In preparing this policy, Meredith's Mission have referred to guidance from the Charity Commission, NCVO and Working Together to Safeguard Children (DofE).

Meredith's Mission are committed to keeping children, families (named as Beneficiaries), staff and volunteers safe and to practice in a way that protects them. We will give equal priority to keeping children, families, staff, and volunteers safe regardless of their age, disability, gender, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation. Children and families, who come under our care are occasionally additionally vulnerable because of the impact of discrimination, previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues. Meredith's Mission   and our Trustees will promote an open and positive culture and ensure all involved feel able to report concerns, confident they will be heard and responded to.

Commitment to safeguarding.

The Charity aims to protect all its staff, volunteers and Beneficiaries from any act or behaviour of any member of staff or volunteer which, whether deliberately or unknowingly on the part of that member of staff or volunteer, gives rise to harm or ill treatment. Such harm or ill treatment includes abuse (physical, sexual, emotional, discriminatory, institutional, or organisational, financial, or material), neglect, or impairment of the health or development of the Charity’s staff, volunteers or Beneficiaries. The Charity also aims to promote the well-being and welfare of its Clients, Beneficiaries or Service Users.

Meredith's Mission  recognises that it has a duty to act on reports or suspicions of abuse or neglect. It adopts a “zero-tolerance” policy of abuse within the Charity. 

Meredith’s Mission will work in partnership with local and national agencies to put in place appropriate procedures for reporting, making referrals, and accessing training and specialist support, as and when required. The Charity will ensure that the Guidance is implemented by all within the Charity, and, for that purpose, it will ensure that its staff and volunteers have read and understood it.

Safe recruitment

Meredith's Mission will aim to protect its staff, volunteers, or Beneficiaries by

recruiting staff and volunteers using appropriate procedures, safeguards and checks. The

Charity will take up two references for all staff posts and volunteer roles prior to appointment.

The Charity will provide an induction programme for all new volunteers and staff, and

appropriate training and ongoing/refresher training for them at regular intervals, to enable all volunteers and staff to undertake their roles safely, effectively, and confidently. The induction will make it clear to them that they have an obligation to implement this Policy and to learn about protection issues and their related responsibilities.

Where the Charity should do so, it will use the Disclosure & Barring Service (“DBS”) checks to help it to assess suitability of a candidate for a particular volunteer or staff role which is treated by the DBS as Regulated Activity and is therefore subject to a barring list check. In relation to a post or role which is eligible for an enhanced DBS check, where it considers it appropriate it will carry out an enhanced DBS check. The Charity will assess any criminal record information that is disclosed in line with its data protection and equalities (treating ex-offenders fairly) policies.

Meredith's Mission  will regularly review its recruitment and other human resources

procedures in response to changes in legislation and systems external to the Charity, e.g. DBS and barring list checks.

Child Protection

Meredith's Mission  acknowledges the duty of care to safeguard and promote the

welfare of children and is committed to ensuring safeguarding practice reflects statutory

responsibilities, government guidance and complies with the best practice and BCP Council requirements.

The policy recognises that the welfare and interests of children are paramount in all

circumstances. It aims to ensure that regardless of age, gender, religion or beliefs, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation or socio-economic background, all children:

• Have a positive and enjoyable experience at Meredith’s Mission events in a safe and child centred environment.
• Are protected from abuse whilst participating in any activities provided by Meredith’s Mission or outside of the activity.

As part of our safeguarding policy Meredith's Mission will:

• Promote and prioritise the safety and wellbeing of children and young people.
• Ensure everyone understands their roles and responsibilities in respect of safeguarding and is provided with appropriate learning opportunities to recognise, identify, and respond to signs of abuse, neglect and other safeguarding concerns relating to children and young people.
• Ensure appropriate action is taken in the event of incidents/concerns of abuse and support provided to the individual/s who raise or disclose the concern.
• Ensure that confidential, detailed, and accurate records of all safeguarding concerns are maintained and securely stored.
• Prevent the employment / deployment of unsuitable individuals.
• Ensure robust safeguarding arrangements and procedures are in operation.

Volunteers

All Meredith’s Mission volunteer roles will be supported by a Lead Coordinator .

Volunteers will be treated equally alongside paid staff, and all volunteers will be offered the same opportunities for advancement, responsibility, training and gaining qualifications, and acknowledgement for their contribution to the Charity. In turn, volunteers will be required to always adhere to the applicable parts of the Code of Conduct (Staff and Volunteers) as a representative of the Charity.

Before they take up their role, they will each be given a clear description of the requirements and responsibilities of their role, and the member of staff or trustee recruiting them will discuss their role with them, to ensure that they understand what is expected of them. Any volunteer roles, which would be Regulated Activity if unsupervised, will be appropriately supervised in accordance with statutory guidance.

Safeguarding Officer

The Charity’s appointed Safeguarding Officer as from is Kate Hibberd and they

are supported by Rana Watt as Deputy Safeguarding Officer. They will have access to

appropriate training to support them in these roles. They will be available to all staff,

volunteers, and Beneficiaries to speak to when they have any concerns, issues, or complaints regarding the safety, well-being or conduct of other staff, volunteers, and Beneficiaries.

The Safeguarding Officer and Deputy Safeguarding Officer will liaise with appropriate local and national agencies, contribute to appropriate policies, maintain records, keep confidentiality, adhere to, and promote this Policy within the Charity, and support or provide access to support for individuals suffering harm or abuse.

Awareness of harm and abuse within the Charity

All incidents of harm to any Beneficiary, staff member or volunteer will require an appropriate response to reduce risks and improve the Charity’s services and activities.

Harm is caused by accidents, deliberate abuse (physical, psychological, sexual, emotional,financial), neglect (deliberate or not) or factors such as bullying, prejudicial attitudes, or a failure to enable a person to participate in activities that are open to most of their peers. It can also include abuse via use of ICT facilities (e.g. grooming, bullying via the internet).Deliberate acts of harm (physical, psychological, sexual, emotional, and financial) and neglect are abuses against the person. Those acts will incur disciplinary proceedings and require reports and referrals to social services, the police, other professional bodies, and the DBS if the act is by someone in Regulated Activity. If a criminal offence is thought to have been committed by any staff member or volunteer, the police will be informed.

Confidentiality

All reports and logs (including personnel records) will be kept securely and confidentially

according to the Charity’s Data Protection Policy and Confidentiality Policy or in line with the DBS Code of Practice for Registered Bodies if appropriate, unless it is necessary to share this material with the agencies named above. Information will be shared by the Charity on a “need-to-know” basis only.

Recognising a Safeguarding Incident

Staff, volunteers or Beneficiaries can report, and have a responsibility to report, something that they become aware of if they suspect or discover that it is not right or is illegal or if it appears to them that someone at work is neglecting their duties, putting someone’s health and safety in danger or covering up wrongdoing. They may become aware of any of these things from what they see or hear or from something another person has disclosed to them.

When a staff member or volunteer becomes aware of a possible safeguarding issue or incident, we operate the following reporting system.

1. Recognise – Individual discusses allegation or 3rd party reports a situation or there is a sign or symptom of a safeguarding issue.
2. Respond – Encourage a discussion, providing a suitable environment for open
3. discussion.
4. Record – Keep records of incident, record actual statement, date, and signature.
5. Refer – Take incident to Safeguarding Officer and they will confidentially elevate to
6. suitable agency i.e. Police, Local Authority, Social Workers
7. Review – Learn from the incident and reflect on effective Safeguarding.
8. Respect – Build a culture of respect, safeguarding and empowering victims.

Communication by Meredith's Mission Safeguarding and this Policy

All staff and volunteers have an obligation to learn about protection issues and their related responsibilities.

The Charity will communicate this Policy using appropriate methods, to all its staff, volunteers, and beneficiaries, and it will also make it available to the public. Kate Hibberd appointed Safeguarding Officer will be responsible to the Board of trustees for communicating this Policy to them.

We are committed to everyone involved in the Charity to understand that Safeguarding is the business of everyone, and to assist all staff and volunteers to learn about protection issues and their related responsibilities. The Charity will hold meetings open to all staff and volunteers about safeguarding. It will regularly review procedures, inviting open discussions about issues and concerns, reflecting on the policy and procedures. Meredith's Mission  strives to learn and improve in relation to the Charity’s Safeguarding responsibilities.

Implementation of safeguarding policy

This Policy must be followed by all staff and volunteers of the Charity and must be promoted by all its trustees and senior staff. Failure to follow it will be treated as a very serious matter.

This Policy needs to be read in conjunction with the following policies and procedures of the Charity:

● Health & Safety Policy

● Code of Conduct (Staff and Volunteers)

● Equal Opportunities Policy

● Data Protection Policy

● Confidentiality Policy

• Complaints Policy

Adoption, coming into effect, and review of this Policy

This Safeguarding Policy was approved by the Board of Trustees of Meredith’s Mission 

on 11th June 2025.  It also comes into force on that date. 

The Board will revise this Policy

from time to time. The next date for review of this Policy by the Board will be June 2026 or in the following circumstances.

● Changes in legislation and / or government guidance

● As required by BCP Council

● As a result of any other significant change or event