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Organisations that work with young or vulnerable people should always have a safeguarding policy in place, but how should it be structured and what should it include? Here is a guide to writing a safeguarding policy and advice on how to implement this policy.
Safeguarding is rarely out of the news; however, according to the BBC, the Football Association withdrew funding from a review of its child protection policies in 2003. This is surprising, as football is an area that has seen some serious child protection issues in recent years. If your organisation works with young people or vulnerable adults, it is vital that you have a good safeguarding policy in place.
Implementing the policy
Any organisation working with children or vulnerable adults should have a safeguarding policy. This should be reviewed regularly and the safeguarding officer should keep it up to date with current practice and procedure. This person is also responsible for ensuring that everyone is kept up to date with any changes. Anyone who is involved with your organisation should have read and understood the safeguarding policy and have been given a copy. It should also be made available to parents/carers.
How to write a good safeguarding policy
A good safeguarding policy will be the result of everyone involved helping to write and develop it. This includes staff, volunteers and parents, and the people it affects. This demonstrates that you are serious about safeguarding and that everyone understands who is responsible for it and how it is dealt with.
Staff and volunteers who help to write the policy will have undergone a CRB check, which can be obtained through companies such as http://www.carecheck.co.uk/; however, it is important to understand the needs of the organisation about safeguarding and how issues are dealt with. The policy should include the procedure to be followed in the case of any safeguarding issues. Once it has been written, staff and volunteers should have training to better understand the importance of safeguarding within the organisation.
You should now have some of the tools you need to write a safeguarding policy that does the job it is supposed to do. Provided it has been written and put together correctly, it should ensure that children and vulnerable adults are protected in any environment.
