CHILD
PROTECTION POLICY
OF
BOURNVILLE HOCKEY CLUB
INTRODUCTION
This
policy aims to address two aspects of child protection:
·
Ensuring, as far as is
possible, that all staff representing
·
Ensuring that all staff know
how to respond when a child protection issue arises.
1. CONTENTS
1.
Contents
2.
The Designated Officer for Child
Protection
3.
Selection and Deployment of Staff
4.
Staff Behaviour
5.
Staff Development
6.
Admission Procedures
7.
Child Protection Procedures
8.
Responding to a Child Protection Issue
9.
Model Code of Conduct
2. THE
DESIGNATED OFFICER FOR CHILD
PROTECTION
2.1
The designated officer for
3. SELECTION
AND DEPLOYMENT OF STAFF
Roles
3.1
Bournville Hockey Club
Youth Academy
will give all
paid staff and volunteers clear roles.
The abuse of children is most easily concealed where there is
confusion
amongst adults over roles, responsibilities and accountability. All paid staff will receive a job description
and volunteers will also receive a written outline of what is expected
of
them. All job descriptions will spell
out clearly the staff member’s responsibilities for the protection of
children.
3.2
Job descriptions will contain a
written description of the work the staff member is expected to do and
policy
guidelines they must follow, to include:
·
The person to whom they
will be accountable for their work, line manager or supervisor;
·
The person(s) whose work
they will supervise, if any;
·
A description of the
work they will undertake with children, with reference to any relevant
guidelines produced by (organisation) for safeguarding the welfare of
those
Recruitment
and selection
3.5
In its recruitment and selection
procedures for all paid or voluntary staff,
3.6
The Recruitment and Selection Procedure
will be followed for all paid and voluntary staff.
This will involve obtaining criminal record
checks for all paid and volunteer staff who have unsupervised
access to
children and young people In the process of recruiting and selecting
staff.
4.
STAFF BEHAVIOUR
4.1
This code of conduct sets out the
standards expected of
·
Staff must treat
children with respect
·
Staff must not make
racist or sexist remarks
·
Staff must take care
not to show favouritism
·
It is the
responsibility of staff to prevent the abuse of younger or weaker
children by
older or stronger children through bullying, cruel or humiliating
initiation
rituals, etc.
5. STAFF
DEVELOPMENT
5.1
All
paid and volunteer staff who have
unsupervised access
to children and young people will be provided with training on child
protection.
6.
ADMISSION PROCEDURES
6.1
Where
children are expected to attend sessions regularly it is necessary for
·
keep a register of
names, addresses, next of kin and contact addresses and telephone
numbers for
emergencies;
·
Give parents, and
where appropriate older children, a copy of a written statement which
specifies
the action which Bournville
Hockey Club Youth Academy will take in the event of
a child becoming ill or being
injured and which indicates that any information which Bournville Hockey Club
Youth Academy receives which
suggests that a child has been abused will be passed on to the Social
Services
Department and/or the Police, and
·
7.
CHILD PROTECTION
PROCEDURES
7.1
Child protection is not just about
responding to specific allegations or incidents, it is also about the
suitability of staff to work with children.
8.
RESPONDING TO A
CHILD
PROTECTION ISSUE
8.1
A child protection issue may come
to the notice of a staff member in several ways:
·
A child may make a
direct allegation
·
A child may make a
comment which seems to suggest abuse, or
·
A child may have
bruises or marks, or
·
Something about a
child’s behaviour may suggest the possibility of abuse, or
·
Something about the behaviour
of a staff member may suggest that he/she is not a suitable person to
care for
children.
8.2
All child protection concerns will
be reported to the Social Services Department without delay. There is a designated officer to advise staff
on these issues (see above) who will contact the Social Services
Department.
In all
cases
8.3
The staff member should tell the
person in charge about her/his concerns.
This part of the procedure should always make allowance for the
possibility that an allegation may be made about a member of staff,
including
the person in charge.
8.4
All child protection concerns must
be passed on to the Social Services Department without delay.
8.5
If the person in charge does not
feel that there is any cause for concern but the staff member
disagrees, the
concerns must be passed on to the Social Services Department. Child protection is the individual
responsibility of each person working with children.
Where any
person is concerned about a child protection
issue, the concern must be passed on unless there are clear reasons not
to do
so.
8.6
The staff member should write down
what the child said or the details of any significant marks or
behaviour which
were observed, noting any names, dates and times. A
note should also be made of any witnesses;
did anyone else hear what the child said, see the marks or notice the
behaviour? This should be done while the
details are still fresh in the staff member’s mind.
The procedure should stress that staff must
write down exactly what the child said, not what they think he/she
meant. Of course they may want to pass
this on to
Social Services as well, but they must start with what the child said.
8.7
The procedure will stress the need
to keep the focus of any action on the welfare of the child as a
possible
victim of abuse.
If a
child makes a direct allegation
8.8
The staff member must not promise
to keep the allegation a secret. When an
abusive or exploitative relationship exists, the agency cannot agree to
keep
this secret.
8.9
The staff member should let the
child speak but should not question him/her.
The basic rule is to ask only questions which are necessary to
clarify
whether the child is alleging that abuse has taken place.
If at any time it becomes clear that the
staff member has misunderstood the situation and that the child is not
alleging
that abuse has taken place, the situation should be re-assessed as it
may not
be appropriate to follow this procedure.
8.10
If the child is clearly alleging
abuse, the Social Services Department and/or the Police will interview
him/her
and any further questions must be left for them. This
does not mean that the staff member
should tell the child to say nothing more until the authorities arrive. Allow the child to speak for as long as
he/she wants to.
8.11
If a child makes a serious allegation
about an adult or about an older child, there is a reason and further
enquiries
should be made. Staff should always take
the child seriously, but this does not mean accepting everything the
child says
as a fact.
8.12
If the child makes a clear allegation
about a specific person, staff must not try to question that person
themselves.
If a
child’s comments seem to suggest
abuse
8.13
If the child seems to be suggesting
abuse, but it is not clear, staff should try to find a suitable time
and place
to talk to him/her, which will allow him/her to talk freely.
8.14
The staff member should listen
carefully, remembering that a young child may not have the vocabulary
to
explain clearly what it is that distresses him/her.
8.15
The staff member should let the child
speak and should ask questions only if they are necessary to clarify
whether
this is something which should be referred to Social Services. As soon as it becomes clear that the child is
alleging abuse, all further questions must be left to the interview by
the
Social Services Department and the Police.
8.16
Staff should not promise to keep
anything a secret until they know what it is.
When an abusive or exploitative relationship exists, the agency
cannot
agree to keep this secret.
8.17
This part of the procedure should
make allowances for the possibility that the child may make an
allegation about
a member of staff.
8.18
If a child makes a serious allegation
about an adult or about an older child, there is a reason and further
enquiries
should be made. Staff should always take
the child seriously, but this does not necessarily mean accepting
everything
that the child says as a fact.
8.19
If, as a result of what the child has
said, staff are suspicious about a
particular person,
they should not try to question him/her themselves.
If a
bruise or mark, or the child’s
behaviour, causes suspicion
8.20
There are a number of things, which
may raise questions in the mind of a member of staff; she/he may see
that a
child has bruises or other marks, or may notice something unusual in
the
child’s behaviour. Often these
observations could have several different explanations and staff may be
unsure
whether they should be concerned or not.
Staff are not expected to be experts
in
identifying child abuse.
8.21
It a staff member is concerned,
she/he should try to be clear in her/his own mind exactly what it is
that is
disturbing him/her.
8.22
It may be appropriate to ask the
child or the parent about a mark or about unusual behaviour. Suspicion may be aroused more by an evasive
or unconvincing answer than by the mark or behaviour itself.
8.23
If a staff member becomes suspicious,
she/he should note the names of anyone else who saw the mark,
behaviour, etc
which caused the concern.
8.24
If staff are
suspicious about a particular person, they must not try to question
him/her
themselves.
Unsuitable
staff
8.25
Questions about the suitability of a
staff member to work with children should not be limited to situations
in which
there is positive evidence of abuse. Other pointers include failure to
respond
appropriately to the needs of children, neglecting some children in
favour of
others and failure to respect the wishes of parents.
The agency should be clear about the standards
of care which it expects from its staff and about the result of failure
to meet
these standards.
8.26
If a staff member is felt to be
unsuitable to care for children, the agency should consider whether it
is
appropriate to discuss their concerns with the Social Services
Department.
8.27
If the agency decides that the
behaviour of a member of staff has harmed a child or placed a child at
risk of
harm, and as a result that person should no longer carry out childcare
duties
on behalf of the agency. It should
consider whether to refer the person’s name to the Secretary of State
for
possible inclusion on the Protection of Children Act list.
Co-operating
with child protection enquiries
8.28
Child protection enquiries are
carried out by the Social Services Department and the Police, usually
acting
together. Staff are
expected to co-operate with enquiries as far as possible within the
role of the
If
suspicion falls on a member of
8.29
If an allegation is made about a
member of staff, this will be referred to the Social Services
Department who
will make enquiries. This will be linked
to the disciplinary procedure.
8.30
If an allegation is made about a
member of staff or for any other reason suspicion falls on a member of
staff,
8.31
When suspicion falls on a staff
member, there are three possible outcomes:
·
It may be proved to
·
It may be proved to
·
The enquiries may be
inconclusive, leaving suspicion, but no proof about the staff member’s
behaviour.
The last
of these possibilities always raises sensitive
issues and it is important that the organisation has a policy about how
to deal
with it.
9
MODEL CODE OF PRACTICE
1.
It is the policy of
2.
Bournville
Hockey Club Youth Academy will minimise the
situations in which abuse of children
might occur.
3.
Any child using the services of
4.
Any child using the services of
5.
Any indication that a child may be
suffering from abuse will immediately trigger child protection
procedures. The procedures are consistent
with the good
practice guidelines of the Area Child Protection Committee.
6.
In recruiting staff, either
paid or voluntary, full-time or part-time,
7.
Checks will be made to ensure that all
the information provided by any potential member of staff of
8.
No member of staff will be appointed to
any position in
9.
All staff appointments to
10.
All paid and voluntary staff of
11.
The supervision of staff will be used as
a means of ensuring that the children using the services of
12.
Where staff occupy high risk posts or are
working in high risk settings or situations,
13.
Staff at all levels of Bournville Hockey Club
Youth Academy will be offered and
encouraged to undertake training in matters of child protection and in
appropriate circumstances this training will be compulsory.
14.
Bournville
Hockey Club Youth Academy will ensure that issues
of child protection receive
continuous attention and will regularly review the way that
Physical abuse
may involve hitting, shaking,
throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or
otherwise
causing physical harm to a child. It may be the result of a
deliberate
act, but could also be caused through the omission or failure to act to
protect.
Emotional abuse
is the persistent emotional
ill-treatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse
effects
on the child’s emotional development. It may involve making a
child
feel or believe that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or
valued only
insofar as they meet the needs of another person. Some level of
emotional
abuse is involved in all types of ill-treatment of a child, though it
may occur
alone.
Sexual abuse
involves forcing or enticing a child
or young person to take part in sexual activities, whether or not the
child is
aware of, or consents to, what is happening. It may involve
physical
contact, including rape or oral sex, or non-penetrative acts such as
fondling. Boys and girls can be sexually abused by males and/or
females,
and by other young people. It also includes non-contact
activities such
as involving children in watching or taking part in the making of
pornographic
material, or encouraging children to behave in inappropriate ways.
Neglect is the
persistent failure to meet a
child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in
the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. It
may
involve failing to provide adequate food, shelter and clothing, or
failing to
ensure that a child gets appropriate medical care or treatment.
Although
these signs do not necessarily indicate that a child has been
abused, they may help adults recognise that something is wrong. The
possibility
of abuse should be investigated if a child shows a number of these
symptoms, or
any of them to a marked degree:
Note: A
child may be subjected to a
combination of different kinds of abuse.
It is also possible that a child may show no outward signs and hide
what is
happening from everyone