Safeguarding Policy

Policy on Protecting Children and Vulnerable Adults

This is the Protecting Children and Vulnerable Adults Policy for Meeting Centres Scotland.

Policies support staff, associates, volunteers, individuals, family members and carers participating in activities, events and projects facilitated by Meeting Centres Scotland.

We believe that everyone can contribute to their community and to society if they have the right encouragement and support. Everyone’s experience and ideas matter. Some people may need more support to participate safely.

We do not describe people as vulnerable. They may have characteristics or are in situations that may make them more at risk of harm but characteristics such as age, gender and disability in themselves do not make someone vulnerable.

Context

In the course of its work, Meeting Centres Scotland comes into contact with people who are defined as vulnerable by the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007 in several ways.
An adult at risk of harm is a person (aged 16 years or over) who:
is unable to safeguard their own well-being, property, rights or other interests 
is at risk of harm, and 
because they are affected by disability, mental disorder, illness or physical or mental infirmity, is more vulnerable to being harmed than adults who are not so affected.
A Child is a person who has not yet reached their 16th birthday.
Meeting Centres Scotland does not deliver direct care services to children or young people. However, we may sometimes come into contact with children and young people who are vulnerable. We are also aware that children and young people may be involved in any projects we work alongside, where the focus is an activity or service for adults or a local community.
As most of our work is providing development support to groups and organisations which are in touch with vulnerable people it does not come into the scope of “regulated work” as defined by the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007.

Meeting Centres Scotland takes advice on the arrangements for protection and supporting vulnerable people, including determining if a post would be carrying out regulated work or if an applicant for a paid or volunteer post needs to join the PVG Scheme.

We are also aware that vulnerable people may be involved in projects we work alongside, including those which are not explicitly targeted at people with a known vulnerability.

Our Practice

The care and protection of vulnerable people is one of the key values and principles that underpin our practice as an organisation.

Across all our activities, we work in ways that promote the rights of all and reflect the values, principles and good practice that underpin protecting the safety and wellbeing of people, especially vulnerable people.

All individuals who come into contact with Meeting Centres Scotland will be treated with dignity, respect, equality and fairness and will be communicated with in a manner that that ensures their inclusion, supports understanding and participation and respects and retains their dignity as follows:

We build in good practice to the work we do with groups and projects, to minimise risks of harm to the people we work alongside.
Many projects have a significant element of peer support.
Vulnerable people take part in events and similar activities alongside people in other circumstances.
Staff and sessional workers work alongside individuals or small groups of vulnerable people in situations such as focus groups, planning and organising events and when supporting service user involvement and similar work.
We ensure that staff and sessional workers have the necessary communication skills (verbal and non-verbal) to support vulnerable people and understand the barriers to communication that can arise for individuals who may have sensory, physical or cognitive issues such as dementia.
There are volunteer roles in projects where Meeting Centres Scotland takes responsibility for supporting the volunteers in specific tasks. These volunteers may themselves be vulnerable people who are gaining skills through volunteering.
When we do work in situations that come within the scope of the PVG Scheme we will comply with these procedures and standards of the Scheme. We continue to check out, on a project by project basis, whether we need to have staff registered on the scheme.
Meeting Centres Scotland will provide a safe, welcoming and person centred environment within our groups and within our project work and work in a safe manner that is consistent with all relevant legislation and by carrying out required risk assessments as required by our Health and Safety Policy.

Scope of this Policy

This policy applies to the directors and trustees, employed and sessional workers and volunteers who work with us.

Staff, Volunteers and Sessional Workers

Meeting Centres Scotland aims to ensure that any vulnerable people – vulnerable adults, children, or young people – are protected and kept safe from harm while they are with staff, associates and volunteers in this organisation.

In order to achieve this we will ensure our staff, sessional workers and volunteers are carefully selected, screened, trained and supervised. Job descriptions will indicate if the post holder will require to join the PVG Scheme.

Selection

As part of a safe recruitment process

All applicants to our organisation will complete an application form, or will provide equivalent information about their previous roles and experience.  
Short listed applicants for staff posts and sessional work will be asked to attend interview.  
Short listed applicants will be asked to provide references and these will always be taken up prior to confirmation of an appointment.  
Volunteers and sessional workers will also be asked to provide references or to join the PVG Scheme as appropriate.

Screening

Where relevant to the post, appointments will be conditional upon Protection of Vulnerable Groups membership or other appropriate disclosure and checks. Disclosures will be requested prior to the applicant taking up post or role.  
All staff may be asked to join the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Scheme if the work they are doing comes within its scope. Failure to join the PVG scheme when asked to do so is Gross Misconduct.

Training

The successful applicant will receive induction training, which will give an overview of the organisation and ensure they know its purpose, values, services and structure.  
Relevant training and support will be provided on an on-going basis, and will cover information about their role, and opportunities for practising the range of skills needed for the work.  
Training on specific areas such as health and safety procedures, confidentiality, roles and responsibilities in protecting children, young people and vulnerable adults from harm and abuse, identifying and reporting abuse or concerns about someone being at risk of harm, will be given as a priority to new staff, associates and volunteers. Need for further training will be regularly reviewed at team meetings and performance reviews.

Supervision

All staff, sessional workers and volunteers will have a designated supervisor who will provide regular feedback and support.
Supervision and planning for all projects will include reviewing and identifying ways in which the people taking part in that specific project may be vulnerable and the potential risks to their wellbeing in a wider sense, and the role which Meeting Centres Scotland can and should take to protect and support people’s wellbeing.
Every member of staff, sessional worker and volunteer will attend an annual review, where their performance, skills, motivation and expectations will be discussed. Annual reviews will be minuted and copies made available to the person.
The role of sessional workers and volunteers will be reviewed regularly: the timing of this will reflect the circumstances of the projects on which they are working.

Work with projects

Many of the projects Meeting Centres Scotland supports bring together people who are vulnerable to harm because of a disability or illness, or frailty for older people, or as a consequence of their life experience. We recognise that not every person who is older or disabled will experience harm, but their circumstances can increase the risk of them being harmed.

The harm can include bullying, harassment, physical harm, emotional harm, neglect, financial abuse, and more. It also includes situations where people may harm themselves.

We are also aware of potential risks to children and others in the wider family or community, even when the project is focused on adults.

Planning work with projects

Part of planning for each project includes identifying any risks to participants’ well-being or safety. Staff should be aware of the national sources of information, including the Act against Harm website and resources: www.actagainstharm.org.uk 
When planning work that will involve people with dementia, Meeting Centres Scotland will be guided by the “Core Principles for Involving People with Dementia in Research” (Scottish Dementia Working Group Research Sub-Group 2013).  
For each project where this is relevant, the member of staff with lead responsibility should be aware of local policies, sources of advice and contacts they can use if they are concerned about someone’s wellbeing at any point. 
Staff should also be aware of local sources of information and help, which we can encourage people in this project to use. Examples include advocacy services, domestic abuse services, ethnic minority, and LGBT projects.

Delivering community development support

We include considering the well-being and safety of participants in projects as an integral part of routine project monitoring and planning.
We include developing staff’s knowledge and confidence around these aspects of the work as an integral part of work planning, professional development and supervision.
We are aware that working alongside people who are vulnerable can be distressing or challenging for staff, especially if it reminds them of situations affecting them or their families.
All staff, volunteers and associates should contact the Chief Executive of Meeting Centres Scotland if they have any concern about a vulnerable adult.
If the Chief Executive is not available and they need to talk a situation over with someone, they should contact the Meeting Centres Scotland board member with lead responsibility for this area.
If the situation they are concerned about involves an adult and needs to be dealt with quickly, they should contact the adult protection team in that local authority.
Staff, volunteers and associates should contact the Chief Executive and the child protection team for that local authority if they have concerns about the safety or wellbeing of a child or young person.

Publications and dissemination

We know that many of our publications and other material will be read and used by people who are vulnerable.
We will aim to ensure that all our publications and other materials are written in language that is supportive of people with vulnerability.
We will aim to ensure that, where relevant, our material contains links to places where people can get additional information and advice, which they can follow up on if and when they want to do so.
Dissemination of material from projects will include routes that are likely to reach vulnerable people.

Implementation and monitoring

Meeting Centres Scotland will ensure that all staff, volunteers and associates involved in recruitment, training and supervision are aware of this policy and have received appropriate training and support to ensure its full implementation.
Reports to the Board on projects will include the approach being taken to keep people safe.
The board members identified as the lead for each area of our work will have an understanding of the issues around safety of vulnerable people and for the people working alongside them.
The Board keeps the policy under review to ensure that we reflect any changes in the law and in good practice and the experience we gain through implementing the policy.
Any changes in the law have immediate effect.
The policy will be reviewed every 2 years.

Supporting policies

Protecting Lone Workers Policy
Health and Safety Policy
Human Rights Policy
Diversity and Equality Policy
Volunteer Policy

Reference

Responsibilities

Overall responsibility for Protecting Children and Vulnerable Adults is: Graham Galloway

Day to day responsibility for Protecting Children and Vulnerable Adults is: All staff, associates, and volunteers.

Confirmed by the Board: January 2024. Next Review Date: January 2026