Children and Young People Safeguarding Policy 2022

As a provider of public services, Chorley Council fully accepts its legal and moral obligations to provide a duty of care and will take all reasonable steps to protect all children and young people using Council services or working with the Council from harm, discrimination or degrading treatment and respect their rights, wishes and feelings.

The welfare of the child is paramount and is the always the primary concern of Chorley Council. Everyone has the right to protection from abuse whatever their age, culture, ability, gender, ethnicity, or sexuality.

The Council is committed to the following principles and actions:

• the Council will ensure that a protective safeguarding culture is in place and is actively promoted within the organisation and will work together with other agencies to safeguard children.
• the Council will implement procedures to safeguard children and young people and take all reasonable steps to protect children from harm, discrimination and degrading treatment and to respect their rights, wishes and feelings.
• all representatives of Chorley Council who work with children will be recruited with regard to their suitability for that responsibility. Representatives who have substantial access to children and young people are subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check prior to appointment and that this check is repeated every three years, or sooner, where directed by Professional Bodies, e.g. NGB, Teaching Sport. Where volunteers are being used for one-off events then a self-disclosure form will be required.
• all staff / volunteers will be required to adopt and abide by the Council's Code of Conduct and the Child and Young Person Protection Policy and its procedures and will be provided with supervision, guidance and/or training in good practice and Child Protection procedures to ensure that they are properly equipped to:.
• identify where there may be a problem know how to obtain advice refer concerns to relevant specialists protect themselves from false accusations of abuse
• all representatives have a responsibility to report concerns of suspected abuse or poor practice and The Council will provide designated points of contact within the organisation.
• Council representatives should follow the code of conduct contained in this policy and work in an open and transparent way avoiding any conduct that may cause a reasonable person to question their motives and intentions.
• the Council will promote good practice that encourages a safe environment, protects all parties and avoids mistaken allegations of abuse.
• the Council will take all incidents of poor practice and allegations or suspicions of abuse seriously and these will be responded to swiftly and appropriately.
• the Council will respond promptly to suspicions or allegations involving staff and appropriate disciplinary and appeals procedures will be implemented.
• this policy will be reviewed every three years or whenever there is a major change in the organisation or in the relevant legislation or any other adopted standard of best practice.

Confidentiality shall be upheld in line with current data protection and human rights legislation which takes into account the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulations.

Personal Data will be held and destroyed in accordance with Council policies and in way that is compliant with the General Data Protection Regulations.

Who does the policy apply to?

The policy applies to all staff and representatives of Chorley Council: Employees, Agency and Contract Staff, Volunteers (including young people under 18) working for and on behalf of Chorley Council and elected members.