SAFEGUARDING
POLICY.
1. INTRODUCTION.
1.1 MOVE AND CODE (“Move and Code”, “we”, “us” or “our”) makes a positive contribution to a strong and safe community and recognises the right of every individual to stay safe.
1.2 The MOVE AND CODE project was set up to inspire female identifying and nonbinary people into a digital career and comes into contact with children and/or vulnerable adults through various activities including panel events, hackathons, exhibitions, and workshops. The types of contact with children and/or vulnerable adults will be controlled.
1.3 This policy seeks to ensure that MOVE AND CODE undertakes its responsibilities with regard to the protection of children and/or vulnerable adults and will respond to concerns appropriately. This policy does not form part of any employee’s contract of employment and MOVE AND CODE may amend it at any time. MOVE AND CODE will continue to review this policy to ensure it is achieving its aims.
2. DEFINITIONS.
2.1 Abuse is a selfish act of oppression and injustice, exploitation and manipulation of power by those in a position of authority. This can be caused by those inflicting harm or those who fail to act to prevent harm. Abuse is not restricted to any socio-economic group, gender or culture. It can take a number of forms, including the following:
Physical abuse
Sexual abuse
Emotional abuse
Bullying
Neglect
Financial (or material) abuse
2.2 A child is under the age of 18 (as defined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of a Child).
2.3 Safeguarding is about embedding practices throughout the organisation to ensure the protection of children and/or vulnerable adults wherever possible. In contrast, child and adult protection is about responding to circumstances that arise.
2.4 A vulnerable adult is a person aged 18 years or over who may be unable to take care of themselves or protect themselves from harm or from being exploited. This may include a person who:
Is elderly and frail
Has a mental illness including dementia
Has a physical or sensory disability
Has a learning disability
Has a severe physical illness
Is a substance misuser
Is homeless
3. RESPONSIBILITIES.
3.1 All staff (paid or unpaid) have a responsibility to follow the guidelines laid out in this policy and related policies.
3.2 We expect all staff (paid or unpaid) to promote good practice by being an excellent role models, contribute to discussions about safeguarding, and positively involve people in developing safe practices.
3.3 Any safeguarding concerns should be immediately reported to Su Adams or Rebecca Evans at hello@moveandcode.org.
4. IMPLEMENTATION.
4.1 The scope of this policy is broad-ranging and, in practice, it will be implemented via a range of policies and procedures within the organisation.
4.2 MOVE AND CODE ensures safe recruitment and commits resources to provide Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks on staff (paid or unpaid) whose roles involve contact with children and /or vulnerable adults, as required by law.
4.3 Interviews are conducted according to equal opportunity principles and interview questions are based on the relevant job description and person specification.
4.4 DBS checks will be conducted for specific roles for all staff (paid or unpaid) working with children and vulnerable adults, as required by law. Portable/carry-over DBS checks from another employer will not be deemed to be sufficient. It is a criminal offence for individuals barred by the DBS to work or apply to work with children or vulnerable adults in a wide range of posts.
4.5 No formal job offers are made until after checks for suitability are completed (including DBS).
4.6 For volunteer roles, MOVE AND CODE will ensure the volunteer is supervised in their duties by an existing team member who will have completed a prior DBS check.
5. COMMUNICATIONS, TRAINING, AND SUPPORT FOR STAFF.
5.1 MOVE AND CODE commits resources for induction, training of staff (paid and unpaid), effective communications, and support mechanisms in relation to Safeguarding. All staff who, through their role, are in contact with children and /or vulnerable adults will have access to safeguarding training at an appropriate level and adequate supervision to enable staff to perform their work competently and safely.
5.2 We recognise that involvement in situations where there is risk or actual harm can be stressful for the staff concerned. MOVE AND CODE will ensure all staff are sufficiently supported should these events occur.
6. PROFESSIONAL BOUNDARIES.
6.1 Professional boundaries are what define the limits of a relationship between a support worker and a service user. They are a set of standards we agree to uphold that allows this necessary and often close relationship to exist while ensuring the correct detachment is kept in place.
6.2 MOVE AND CODE expects staff to protect the professional integrity of themselves and the organisation.
6.3 Examples of behaviours that should be considered to cross professional boundaries include:
Use of abusive language
Response to inappropriate behaviour/language
Use of punishment or chastisement
Passing on service users’ personal contact details
Degree of accessibility to service users (e.g. not providing personal contact details)
Taking family members to a service user’s home
Selling to or buying items from a service user
Accepting responsibility for any valuables on behalf of a service user
Accepting money as a gift/ borrowing money from or lending money to service users
Personal relationships with a third party related to or known to service users
Accepting gifts/ rewards or hospitality from an organisation as an inducement for either doing/ not doing something in their official capacity
Cautious or avoidance of personal contact with service users
6.4 If the professional boundaries and/or policies are breached this could result in disciplinary procedures.
7. MONITORING AND EVALUATION.
MOVE AND CODE will systematically monitor and evaluate this policy on a regular basis.