We take Safeguarding and the protection of children very seriously

Godalming BJJ Safeguarding and protection of Children policy

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1. Purpose

This policy sets out our goals and approach to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults. It applies to all aspects of our work and to everyone working / volunteering for us at Godalming BJJ.
 

2. Core Principles
 

·         children and students always

·         will not ignore and will be quick to take action

·         accountability and transparency

This means that everything we do will be in the interests of children and young people.
 

3. Definitions
 

·         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

·         protecting the rights of children to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect

 

4. Instructors / Assistants
 

All our roles require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) or Enhanced DBS check.

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5. Expectations of Instructors and Assistants

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Everyone working for Godalming BJJ has a responsibility to familiarise themselves with this safeguarding policy and the procedures that go with it. They must maintain a proper focus on the safety and welfare of children and vulnerable adults in all aspects of their work.

Anyone who works for us must inform the person in charge if they or any adult living in their household become(s) the subject of an allegation of abuse against a child or vulnerable adult or a police enquiry, irrespective of the nature of that enquiry.

Any allegations of misconduct towards children and/or vulnerable adults by those working for us will be managed by the appointed welfare.

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6. Safeguarding training

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We are committed to ensuring that everyone who works for us understands their safeguarding responsibilities and keeps their knowledge up to date.

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7. Acting on safeguarding concerns

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No one working for us should investigate concerns about individual children or vulnerable adults who are or may be being abused or who are at risk. However, this does not mean that we should do nothing when we learn of a concern. We all have a responsibility to make sure that concerns about children and vulnerable adults are passed to the agency that can help them without delay.

If we are concerned that a child or vulnerable adult is at risk of being abused or neglected, we will not ignore the suspicions and will not assume that someone else will take action to protect that person.

Concerns about children will be referred to the relevant children’s social care department of the local authority where the child lives.

Anyone working for us who has concerns about the behaviour of a colleague will raise this with the appointed officer or to the proper authorities.

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8. Learning and improving

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We are determined to keep improving our knowledge and understanding of how best to protect the children in our care. We will review our own practice regularly to check that we are placing the right emphasis on safeguarding in our work.

We will carry out in-depth reviews of our actions in cases where children are found to require our safeguarding actions. The main purpose of the reviews is to learn lessons about when our systems need to improve to protect children better in future. We will also promote a culture in which we are able to highlight and review near misses to learn and improve our practice.