Safeguarding policy

Leamington and Warwick Musical Society (LWMS) abides by the duty of care to safeguard and promote the welfare of adults, children and young people and is committed to safeguarding practice that reflects statutory responsibilities, government guidance and complies with best practice requirements.

  • We recognise the welfare of adults and children is paramount in all the work we do and in all the decisions we take
  • All adults and children, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation has an equal right to protection from all types of harm or abuse
  • Some adults and children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues
  • Working in partnership with adults, children, young people, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting their welfare.

LWMS will:

  • Protect adults, children and young people who receive its services from harm.
  • Provide members and volunteers, as well as children and young people and their families, with the overarching principles that guide our approach to vulnerable adult and child protection.

This policy applies to anyone working on behalf of LWMS, including Trustees, Management Committee members, and volunteers. Failure to comply with the policy and related procedures will be addressed without delay and may ultimately result in exclusion from the organisation in line with the Membership bye-laws and Constitution of the LWMS CIO.

Definitions

The Children Act 1989 definition of a child is: anyone who has not yet reached their 18th birthday, even if they are living independently, are a member of the armed forces or is in hospital.

Adult at Risk:

  • An adult who has needs for care and support (whether or not a local authority is meeting any of those needs),
  • is experiencing, or is at risk of, abuse or neglect, and
  • as a result of those needs is unable to protect himself or herself against the abuse or neglect or the risk of it.

Child and Adult Abuse: Children and adults may be vulnerable to neglect and abuse or exploitation from within their family and from individuals they come across in their daily lives. There are 4 main categories of abuse, which are: sexual, physical, emotional abuse, and neglect. It is important to be aware of more specific types of abuse that fall within these categories, they are:

  • Bullying and cyberbullying
  • Child sexual exploitation
  • Child Criminal exploitation
  • Child trafficking
  • Domestic abuse
  • Female genital mutilation
  • Grooming
  • Historical abuse
  • Online abuse

Safeguarding children: Safeguarding children is defined in Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 as:

  • protecting children from maltreatment.
  • preventing impairment of children’s health or development.
  • ensuring that children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care.
  • taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.

This policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect children in England. A summary of the key legislation is available from the NSPCC.

Safeguarding lead

The Safeguarding Lead (SL) is a CIO member who is the main source of support, advice and expertise for safeguarding in LWMS. The SL is responsible for:

  • Playing a leading role in maintaining and reviewing this policy and our safeguarding practices;
  • Advising on training needs and providing training where appropriate;
  • Providing safeguarding advice and support to members;
  • Managing safeguarding concerns, allegations or reported incidents;
  • Managing referrals to key safeguarding agencies (eg. social services or police) of any incidents or allegations of abuse and harm.

Training & awareness

LWMS will ensure an appropriate level of safeguarding training is available to its Trustees, Management Committee, Volunteers and any relevant persons linked to the organisation who requires it.

For those who are working or volunteering with children, this requires them as a minimum to have awareness training that enables them to:

  • Understand what safeguarding is and their role in safeguarding children.
  • Recognise a vulnerable adult or child potentially in need of safeguarding and take action.
  • Understand how to report a safeguarding alert.
  • Understand dignity and respect when working with children.
  • Have knowledge of this Safeguarding policy.

Confidentiality and information sharing

LWMS expects all Trustees, Management Committee members and volunteers to maintain confidentiality. Information will only be shared in line with the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (DPA). Remember that this legislation is not a barrier to sharing information when the welfare of a child or vulnerable adult is the paramount concern. As long as the information can be justified and is in accordance with this information sharing guidance, it should be shared.

  • Be open and honest: where appropriate it is important to keep all parties informed of information sharing plans, processes and boundaries.
  • Seek advice: Warwickshire County Council Child Protection is available during office hours for advice.
  • Share with consent where appropriate: consent of the individual concerned should be sought before sharing. However, consent may not be appropriate if informing them would place a vulnerable person at risk or if sharing information is in their best interests.
  • Consider safety and well-being: include considerations of support needs for all involved, including those about whom information is being shared, any risks of sharing the information and how these would be managed.
  • Share only what is necessary, proportionate, relevant, and accurate
  • Be timely and secure

Contact Warwickshire County Council Child Protection if a child is deemed to be at risk of harm or contact the police using 999 if someone is in immediate danger, or 111 if a crime has been committed.

Record keeping

A written record must be kept about any concern regarding an adult or child with safeguarding needs. This must include details of the person involved, the nature of the concern and the actions taken, decision made and why they were made.

All records must be signed and dated. All records must be securely and confidentially stored in line with GDPR.

Photography

All Trustees, Management Committee members and volunteers should understand that it is unlawful to photograph children and young people without the explicit consent of the person with parental responsibilities. All photographs of adults should be only ever used with explicit consent of the individual.

Whistleblowing

It is important that people within LWMS have the confidence to come forward to speak or act if they have a concern about dangerous or illegal activity, or any wrong-doing within the organisation. This includes concerns about another member or volunteer. Whistleblowing will be treated in line with the LWMS Complaints Policy.

This policy was reviewed by the LWMS committee on 4 November 2024, and will be further reviewed at least every 2 years.