providing services Trust’s employees are not acting in loco parentis (a teacher or other adult responsible for children in place of a parent or guardian).
ensuring that this policy is made available to carers and/or parents of the children and vulnerable adults to whom the Trust is providing services.
ensuring that people working regularly with children or vulnerable adults do not undertake direct work with children or vulnerable adults without an enhanced DBS check except under skilled supervision where approval has been given by the Chair of Trustees or Designated Safeguarding Trustee or Officer prior to commencement of the role.
ensuring that proper records are kept of any incidents and that these are held securely.
working with other associated agencies to ensure the proper transfer of information relating to dealings with children and vulnerable adults where necessary.

All persons are responsible for:

ensuring that they are familiar with and understand the policies and procedures relating to their work with, or in the vicinity of, children and vulnerable adults.
ensuring that they feel confident in working within this environment and working with their group leader or manager to ensure that they have the knowledge and skills to carry out their tasks in this context.
working within the Equality Act 2010 and related legislation and treating equally and with respect children and vulnerable adults with whom they come into contact while carrying out their work.
reporting to their team leader any concerns they may have about abuse or a lack of care of children and vulnerable adults either from other staff, from carers, parents or those in loco parentis or any other person.

Procedure where there is a concern that a child or vulnerable adult is in danger

Where there is concern that any person is in immediate danger or a crime has been committed, the police should always be contacted on 999. Actions should be reported to the Chairman of Trustees or designated Safeguarding Trustee.