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Contents

Caption: contents table

	Introduction
	Extract from Working Together to Safeguard Children

Introduction

1. Safeguarding children is everybody's responsibility and needs to be addressed by voluntary groups, from both religious and legal perspectives; to satisfy parents, organisers of the activities and the statutory organisations involved with child welfare;
2. Each organisation should ensure that they have in place policies and procedures in respect of the following:
   • What is child abuse and how you might recognise it;
   • Responding to a child reporting an incident;
   • Procedures to follow if the concern is about someone outside the organisation;
   • Procedures to follow if the concern is about someone inside the organisation, a Named Professional;
   • How to record concerns and make a Referral to Children's Social Care if appropriate;
   • How the organisation recruits and checks the suitability of coaches/volunteers;
   • How to deal with bullying;
   • Guidelines for transport.
3. The organisation should develop their practice and procedures in line with law and the findings of research via links to the Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool and Lancashire Children's Safeguarding Assurance Partnership (CSAP).

Extract from Working Together to Safeguard Children

The following is taken from Working Together to Safeguard Children - Chapter 2.

Voluntary, charity, social enterprise (VCSE) and private sector organisations and agencies play an important role in safeguarding children through the services they deliver. Some of these will work with particular communities, with different races and faith communities and delivering in health, adult social care, housing, prisons and probation services. They may as part of their work provide a wide range of activities for children and have an important role in safeguarding children and supporting families and communities.

Like other organisations and agencies who work with children, they should have appropriate arrangements in place to safeguard and protect children from harm. Many of these organisations and agencies as well as many schools, children's centres, early years and childcare organisations, will be subject to charity law and regulated either by the Charity Commission or other 'principal' regulators. Charity trustees are responsible for ensuring that those benefiting from, or working with, their charity, are not harmed in any way through contact with it. The Charity Commission for England and Wales provides guidance on charity compliance which should be followed. Further information on the Charity Commission's role in safeguarding can be found on: the Charity Commission's page on GOV.UK.

Some of these organisations and agencies are large national charities whilst others will have a much smaller local reach. Some will be delivering statutory services and may be run by volunteers, such as library services. This important group of organisations includes youth services not delivered by local authorities or district councils.

All practitioners working in these organisations and agencies who are working with children and their families are subject to the same safeguarding responsibilities, whether paid or a volunteer.

Every VCSE, faith-based organisation and private sector organisation or agency should have policies in place to safeguard and protect children from harm. These should be followed and systems should be in place to ensure compliance in this. Individual practitioners, whether paid or volunteer, should be aware of their responsibilities for safeguarding and protecting children from harm, how they should respond to child protection concerns and how to make a referral to local authority children's social care or the police if necessary.

Every VCSE, faith-based organisation and private sector organisation or agency should have in place the arrangements described in this chapter. They should be aware of how they need to work with the safeguarding partners in a local area. Charities (within the meaning of section 1 Charities Act 2011), religious organisations (regulation 34 and schedule 3 to School Admissions) and any person involved in the provision, supervision or oversight of sport or leisure are included within the relevant agency regulations. This means if the safeguarding partners name them as a relevant partner they must cooperate. Other VCSE, faith-based and private sector organisations not on the list of relevant agencies can also be asked to cooperate as part of the local arrangements and should do so

End