safeguarding policy
Safeguarding is Everybody's Business
The Happy Baby Community is a community of support for women who have fled from violence or traffickers, and are pregnant, or with a young child and are seeking international protection in the UK. This document is divided into two parts, Child Safeguarding Policy and Adult Safeguarding Policy.
This policy applies to anyone working on behalf of the Happy Baby Community including managers, the board of trustees, paid staff, volunteers, sessional workers, agency staff and community leaders.
A: Child Safeguarding Policy
The purpose of this policy statement is:
to protect children and young people who receive Happy Baby Community services from harm
to provide staff and volunteers, as well as children and young people and their families, with the overarching principles that guide our approach to child protection
to promote a culture of learning within Happy Baby Community and ensure our community stays informed about emerging types of child safeguarding and uses reports in the public domain and 'lessons learnt' from serious incidents and their relevance to Happy Baby Community to raise awareness and for use in training sessions.
Legal framework
This policy has been drawn up based on legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect children in England. A summary of the key legislation is available from nspcc.org.uk/learning
This policy is aligned with 'Working Together to Safeguard Children 2020', and updates in 2022 which include:
‘coercion and control’ a new category of abuse in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021,
Integrated Care Boards – the new name for Clinical Commissioning groups
UK GDPR which replaces EU GDPR since the UK has left the EU
Public Health England: has now been replaced by the UK Health Security Agency and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), which is part of the Department of Health and Social Care, and by the UK Health Security Agency. The Chief Public Health Nurse role has transferred to OHID
Multi-agency working
Multi-agency working is key to early and effective identification of risk, improved information sharing, joint decision making and coordinated action. The three main statutory partners are the local authority, the police, and the Integrated Care Board for the relevant geographic area. The Happy Baby Community has a duty to report any child safeguarding concerns to the relevant 'front door' of services, this might be the Initial Point of Contact or Access Team, so it is passed to the Multi-Agency Safeguarding Hub (MASH).
Supporting documents
This policy statement should be read alongside our organisational policies, procedures, guidance, and other related documents, including:
HB Document 2: Dealing with disclosures and concerns about a child or an adult
HB Document 3: Managing allegations against staff and volunteers
HB Document 4: Recording concerns, information sharing & record storage
HB Document 5: Code of conduct for staff and volunteers
HB Document 6: Identifying Abuse in Children
HB Document 7: Safer recruitment
HB Document 8: Confidentiality Policy
HB Document 9: Incident Reporting
HB Document 10: Staying Safe (in draft)
HB Document 11: Equality and Diversity Policy
HB Document 12: HBC Employee Handbook
HB Document 13: Policy to Support the Prevention of Terrorism
We believe that:
children and young people should never experience abuse of any kind
we have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people, to keep them safe
We recognise that:
the welfare of children is paramount in all the work we do and in all the decisions we take all children, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation have an equal right to protection from all types of harm or abuse
some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues
working in partnership with children and their families and other agencies is essential in promoting children's safety
We will seek to keep children and young people safe by:
valuing, listening to and respecting them
appointing a nominated safeguarding lead and a lead trustee/board member for safeguarding
adopting child protection and safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures, and code of conduct for staff and volunteers
providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support, training, and quality assurance measures so that all staff and volunteers know about and follow our policies, procedures, and behaviour codes confidently and competently
recruiting and selecting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
recording, storing, and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance [more information about this is available from the Information Commissioner's Office: ico.org.uk/for-organisations)
sharing information about safeguarding and good practice with children and their families
making sure that children and their families know where to go for help if they have a concern
using our safeguarding procedures to share concerns and relevant information with agencies who need to know, and involving children and families appropriately
using our procedures to manage any allegations against staff and volunteers appropriately. These apply to staff who supervise children when they are both in and out of the workplace.
ensuring that we have effective complaints and whistleblowing measures in place
ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment for our children, staff, and volunteers, by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance
building a safeguarding culture where staff and volunteers, children, and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns and providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support, training, and quality assurance measures so that all staff and volunteers know about and follow our policies, procedures, and behaviour codes confidently and competently
recruiting and selecting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
recording, storing, and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance [more information about this is available from the Information Commissioner's Office: ico.org.uk/for-organisations)
sharing information about safeguarding and good practice with children and their families
making sure that children and their families know where to go for help if they have a concern
using our safeguarding procedures to share concerns and relevant information with agencies who need to know, and involving children and families appropriately
using our procedures to manage any allegations against staff and volunteers appropriately. These apply to staff who supervise children when they are both in and out of the workplace.
ensuring that we have effective complaints and whistleblowing measures in place
ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment for our children, staff, and volunteers, by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance
building a safeguarding culture where staff and volunteers, children, and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns.
B. Adult Safeguarding Policy
Safeguarding means protecting an adult's right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect. Each local authority has a multi-agency Safeguarding Adult Board (SAB) to oversee the delivery of effective adult safeguarding within the borough, and a designated safeguarding adults team based in Adult Social Services.
Many women in the Happy Baby Community will have experienced trauma and abuse in the past, although most manage their day to day lives without requiring statutory intervention and support by a local authority for their physical or mental health needs. Where women do have a disability AND are unable to communicate their needs and look after themselves this Safeguarding Policy will apply. See HB Document 2 Dealing with disclosures and concerns about a child or an adult.
The purpose of this policy statement is:
to protect women who receive Happy Baby Community Services and are 'vulnerable adults' from harm
to provide staff and volunteers, as well as our community members and their families, with the overarching principles that guide our approach to safeguard 'vulnerable adults'
to promote a culture of learning within Happy Baby Community and ensure our community stays informed about emerging types of adult safeguarding and uses reports in the public domain and 'lessons learnt' from safeguarding adult reviews (SARS) and their relevance to the Happy Baby Community, to raise awareness and use in training sessions
Legal framework
This policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect adults who are deemed 'vulnerable' as defined in the Care Act 2014. It recognises recent changes in legislation in the Domestic Abuse Act, in particular voyeurism and coercive control. The Happy Baby Community also has a duty of care to fulfil its responsibilities under PREVENT and to share and report concerns about counter- terrorism with other organisations. See HB Document 13: Policy to Support the Prevention of Terrorism.
Multi-agency working
Multi-agency working is key to early and effective identification of risk, improved information sharing, joint decision making and coordinated action. The main statutory partners are the local authority and the police. There are also partners in health settings and the clinical commissioning group for the relevant geographic area.
The Happy Baby Community will refer any adult safeguarding concerns to the relevant local authority safeguarding team through their 'front door' service unless the person is in imminent danger when it should be reported to the police. The Happy Baby Community Safeguarding Lead will have the relevant contact information for Safeguarding leads in each of the boroughs where Happy Baby community groups meet.
Vulnerable Adults
The Care Act defines a vulnerable adult as A person who is:
i) Aged 18 or over and
ii) Is, or may need community care services because of a disability (mental or other}, age or illness and is someone who could be unable to look after themselves, or protect themselves from harm or exploitation (see Mental Capacity Act below)
Mental Capacity Act
The Mental Capacity Act 2005 provides a legal framework for acting and making decisions on behalf of adults who lack the capacity to make specific decisions for themselves. Each decision and the processes which a person uses in their decision-making must be carefully examined to determine whether or not the person lacks capacity.
The five principles are outlined in section 1 of the ct. These are designed to protect people who lack capacity and also to maximise their ability to make decisions, or to participate in decision making, as far as they are able to do so.
There are 5 key principles:
a presumption of capacity must be assumed
individuals are to be supported to make decision
individuals have a right to make what may seem unwise decisions
all decisions must be based on protecting an individual's best interests
decisions must be the least restrictive to an individual's rights and freedom
A person has capacity when they are able to demonstrate they understand the specific decision to be made, take account of all the relevant information, and weigh up in the balance its’ relevance, and can communicate their decision.
A person lacks capacity if they are unable to make a decision because they have some form of mental or other disability, to do all the above and make an informed decision.
The disability may be either temporary or permanent and could be caused by:
dementia
brain injury
a stroke
alcohol or drug misuse
the side-effect of medical treatment
any other illness or disability
We are aware that although many women do not lack capacity to make decisions about their care and support needs, they may still be at risk of exploitation and abuse.
We believe that:
'vulnerable adults' should never experience abuse of any kind
we have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all 'vulnerable adults' to keep them safe
We will seek to keep 'vulnerable adults' safe by:
valuing, listening to and respecting community members who may be considered ‘vulnerable’ under the Care Act
take account of their wishes and preferences and implementing 'Making Safeguarding Personal' to ensure the vulnerable adults views stay at the centre of decision making.
appointing a nominated safeguarding lead and a lead trustee/board member for safeguarding
adopting safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures, and code of conduct for staff and volunteers
providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support, training, and quality assurance measures so that all staff and volunteers know about and follow our policies, procedures, and behaviour codes confidently and competently
recruiting and selecting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made recording, storing, and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance [more information about this is available from the Information Commissioner's Office: ico.org.uk/for-organisation sharing information about safeguarding and good practice with 'vulnerable adults' and their families
making sure that 'vulnerable adults' and their families know where to go for help if they have a concern
using our safeguarding procedures to share concerns and relevant information with agencies who need to know, and involving 'vulnerable adults' and their families appropriately
using our procedures to manage any allegations against staff and volunteers
ensuring that we have effective complaints and whistleblowing measures in place
ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment for community members including any who would be considered a 'vulnerable adult', staff and volunteers, by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance
building a safeguarding culture where staff and volunteers, all community members including women who would be considered as a 'vulnerable adult' and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns.
Categories of Abuse
Abuse includes:
Physical abuse - including assault hitting, slapping, pushing, misuse of medication, restraint, or inappropriate physical sanctions.
Sexual abuse - including rape and sexual assault or sexual acts to which the adult has not consented or was pressured into consenting.
Modern Slavery is the movement & control of people for the purpose of exploitation. Illegal Exploitation of people for personal/ commercial gain. Victims trapped in servitude because they were deceived or coerced into criminal activities, domestic servitude, forced labour, sexual exploitation, and other forms of exploitation.
Exploitation for Terrorism- PREVENT- is when a person is exploited and radicalised for someone else's political, faith or ideological gain and this leads to potential or actual harm to others and criminal offences.
Domestic Violence - Domestic violence and abuse is officially classified as "any incident of threatening behaviours, violence or abuse between adults who are or have been in a relationship together, or between family members, regardless of gender or sexuality". It includes emotional abuse and the perpetrator using coercive control.
Psychological abuse - including emotional abuse, threats of harm or abandonment, deprivation of contact, humiliation, blaming, controlling, intimidation, coercion, harassment, verbal abuse, isolation, or unreasonable and unjustified withdrawal of services.
Financial or material abuse - including theft, fraud, exploitation, coercion in relation to an adult's financial affairs or arrangements, including in connection with wills, property inheritance or financial transactions, or the misuse or misappropriation of property, possessions, or benefits.
Neglect and acts of omission - including ignoring medical or physical care needs, failure to provide access to appropriate health, care and support or educational services, the withholding of the necessities of life, such as medication, adequate nutrition, and heating.
Self-Neglect - this covers a wide range of behaviour neglecting to care for one's personal hygiene, health or surrounding and includes behaviour such as hoarding. It is important to consider capacity when self-neglect is suspected. Also consider how it may impact on other family members and whether this gives rise to a safeguarding concern.
Discriminatory abuse - including discrimination on grounds of race, gender and gender identity, disability, sexual orientation, religion, and other forms of harassment, slurs, or similar treatment.
Organisational abuse - is neglect and poor care practice within an organisation, which could include lack of respect shown to person, poor professional practice, controlling relationships, failure to ensure privacy, insufficient account taken of views of adults, inappropriate restraint.
Six Principles
These are the 6 principles that the Care Act 2014 sets out for Safeguarding Adults:
Empowerment People are supported and encouraged to make their own decisions and informed consent
Prevention It is better to act before harm occurs
Proportionality The least intrusive response appropriate to the risk presented
Protection Support and representation for those in greatest need
Partnership Services offer local solutions through working closely with their communities
Accountability and transparency in delivering safeguarding training
Decision Making
Has the adult given consent to a safeguarding referral and to enquiries being undertaken?
Consent is not required if there is a risk to public protection, other adults with care and support needs, or children are at risk.
Have the vulnerable adults’ views and wishes been listened to and taken account of in making decisions (Making Safeguarding Personal)
Is the adult able to protect themselves at a time when a decision needs to be made, or an action to protect needs to be made? Does the adult lack mental capacity?
Is there evidence of, or concern about, coercion, threats, or intimidation?
What is the impact on the adult’s health, independence, and wellbeing?
Is there indication that the abuse could be repeated, or even escalate?
Consider the seriousness of the harm caused, or the potential for serious harm.
Is the adult able to make a decision about raising the safeguarding concern? (consider coercion and control)
How will the Child and Adult Safeguarding Policies be implemented?
All staff and volunteers are given a copy of the Safeguarding Policy and the Code of Conduct at recruitment and must send an email to say they have received and read the documents.
Regular training is provided for staff and volunteers as a minimum every two years and bitesize sessions during the course of the year focussing on relevant subjects and themes.
Contact details
Nominated child and adult safeguarding lead Name: Deborah Wright
Phone/email: 07913 228 179 safeguarding@happybabycommunity.org
Trustee/Senior lead for child and adult safeguarding Name: Sarah Hughes
Phone/email: sarah.hughes088@gmail.com NSPCC Helpline 0808 800 5000
This policy statement came into force on 01.02.2019
Updated 17.4.2024 by Deborah Wright Date of review at Board 23.4.2024
To be next reviewed in April 2025