Safeguarding

Parish Safeguarding Policy Statement

Parish of Ss Peter & Paul Borden

This parochial church council has adopted the safeguarding policies and procedures of the Church of England. In particular we are committed to:

• the safeguarding of all children, young people and vulnerable adults
• carefully selecting and training all volunteer staff who might become responsible for children or vulnerable adults, using the Disclosure and Barring Service amongst other tools, to check their suitability
• responding without delay to every complaint made which suggests that an adult, child or young person may have been harmed
• cooperating fully with the police, local authority and any other appropriate statutory body in any investigation
• will follow the procedures and guidance contained within “Protecting All Gods Children” and the Diocesan Safeguarding Children guidelines.
• extending pastoral care to those known to have offended against children or vulnerable adults whilst ensuring that children and vulnerable adults are protected from them
• review this policy annually
• further information can be found on the canterbury diocese website at https://www.canterburydiocese.org/safeguarding/

We have temporarily appointed   

Fr Robert Lane as our safeguarding co-ordinator

and you can contact him on 01795 487644

or you may contact our Church Warden - Mrs Kathy Collins on 01795 428145

Approved by the Parochial Church Council on 22^nd April 2018

If you have any concerns about a vulnerable child or adult please speak to one of the named people above

Any child wishing to talk about a problem can contact Childline on 0800 1111

Any parent or carer wishing to talk about parenting problems can contact Family Lives on 0808 800 2222

The Parish Safeguarding Coordinators are available to speak with adults or children.

‘Safeguarding Children is everyone’s responsibility’

All children and young people that attend Ss Peter & Paul Church, wherever they are, whoever they are with, whatever they are doing, have the right to protection from neglect, physical, emotional and sexual abuse.

All members of the community have a responsibility for the protection of children and reporting concerns about a child’s welfare or safety.

Ss Peter & Paul Church ensures statutory requirements concerning Disclosure and Barring Service checks are met, maintains an up to date Safeguarding policy and procedures, and provides safeguarding training to all volunteers.

All Ss Peter & Paul Sunday School leaders who are responsible for the children, young people and their families will:

• Have read the Safeguarding Policy
• Know their role and responsibilities within the team
• Know how to communicate and record concern

Therefore, all children and young people in Ss Peter & Paul Church will be:

• Be treated with respect
• Be listened to and taken seriously
• Be given time to do things for themselves, to understand and be understood
• Have their privacy respected at all times and in all places
• Have a right to confidentiality – all information about them will be treated carefully, be kept safe and only shared with those people who need to know.

The wellbeing of a child is the paramount consideration in all circumstances.