Safeguarding in the voluntary and community sector
All
children and young people have the right to feel safe. They should be able to
enjoy participating in activities outside the home and to take proportionate
risks, which are an essential part of growing up. The majority of the estimated
eight million children taking part in out-of-home activities do so safely, yet
a minority are at risk from those responsible for their care.
What is Safe Network?
Safe
Network is the national safeguarding unit for the community and voluntary
sector in England
and is funded by the Department for Education and the NSPCC until March 2013. Under
the new funding arrangements (which started April 2011) we are now jointly
managed by the NSPCC, Children England and the Child Accident Prevention Trust
(CAPT). We continue to work closely with
and through delivery partners, umbrella groups and existing national, regional
and local networks and infrastructures. This now includes the National Federation of
Young Farmer’s Clubs.
Accessing Safe Network’s
free safeguarding resources
Our
Safe Network website contains an extensive range of free resources focused on
strengthening the safeguarding of young people within voluntary and community
sector (VCS) settings. To find out more about Safe Network and to access our
resources, go to www.safenetwork.org.uk
Our
resources include information sheets and guidance on best practice, access to
free or low-cost basic child protection training, a specialist training
programme for working with BME communities, case studies and many other
downloadable resources. You can sign up
for our free, monthly e-newsletter.
Delivering safeguarding
standards and guidance
In
February 2011, we launched the Safe Network standards and guidance for
safeguarding children in the VCS. These cover four essential safeguarding
areas:
- safer staff and volunteers – recruitment, induction and supervision
- child protection
- preventing and responding to bullying
- avoiding accidents and running safe activities and events.
These
standards use an online self-assessment tool for groups to work through, while
also giving them access to a resource toolbox full of examples of information,
policies, and other essential documents. All of this is free – you just need to
register on the website.
Children
England manage the regional
development managers across England
who are responsible for coordinating Safe Network activities in their
respective regions. This involves liaising with key organisations, running
training events and recruiting/supporting champions, who are individuals based
within VCS groups who sign up to promote safeguarding and run events using Safe
Network resources.
CAPT
work with and offer practical support to commissioners and VCS groups in
relation to safeguarding and sustainable programmes of work. They offer
mentoring opportunities and also manage the Making the Link website under the
Safe Network umbrella, which provides advice and information in relation to
preventing unintentional injuries.
Become a Safe Network
Safeguarding Champion
We
also have Safe Network Champions out in the community who are given access to our
resources to run safeguarding awareness-raising sessions or training
events. We provide support to our
champions through a peer network, Regional Development Managers and
opportunities to attend workshops and training.
Ifyou would be interested in getting involved, go to http://www.safenetwork.org.uk/about_us/who_are_we/Pages/safeguarding-champions.aspx where you will find everything you need to know.
Useful links
Safe
Network: www.safenetwork.org.uk
Making
the Link: www.makingthelink.net
Children
England:
www.childrenengland.org.uk
CAPT:
www.capt.org.uk
NSPCC:
www.nspcc.org.uk/inform
