Safeguarding Policy

This policy will enable the ASWA to demonstrate its commitment to keeping safe vulnerable young people and adults whom it works alongside and comes into contact.

ASWA acknowledges its duty to act appropriately in response to any allegations, reports or suspicions of abuse or to investigate any donations made to the charity by a vulnerable person. It is important to have the policy and procedures in place so that committee members and members can work to prevent abuse and to prevent donations / large sums of money being given to the charity by vulnerable people and know what to do in these events.

The Policy Statement and Procedures have been drawn up in order to enable the ASWA to:

promote good practice and work in a way that can prevent harm, abuse and coercion occurring;
to ensure that any allegations of abuse or suspicions are dealt with appropriately and the person experiencing abuse is supported;
to stop that abuse occurring;
to prevent large sums of money being donated to the charity by a vulnerable person.

The Policy and Procedures relate to the safeguarding of vulnerable young people and adults.

Vulnerable young people and adults are defined as:

a person who is or may be for any reason unable to take care of him or herself, or unable to protect him or herself against significant harm or exploitation.

The policy applies to all members, committee members and those attending ASWA organised events. It is acknowledged that significant numbers of vulnerable young people and adults are abused and exploited and it is important that ASWA has a Safeguarding Policy and a set of procedures to follow and puts in place preventative measures to try and reduce those numbers.

In order to implement the policy ASWA will work:

to promote the freedom and dignity of the person who has or is experiencing abuse;
to promote the rights of all people to live free from abuse and coercion;
to ensure the safety and well being of people who do not have the capacity to decide how they want to respond to abuse that they are experiencing;
to manage its activities in a way which promotes safety and prevents abuse;
recruit in a safe manner all committee members and volunteers representing ASWA, ensuring all necessary checks are made;
provide effective support for committee members and volunteers through supervision, support and training.

ASWA will:

ensure that all committee members and volunteers are familiar with this policy, and that it is available via the website for all members and the general public to access;
inform the young person / adult that where a person is in danger, a child is at risk or a crime has been committed then a decision may be taken to pass information to another agency without the individual’s consent;
make a referral to the Social Services team as appropriate;
endeavour to keep up to date with national developments relating to preventing abuse and welfare of adults and young people;
ensure that the Designated Named Person understands his/her responsibility to refer incidents of adult abuse to the relevant statutory agencies (Police/Adult and Culture Services Directorate).

The Designated Named Person for Safeguarding vulnerable young person / adults whilst attending ASWA events is:

Name: Revd Samantha Chandler

Position: Honorary Secretary

Email: secretary@angsocwelanimals.net

Telephone: 01252 843093 or mobile: 07880 702404

They should be contacted for support and advice on implementing this policy and procedures

Procedures

1. Introduction

ASWA is committed to the belief that the protection of vulnerable young people / adults from harm and abuse is everybody’s responsibility and the aim of these procedures is to ensure that all committee members act appropriately in response to any concern around vulnerable young people / adult abuse or coercion.

2. Preventing abuse

ASWA is committed to putting in place safeguards and measures to reduce the likelihood of abuse or coercion taking place in connection with ASWA organised activities and that all those involved with ASWA will be treated with respect.

Therefore this policy needs to be read in conjunction with the following policies:

Equal Rights and Diversity

3. Recognising the signs and symptoms of abuse and coercion

ASWA is committed to ensuring that all committee members are aware of this policy and the role of the Designated Named Person.

The definitions below will be highlighted to committee members, and the importance of taking appropriate action in accordance with this policy will be highlighted.

“Abuse is a violation of an individual’s human and civil rights by any other person or persons” (No Secrets: Department of Health, 2000)

Abuse includes:

physical abuse: including hitting, slapping, punching, burning, misuse of medication, inappropriate restraint;
sexual abuse: including rape, indecent assault, inappropriate touching, exposure to pornographic material;
psychological or emotional abuse: including belittling, name calling, threats of harm, intimidation, isolation;
financial or material abuse: including stealing, selling assets, fraud, misuse or misappropriation of property, possessions or benefits;
neglect and acts of omission: including withholding the necessities of life such as medication, food or warmth, ignoring medical or physical care needs;
discriminatory abuse: including racist, sexist, that based on a person’s disability and other forms of harassment, slurs or similar treatment
institutional or organisational: including regimented routines and cultures, unsafe practices, lack of person-centred care or treatment.

Abuse may be carried out deliberately or unknowingly. Abuse may be a single act or repeated acts. People who behave abusively come from all backgrounds and walks of life. They may be doctors, nurses, social workers, advocates, staff members, volunteers or others in a position of trust. They may also be relatives, friends, neighbours or people who use the same services as the person experiencing abuse.

Definition of coercion: the action or practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats Coercion could be for someone to part with money, in this instance in the form of a donation to the centre or by any Member of staff to another or a volunteer in getting them to do something against their will.

4. Designated Named Person for safeguarding adults / young people.

ASWA has an appointed individual who is responsible for dealing with any safeguarding adults / young people’s concerns. The Designated Named Person for Safeguarding Young people & adults for ASWA is Revd Samantha Chandler.

The roles and responsibilities of the named person(s) are:

to ensure that all committee members are aware of what they should do and who they should go to if they have concerns that a vulnerable young person / adult involved with ASWA may be experiencing, or has experienced abuse, neglect or coercion;
to ensure that concerns are acted on, clearly recorded and referred to a Social Services team where necessary;
to follow up any referrals and ensure the issues have been addressed;
consider any recommendations from the Safeguarding Adult / young person process;
to reinforce the utmost need for confidentiality and to ensure that committee members are adhering to good practice with regard to confidentiality and security. This is because it is around the time that a person starts to challenge abuse / coercion that the risks of increasing intensity of abuse / coercion are greatest;
to ensure that all committee members working for ASWA directly with vulnerable young people and adults who have experienced abuse / coercion, or who are experiencing abuse / coercion, are well supported and receive appropriate supervision;
if appropriate staff or volunteers will be given support and afforded protection if necessary under the Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998: they will be dealt with in a fair and equitable manner and they will be kept informed of any action that has been taken and its outcome.

5. Responding to people who have experienced or are experiencing abuse / coercion

ASWA recognises that it has a duty to act on reports, or suspicions of abuse, neglect or coercion. It also acknowledges that taking action in cases of abuse is never easy.

How to respond if you receive an allegation:

Reassure the person concerned;
Listen to what they are saying;
Record what you have been told/witnessed as soon as possible;
Remain calm and do not show shock or disbelief;
Tell them that the information will be treated seriously;
Don’t start to investigate or ask detailed or probing questions;
Don’t promise to keep it a secret.

If you witness abuse or abuse / coercion has just taken place the priorities will be:

To call an ambulance if required;
To call the police if a crime has been committed;
To preserve evidence;
To keep yourself, staff, volunteers and service users safe;
To inform the Designated Named Person in your organisation;
To record what happened.

All situations of abuse / coercion or alleged abuse / coercion will be discussed with the Designated Named Person. If a member or committee member feels unable to raise this concern with the Designated Named Person then concerns can be raised directly with Social Services Direct. The alleged victim will be told that this will happen. This stage is called the alert.

If it is appropriate and there is consent from the individual, or there is a good reason to override consent, such as risk to others, a referral (alert) will be made to Social Services team. If the individual experiencing abuse / coercion does not have capacity to consent a referral will be made without that person’s consent, in their best interests.

The Designated Named Person may take advice at the above stage from Social Services and/or other advice giving organisations such as Police.

The United Kingdom based activities of ASWA take place in many different geographical locations. Therefore, the appropriate Adult Social Care or Young Person Social Care team would be contacted where required, depending on the location of the person suffering or potentially suffering abuse/coercion.

In an acute emergency the police will be called (999) The Designated Named Person will have an overview of this process so they can explain it to the person concerned and offer all relevant support to the person and process. This could be practical support e.g. providing a venue, or information and reports and emotional support. Information should be provided to the individual. This could be about other sources of help or information that could enable them to decide what to do about their experience, enable them to recover from their experience and enable them to seek justice.

6. Managing allegation made against a committee member.

ASWA will ensure that any allegations made against committee members will be dealt with swiftly. Where a committee member is thought to have committed a criminal offence the police will be informed. If a crime has been witnessed the police should be contacted immediately. The safety of the individual(s) concerned is paramount.

A risk assessment must be undertaken immediately to assess the level of risk posed by the alleged perpetrator. This will include whether it is safe for them to continue in their role or any other role within ASWA whilst the investigation is undertaken. The Designated Named Person will liaise with Adult / Child Social Care to discuss the best course of action and to ensure that ASWA responds appropriately to cooperate with any other enquiries taking place as part of the ongoing management of the allegation.

7. Recording and managing confidential information

ASWA is committed to maintaining confidentiality wherever possible and information around Safeguarding Adults / Young people issues should be shared only with those who need to know. All allegations/concerns should be recorded. The information should be factual and not based on opinions, record what the person tells you, what you have seen and witnesses if appropriate.

The information that is recorded will be kept secure and will comply with data protection.

8. Disseminating/Reviewing policy and procedures

This Safeguarding Vulnerable Young people / Adults Policy and Procedure will be clearly communicated to committee members. The Designated Named Person will be responsible for ensuring that this is done. The Safeguarding Adults Policy and Procedures will be reviewed annually by the Committee. The Designated Named Person will also ensure that any changes will be updated on the website.