Safeguarding Statement

  Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined by the Department for Education as:

• Providing help and support to meet the needs of children as soon as problems emerge
• protecting children from maltreatment, whether that is within or outside the home, including online.
• preventing impairment of children’s mental and physical health or development
• ensuring children are growing up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care, taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.

  The purpose of this safeguarding statement is:

• to protect children and young people who receive STEPS’ services from harm.
• to provide staff and volunteers, as well as children and young people and their families, with the overarching principles that guide our approach to child protection.

 This safeguarding statement applies to anyone working on behalf of STEPS, including senior managers and the members of the Management Committee, paid staff, volunteers,   sessional workers, agency staff and students.

 Legal Framework

 Our safeguarding policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, safeguarding and guidance that seeks to protect children in England. A summary of the key legislation and   guidance is available from nspcc.org.uk/childprotection.

 This safeguarding statement should be read alongside our organisational policies, procedures, guidance and other related documents.

  At STEPS, we believe that:

• children and young people should never experience abuse of any kind
• we have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people, to keep them safe and to practise in a way that protects them.

 At STEPS, we recognise that:

• the welfare of children is paramount in all the work we do and in all the decisions we take
• working in partnership with children, young people, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare
• all children, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation have an equal right to protection from all types of harm or abuse
• some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues
• extra safeguards may be needed to keep children who are additionally vulnerable safe from abuse.

 At STEPS, we will seek to keep children and young people safe by:

• valuing, listening to and respecting them
• appointing a nominated child protection lead for children and young people, a deputy and a lead Management Committee Member
• adopting child protection and safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures and code of conduct for staff and volunteers
• developing and implementing an effective online safety safeguarding and related procedures
• providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support, training and quality assurance measures so that all staff and volunteers know about and follow our policies, procedures and behaviour codes confidently and competently recruiting and selecting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
• recording and storing and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance  
• sharing information about safeguarding and good practice with children and their families via leaflets, posters, group work and one-to-one discussions
• making sure that children, young people and their families know where to go for help if they have a concern
• using our safeguarding and child protection procedures to share concerns and relevant information with agencies who need to know, and involving children, young people, parents, families and carers appropriately
• using our procedures to manage any allegations against staff and volunteers appropriately
• creating and maintaining an anti-bullying environment and ensuring that we have a safeguarding and procedure to help us deal effectively with any bullying that does arise
• ensuring that we have effective complaints and whistleblowing measures in place
• ensuring that we provide a safe physical environment for our children, young people, staff and volunteers, by applying health and safety measures in accordance with the law and regulatory guidance
• building a safeguarding culture where staff and volunteers, children, young people and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns.

Policy Link: Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy 2024-2025

Contact details:

 Nominated Child Protection Lead:

 Name: Harpreet Kaur

 Phone: 0121 569 2799

 Email: Steps_Centre@sandwell.gov.uk