Safeguarding policy

Protecting young people and vulnerable adults

Context and Scope

Ebenezer Community College (ECC) is committed to ensuring the well-being of all young people and vulnerable adults. For the purpose of this policy, young people are defined as people under the age of 18. However, the measures in this policy will also be used by the College to protect the interests of vulnerable adults and or children who may access the college for training, course information days and/ or placement.

The main aims of this policy and the procedures are to promote the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and to outline:

• arrangements to minimise risks

• arrangements to take all appropriate actions to address concerns

• actively promoting the concept of the safe learner

The College will work to the following principles:

• Ensuring safer recruitment by checking the suitability of all staff and volunteers.

• Raising awareness of safeguarding issues and equipping vulnerable adults and children with the skills needed to keep them safe. The College has a duty of care to provide an environment which is safe for all learners, staff and visitors

• The welfare of the young person or adult is paramount. Developing and implementing procedures for identifying and reporting cases or suspected cases of abuse Young people and vulnerable adults have a right to be treated with respect and dignity. Staff working with young people and vulnerable adults also have this right

• All college staff have a responsibility to protect young people and vulnerable adults from harm. All work with young people and vulnerable adults recognises the need for equality of opportunity and the valuing of diversity

• The College will work in partnership with external agencies when necessary if it suspects that someone may be at risk of harm, injury or abuse.

Abuse

In order to ensure that all young people and vulnerable adults studying at the College are protected from abuse, the College has in place certain key procedures. All staff are expected to be aware of the procedures and to follow them. In the event of a suspected case of abuse, the college Safeguarding Team will support and guide staff about the correct action to take. The College requires all staff that may be in contact with young people or vulnerable adults to hold valid enhanced DBS checks.

What is abuse?

Abuse may take place in the family, in an institution like the college, or in the community. It may be perpetrated by someone known to the victim, by a stranger or by a group of people. Most abuse will fall into the following categories:-

• Neglect: the persistent failure to meet someone’s physical or psychological needs

• Physical abuse: causing physical harm to someone

• Sexual abuse: forcing or enticing a young person or vulnerable adult to take part in sexual activity (this includes online or other technology), including non-contact activity such as looking at pornography

• Emotional abuse: emotional ill-treatment such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on a young person’s or vulnerable adult’s emotional development

• Bullying: including cyberbullying

• Domestic violence: either being subject to domestic violence or witnessing it

• Discriminatory: treating someone unfairly because they are different

• Modern Slavery: where ownership is being exercised over a person through force or compulsory resulting in punishment.

What to do if you suspect abuse or someone is at risk of harm?

If you suspect that a Young Person or Adult at Risk has been harmed, or is at immediate and significant risk of harm, you must report this to a Designated Safeguarding Officer immediately.

Designated Persons for Safeguarding

• These designated persons with responsibility for college-wide Safeguarding. These people also form the safeguarding working group and have responsibility for the following actions:

• Liaising with Children and Adult Social Services, and any other agencies, on individual cases of suspected or identified abuse

• Co-ordinating action relating to all safeguarding issues

• Ensuring all staff and volunteers are familiar with our safeguarding Policy and Procedure

• Ensuring Disclosure and barring service (DBS) checks for new staff, and updated checks for current staff who have regular unsupervised contact with vulnerable adults and children are completed via the online system.

• Raising awareness of safeguarding vulnerable adults and children, including training where appropriate

• Reviewing and revising safeguarding policies

• Ensuring that effective procedures in relation to reporting, recording and referrals are fully communicated and implemented.

Safer recruitment.

The guidance set out in the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups (SVG) Act 2006 sets out that a CRB check is only a priority for those members of staff, contractors or volunteers undertaking regulated activities, whilst it may be sufficient for employers to ensure that sufficient safeguards are in place for members of staff and volunteers undertaking controlled activities. The changes in government policy and Ofsted regulation in 2013 have stated that it is now illegal to blanket DBS check all staff members and only those who have regular unsupervised contact with vulnerable adults and children.

Due to the broad definition of vulnerable adults and the general contact that teaching staff, contractors and volunteers supporting vulnerable working within the college must hold a current and valid DBS check. Checks that contractors are able to work in environments with vulnerable people present must also be made and noted prior to the work taking place. Staff waiting for DBS checks to be cleared can undergo training and induction and a risk assessment must be undertaken but cannot undertake any unsupervised face-to-face work with vulnerable adults or children.

The Quality Manager will keep a centralised list of all staff DBSs. Should we receive notification that any members of staff have come up on the Information Safeguarding Authorities (ISA) barred list for working with vulnerable adults or children there will be an assessment as to whether that members of staff or volunteer can continue working undertaking their job role within the college.

The safeguarding working group will make this assessment as to whether the person in question will be dismissed from their post or can retain their employment within another role.

Regulated activity

The regulated activity covers anyone working closely with children or vulnerable adults, paid or unpaid, not part of a family or personal arrangement, on a frequent, intensive or overnight basis. Frequent means once a week or more (except in health or personal care services where frequent means once a month or more); intensive means on four days or more in a single month.

Regulated activity can include, but is not limited to, any of the following:

• teaching, training or instruction, care or supervision of children

• teaching, training or instruction for vulnerable adults


• Provide advice or guidance wholly or mainly for children, which relates to their physical,

emotional or educational wellbeing


• providing advice, guidance or assistance wholly or mainly for vulnerable adults


• any form of treatment or therapy provided to children or vulnerable adults

• driving a vehicle that is being used only for the purpose of conveying children or vulnerable adults and their carers.

The Safeguarding Team

Advice on issues of safeguarding is accessed through the Student Support Services. Named individuals with specific responsibilities are as follows:

• Nana Wulff - Designated Lead Safeguarding Officer

Procedure

1. Role and Responsibility of Staff and Volunteers

Concerns about a vulnerable adult, child or young person must be discussed with the Designated Person or the safeguarding working group immediately.

2. Designated Persons: Staff/tutors/teachers and volunteers will notify the safeguarding team. 
Once you have discussed your concerns the designated person will decide on a course of action or might discuss the matter with the safeguarding team to decide the course of action.

The Designated Safeguarding Lead will inform the Operations Manager of any potential allegations or incidents which will result in an investigation and referral to the police, children or adult safeguarding boards or other safeguarding agencies including the ISA.

3. Concerns or allegations about staff or volunteers

Allegations or concerns about a member of staff or volunteer must be reported to the Designated Person. Our main priority is to assess the situation and allegation first to ascertain whether a referral is required.

4. Any concerns raised whilst you are delivering courses, or assessing candidates, within external settings to the college must be reported immediately to the college’s designated safeguarding officer.

5. Emergencies: If you are concerned that a vulnerable adult or child is in immediate danger please contact emergency services on the following numbers:

• Police 999

(Refer to Appendix 1 for local authority contact numbers)

Disclosure (by a vulnerable adult, child or a third party) - Staff and volunteers should not investigate concerns themselves, as this is the role of the statutory agencies. However, if a vulnerable adult or child does talk to you (Disclosure), it is vital that you listen carefully:

Listen – do not ask closed or leading questions, interrogate or give opinions Do not promise the vulnerable adult or child you will keep secrets but thank and congratulate them for coming forward.

Tell the vulnerable adult or child that you will need to talk to someone else who can help

Remain Calm – Be sensitive and sympathetic. You may feel shocked, angry or upset by what you

have been told but if the vulnerable adult or child senses this, it may prevent them from disclosing

Re-assure the vulnerable adult or child that they have done nothing wrong. Talk to the vulnerable adult or child in age-appropriate language.

Record what you know - as soon as possible write down what you have been told, but not during the disclosure. Make sure you record the facts as soon as the person has left.

Confidentiality

It is important that information given, or disclosed, remains confidential and only passed to those

persons on a ‘need to know basis

Extremism/Radicalisation

These are extreme political/religious/social views it can be perpetrated by an individual or a group.

People who hold these views may act on them or seek to engage others with a view to radicalising

them. Radicalisation can often come about as a result of individuals or groups of people feeling

marginalised, isolated, discriminated against or having strong views on faith/religious issues or rebellion

against perceived/real attacks on race/culture or as a response to international political issues

involving their country of origin. Those at risk can be people who come under peer pressure, who

feel a lack of self-worth, who are angry because of life issues, breakdowns in family structure and

those who need to feel a sense of belonging.

The College does not tolerate extremist views. Everyone has a right to attend college and feel

safe. Action will be taken if the College becomes aware of anyone holding/acting upon extremist

views. This can involve disciplinary action or expulsion. External organisations may be informed

in line with the College’s safeguarding policies and procedures. If you are concerned about

extremism/radicalisation, if someone you know has begun to express extremist views and

associate themselves with those expressing extremist views or if you have been approached by

anyone holding extremist views please speak to one of the Safeguarding Team.

Referral Adult Contact

Designated Safeguarding Lead 0208 800 6621 ext 225

Tottenham Police Station 0208 721 2669

LSCB Haringey (MASH TEAM) mashreferral@haringey.gov.uk 0208 489 4470

LSCB Haringey (MASH TEAM) Emergency out-of-hours duty team 0208 489 0000