Safeguarding policy
What is safeguarding?
Safeguarding is the approach that we as an organisation take to ensure
that anyone using our services is safe. Safeguarding means putting
processes in place to ensure that children or vulnerable adults are not
abused in any way, including verbally or physically.
West Lakeland Dog Training Club needs to ensure that the way we
engage with children and vulnerable adults keeps them safe and does
not place them at risk of harm. It is also the responsibility of the
organisation to ensure that any employees or volunteers who come into
contact with children and vulnerable adults who use our services are
protected and understand the procedures to follow if there are any
concerns. As a Kennel Club registered club we operate under their
regulations and guidance and our Safeguarding and Child protection
policy has been created using their wider policies and best practice. As a
solely volunteer organisation we will sometimes need to refer any
complex issues to them as our governing body. The full documents can
be found at: https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/policies/safeguarding-
policy/
We will:
design and undertake all activities in a way that protects children
and vulnerable adults from any risk of harm when using our
services
follow up reports on safeguarding concerns promptly
share concerns with relevant authorities who need to know, and
involve children, vulnerable adults, parents, families, and
guardians/carers as appropriate
We aim for openness and encourage any member to speak out about
any safeguarding concerns they may have. We will do our best to deal
with any issues, confidentially, seeking external advice if necessary.
However claims should never be made maliciously and care will be
taken to ensure that is not the case before any action is taken by the
club.
The law recognises that in some circumstances it may be appropriate for
you to report your concerns to an external body. If you are concerned
that a child or vulnerable adult may be at risk of harm, please contact
your local social care team.
Child protection policy
This policy makes provision for children and young people to ensure
that:
the welfare of the child is paramount
all children have the right to protection from abuse
all suspicions and allegations of abuse and poor practice will be
taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately
Club trainers/volunteers are not trained to deal with situations of
abuse or to decide if abuse has occurred, however, all have a
responsibility to report concerns to The Kennel Club
A child is defined as a person under the age of 18 (The Children Act
1989).
Good Practice Guidelines
Being respectful and encouraging
Treating all young people equally, and with respect and dignity
Always working in an open environment (e.g. avoiding private or
unobserved situations and encouraging open communication with
no secrets)
Maintaining a safe and appropriate distance with children (e.g., it is
not appropriate to have an intimate relationship with a child)
Building balanced relationships based on mutual trust which
empowers children to share in the decision-making process
Allow all staff/volunteers to make informed and confident responses to
specific child protection issues
Securing parental consent in writing to act in loco parentis, if the
need arises to administer emergency first aid and/or other medical
treatment
Requesting written parental consent if club officials are required to
transport young people in their cars
Promote and encourage a supporting environment for children and
young people participating in Kennel Club regulated events and
activities.
Making the events fun, enjoyable and promoting fair play
Always putting the welfare of each young person first, before
winning or achieving goals
Giving enthusiastic and constructive feedback rather than negative
criticism
Being mindful of the impact of words, comments and actions (e.g.
particularly at ringside).
Being aware of different experience levels and appropriate
encouragement rather than rebuke or reprimand
Practices never to be sanctioned
The following should never be sanctioned. You should never:
engage in rough, physical or sexually provocative games.
share a room with a child
allow or engage in any form of inappropriate touching
allow children to use inappropriate language unchallenged
make sexually suggestive comments to a child, even in fun
reduce a child to tears as a form of control
fail to act upon and record any allegations made by a child
do things of a personal nature for children that they can do for
themselves
invite or allow children to stay with you at your home unsupervised
Incidents that must be reported/recorded
If any of the following occur you should report this immediately and
record the incident. You should also ensure the parents of the child are
informed:
if you accidentally hurt a child
if he/she seems distressed in any manner
if a child misunderstands or misinterprets something you have
done
Action if bullying is suspected
Action to help the victim and prevent bullying
Take all signs of bullying very seriously
This policy is adopted and adapted with the kind permission from the sample policy provided
by the NSPCC (Child Protection in Sport Unit)