safe to grow policy
about us
Statement agreed at the Full Church Meeting held on 22nd September 2020
SECTION 1 – SAFEGUARDING POLICY STATEMENT
SAFEGUARDING POLICY
STATEMENT FOR COTTENHAM BAPTIST CHURCH
Church Vision
Our aim is to:
Communicate the
love of God and make Jesus known
We plan to do
this by:
·
Seeking God’s ways above all else
·
Showing the love, grace, and
welcome of God to everyone we meet
·
Reminding each other and
communicating to others that the love of Jesus is good news for all people
·
Encouraging and supporting
each other as we seek to live our lives in line with what we believe as
children of God
·
Creating a friendly and
accessible environment for all ages
·
Serving others and
sacrificing our time, energy, and resources
In fulfilling this
vision, we:
·
Welcome children and adults at
risk into the life of our community
·
Run activities for children and
adults at risk
·
Make our premises available to
organisations working with children and adults at risk
Our safeguarding responsibilities
The church recognises its responsibilities in safeguarding all
children, young people and adults at risk, regardless of gender, ethnicity or
ability.
As members of this church we commit ourselves to the nurturing,
protection and safekeeping of all associated with the church and will pray for
them regularly. In pursuit of this, we commit ourselves to this policy and to the
development of sound procedures to ensure we implement our policy well.
·
Prevention and reporting of
abuse
It is the duty of
each church member to help prevent the abuse of children and adults at risk,
and the duty of each church member to respond to concerns about the well-being
of children and adults at risk. Any abuse disclosed, discovered or suspected
will be reported in accordance with our procedures. The church will fully
co-operate with any statutory investigation into any suspected abuse linked with
the church.
·
Safer recruitment, support
and supervision of workers
The church will
exercise proper care in the selection and appointment of those working with
children and adults at risk, whether paid or voluntary. All workers will be
provided with appropriate training, support and supervision to promote the
safekeeping of children and adults at risk.
·
Respecting children and
adults at risk
The church will
adopt a code of behaviour for all who are appointed to work with children and
adults at risk so that all children and adults are shown the respect that is
due to them.
·
Safer working practices
The church is
committed to providing an environment that is as safe as possible for children
and adults at risk and will adopt ways of working with them that promote their
safety and well-being.
·
A safer community
The church is
committed to the prevention of bullying. The church will seek to ensure that
the behaviour of any individuals who may pose a risk to children, young people
and adults at risk in the community of the church is managed appropriately.
Safeguarding contact
points within our church
The church has
appointed the following individuals to form part of the church safeguarding
team:
PAULA
MAYES, Designated Person for Safeguarding (DPS)
She
will advise the church on any matters related to the safeguarding of children
and adults at risk and take the appropriate action when abuse is disclosed,
discovered or suspected.
EMMA
MAY, Safeguarding Trustee
She
will raise the profile of safeguarding within the church and oversee and
monitor the implementation of the safeguarding policy and procedures on behalf
of the church trustees.
Our church minister is
also an important part of the Church Safeguarding Team. Where possible, the Church Safeguarding Team
will work together if and when issues arise. However, each person has a
responsibility to report allegations of abuse as soon as they are raised.
Putting our policy into practice
·
A copy of the safeguarding
policy statement will be displayed permanently on the church noticeboard and
church office and is available on our church website.
·
Each worker with children
and/or adults at risk will be given a full copy of the safeguarding policy and
procedures and will be asked to sign to confirm that they will follow them.
·
A full copy of the policy and
procedures will be made available on request to any member of, or other person
associated with the church.
·
The policy and procedures will
be monitored and reviewed annually, and any necessary revisions adopted into
the policy and implemented through our procedures.
·
The policy statement will be
read annually at the church AGM, together with a report on the outcome of the
annual safeguarding review.