Policy statement:
We recognise our moral and statutory responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of our members, mainly children and young people.
We endeavour to provide a safe and welcoming environment where children and the elderly feel respected and valued.
This policy will provide membership and trustees with the framework they need to keep children safe and secure during GCB sponsored events/activities. It will be used to inform stakeholders how we will safeguard their children whilst they are in our care.
Therefore, this policy applies to anyone working on behalf of GCB, including trustees, and volunteers.

Introduction:
The GCB takes seriously its responsibility to protect and safeguard the children and vulnerable people during its activities. This document outlines the responsibilities of institutions in carrying out their duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of this category of individuals.

1.Aims
To provide the membership and trustees with the framework to promote and safeguard the wellbeing of children and in doing so ensure they meet their statutory responsibilities.

• To ensure consistent good practice across the charity.
• To demonstrate our commitment to protecting children and young people.

Principles and values

1. Young and vulnerable people have a right to feel secure to be able to think big to realise their potential deserves to be protected from harm.
2.  All members, volunteers and trustees have a key role in the prevention of harm and an equal responsibility to act on any suspicion or disclosure that may indicate a child is at risk of harm, either during activities/events or in the community, considering contextual safeguarding, in accordance with the guidance.

The GCB will therefore:

• Raise awareness on the protection young and vulnerable people and equip them with the skills needed to keep themselves safe.
• Establish and maintain an environment where children and young people feel secure, are encouraged to talk, and are listened to.
• Ensure children know that there are adults within the charity whom they can approach if they are worried.

Safeguarding Training:

• Trustees will undergo trainings (e.g., Prevent awareness) to equip them the requisite knowledge and skills to allow them to understand and keep up to date on matters relevant to safeguarding.
• The Secretariat will retain a training record indicating the attendance at Safeguarding and Child Protection training. Additionally, the Lead will retain a record showing staff have read and understood our policy.

4.0 The Chairperson’s Roles and Responsibilities on Safeguarding:
In line with the statutory guidance (2016), the
Chairperson will ensure that systems and procedures to ensure all executive members understand their role in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people.

The Chairman will ensure:

• The policies and procedures adopted by the trustees or Secretariat are fully implemented and followed by all members.
• A clear and concise job description is in place for the designated officers and that both are senior member of the trustees.
• Enough resources and time are allocated to enable the Lead officer to discharge his/her responsibilities, including taking part in strategy discussions and other inter-agency meetings, and contributing to the assessment of children and young people.
• All executive members feel able to raise concerns about poor or unsafe practice regarding children and young people, and such concerns are addressed sensitively and effectively in a timely manner in accordance with agreed whistleblowing policies, where appropriate.
• Induction procedures meet approved requirements.
• Where appropriate, the charity will put in place mechanisms for requiring DBS in fulfilment of this safeguarding policy.

5.0 The Safeguarding Leader’s Roles & Responsibilities Broad areas of responsibility are:

• Recognize how to identify signs of abuse and neglect and when it is appropriate to make a referral to other agencies.
• Refer cases of suspected abuse or allegations to the relevant statutory agencies (children’s social care or the police).
• Act as a source of support, advice, and expertise to members within the GCB.
• Seek advice and share information with relevant statutory agencies before seeking consent or informing any referral. Where practicable, concerns should be discussed with the family concerned and agreement sought for a referral to the appropriate authority unless this may, either by delay or the behavioural response it prompts, place the young and vulnerable person at risk of significant harm. (Consideration will be given that by alerting the family about a referral could potentially jeopardise a police or criminal investigation, the Lead should seek advice if this is the case.)
• Ensure each executive member has access to and understands the GCB’s
• safeguarding policy and procedures, especially new executive members.
• Be able to keep detailed, accurate, secure written records of referrals and/or concerns registered either by the charity or towards the charity.
• Ensure this policy and procedures are updated and reviewed annually.
• Ensure that stakeholders can access a copy of the GCB’s safeguarding policy and procedures which informs that we take suspected safeguarding issues very seriously.

6.0The Trustees Roles & Responsibilities:

• The trustees will ensure this safeguarding policy and procedures are implemented and is made available on request.
• The charity has procedures for dealing with allegations of abuse against its members that comply with recognised guidance from interagency procedures.
• The Chairperson is the most senior designated officer to take lead responsibility for dealing with safeguarding issues, providing advice and support to members, liaising, and working with other agencies.
• There is annual training for all executive members to equip them with relevant knowledge and skills to carry out their safeguarding responsibilities effectively both in the UK.
• An appropriate whistleblowing procedure is in place and is reflected in the volunteer Code of conduct to encourage any member to report concerns regarding safeguarding practice within the charity.
• All allegations or safeguarding complaints are appropriately investigated by the Lead from within the charity and if necessary, invite an independent external investigator to carry out this investigation.
• The Chairperson is the authority responsible for investigations and liaising with relevant authorities in the event of allegation(s) of abuse being made against any trustee.

.0 Members Roles and Responsibilities:

• Members are advised to maintain an attitude of ‘It could happen here’ where safeguarding is concerned. When concerned about the welfare of another member,
  
  especially a young and vulnerable person, members should always act in the individual’s best interest.
• Members will ensure they are aware of their responsibilities for safeguarding and be alert to the signs of abuse and report any concerns. This means that they must:
• Recognise that disclosure may come directly from the person, or from a third party, e.g., friend, family member or neighbour. Alternatively, it may be through the suspicion of other members based on a variety of signs, symptoms, and knowledge of possible indicators of abuse.
• Take seriously any disclosures made to them and provide reassurance to the discloser through their responses and behaviour (without promising they will not tell anyone).
• Where members feel unable to raise an issue or feel that their genuine concerns are not being addressed internally, other whistleblowing channels are open to them: The NSPCC whistleblowing helpline is available for staff who do not feel able to raise concerns regarding child protection failures internally. Trustees can call: 0800 028 0285 – line is available from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM, Monday to Friday and Email: help@nspcc.org.uk.

When to be concerned – Members must be aware that the main categories of abuse are:

• Physical abuse
• Sexual abuse

Dealing with a Disclosure/Reporting concerns:

• If any member has a concern about any type of abuse during our activities, they must immediately report their concerns to the Chairperson or any executive member immediately.
• If a child discloses that s/he has been abused in some way by another member, the GCB officer should:
• Find time and, if necessary, a suitable place to listen to the child, when information about possible abuse comes to light.
• Listen to what is being said without displaying shock or disbelief.
• Do not make false promises which may not be able to be fulfilled and do not promise confidentiality.
• Allow the child to talk freely. Do not cross examine, interview, probe or ask to see any injury that is not visible. Listen, only asking questions when necessary to clarify. Ask open questions such as “Tell me, and How did that happen”.
• Not criticise the alleged perpetrator.
• Reassure the child that what has happened is not his or her fault.
• Stress that it was the right thing to tell.
• Explain what must be done next and who must be told.
• Find out just enough to be sure of the need to refer, and keep any questions open rather than closed.
• Make records that are factual, accurate and relevant and avoid subjective judgements. It is not the charity’s responsibility to ‘check out’ what any child tells, nor should any abuser be questioned.
• Sign and date the record of disclosure.
• Speak with the Chairman and provide him/her with the signed, dated written record without delay.
• The same approach to receiving a disclosure must be taken if the discloser is not the allegedly abused child but another child or an adult.

Confidentiality:

• Safeguarding young and vulnerable people raises issues of confidentiality that must be clearly understood by all members within the charity. Every member has a responsibility to share relevant information about the protection of vulnerable people with other professionals. This sharing of information is outlined in the guidance ‘Information sharing advice for practitioners providing safeguarding services to children, young people, parents, and carers’ (July 2018). It identifies seven golden rules for sharing information and remind practitioners that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), Data Protection Act 2018 and human rights law are not barriers to justified information sharing but provide a framework to ensure that personal information about a living individual is shared appropriately.
• If a child discloses to an executive member or another member within the charity and asks that the information is kept secret, it is important that the member tells the child or young person in a manner appropriate to the child’s age / stage of development that they cannot promise complete confidentiality – instead, s/he must explain that s/he may need to pass information to other professionals to help keep him or her safe.
• Members who receive information about young and vulnerable person(s) and their families during their association with the charity, for example, work, shall share that information only within appropriate contexts.

Record Keeping:

• Appropriate paperwork that provide an accurate factual account of the concern and action taken by the charity.
  The records will be kept for the duration of not more than 5 years or as required by law.
• The information contained will be regarded as confidential. Any request for access to the information must be referred to the Chairperson who will seek legal advice before acting.

12.0 Monitoring & Evaluation: The responsibility for ensuring that the Safeguarding Policy and procedures are in place, available to stakeholders upon request and reviewed annually to ensure its effectiveness lies with the Trustees.

Adopted: 05th October 2022