CHILD PROTECTION
Unite Stage Academy UK
Safeguarding Children Policy and Procedures - for the academic year
Signed by all staff and Volunteers.
Unite Stage Academy UK acknowledges its responsibility to safeguard the welfare of every child and young person who has been entrusted to its care and is committed to working to provide a safe environment for all members. A child or young person is anyone under the age of 18 engaged in any activity.
The key principle of the Safeguarding Children Policy are that:
The child’s welfare is, and must always be the paramount consideration.
All children and young people have a right to be protected from abuse regardless of their age, gender, disability, race, sexual orientation, faith or belief.
All suspicions and allegations of abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately
Working in partnership with other organizations, children and young people and their parents/carers is essential
We acknowledge that every child or person who participates in singing/dance/drama should be able to take part in an enjoyable and safe environment and be protected from poor practice and abuse. Unite Stage Academy UK recognizes that this is the responsibility of every adult involved in our school.
Unite Stage Academy UK has a role to play in safeguarding the welfare of all children and young people by protecting them from physical, sexual or emotional harm and from neglect or bullying. It is noted and accepted that the Safeguarding Children Policy and Procedures apply to everyone involved with Unite Stage Academy UK, whether in a paid or voluntary capacity.
We endorse and adopt Responsible Recruitment guidelines for recruiting new teachers and volunteers and we will:
Specify what the role is and what tasks it involves
Request identification documents, an Enhanced DBS Disclosure and Public Liability Insurance proof.
As a minimum, we will meet and chat with the applicant(s) as a means of interview before appointing them
All current Unite Stage Academy UK members who are regularly caring for, supervising, training or being in sole charge of children and young people will be required to provide evidence of an Enhanced DBS Disclosure
If there are concerns regarding the appropriateness of an individual who is already involved or who has approached us to become part of Unite Stage Academy UK guidance will be sought from appropriate governing bodies including Local Authorities, It is noted and accepted that Unite Stage Academy UK will consider the relevance and significance of the information obtained via the Enhanced DBS Disclosure and that all decisions will be made in the best interests of children and young people.
It is accepted that Unite Stage Academy UK aims to prevent people with a history of relevant and significant offending from having contact with children or young people and the opportunity to influence policies or practice with children or young people. This is to prevent direct sexual or physical harm to children and to minimise the risk of ‘grooming’ within singing/dance/drama.
Unite Stage Academy UK has appointed a Welfare Officer in line with Safeguarding requirements and required completion of UK’s Safeguarding and Protecting Children course. The Welfare Officer is the first point of contact for all members regarding concerns about the welfare of any child or young person. The Welfare Officer will be familiar with the procedures for referring any concerns, and Please refer to the school’s Principal.
We acknowledge and endorse the identification of bullying as a category of abuse. Bullying of any kind is not acceptable at our club. If bullying does occur, all participants or parents/carers should be able to tell and know that incidents will be dealt with promptly. Incidents need to be reported to the club Welfare Officer in cases of serious bullying the appropriate disciplinary procedures will be put into place.
Reporting your concerns about the welfare of a child or young person. Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility if you are worried about a child it is important that you report your concerns-no action is not an option.
If you are worried about a child then you need to report your concerns to Unite Stage Academy UKWelfare Officer (Miss Maria)
If the issue is one of poor practice Unite Stage Academy UKWelfare Officer will either:
− Deal with the matter themselves or
− Seek advice through the appropriate channels
If the concern is more serious-possible child abuse, where possible, contact the Local Authority first, then immediately contact the Police or Children’s Services. If the child needs immediate medical treatment take them to a hospital or call an ambulance and tell them there is a child protection concern. Let the club Welfare Officer know what action you have taken, they, in turn, will inform the appropriate governing bodies. IIf at any time you are not able to contact the Welfare Officer or the matter is clearly serious then you can either:
− Contact the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board-01202 458873
− Contact the Police- 01202 222222
- Call the NSPCC 24 hour helpline for advice 0808 800 500
If anyone requires checking Unite Stage Academy UK, DBS, First aid certificates and insurance policies, of any of our Faculty members, please email us here