The Parish Church Council of Christ the Servant King, Hampton recognises the need to safeguard the children, young people and adults in our care and guard against the possibility of any form of abuse of any children, young people and adults by persons who may be acting in the name of the parish. We aim to create a safe environment for the nurture and development of children, young people and adults, in order for them to feel valued and confident to ask for support and help. We will create policies and procedures that uphold the importance of our responsibility to protect and safeguard the welfare of children, young people and adults entrusted to our care. A Parish Safeguarding Officer will be appointed to ensure the implementation of this policy.
- We commit to providing a safe physical environment for work with children, young people and adults
- We recognise that everyone has different levels of vulnerability and that each of us may be regarded as vulnerable at some time in our lives
- As members of this parish we commit ourselves to respectful pastoral care for all adults to whom we minister
- We commit ourselves to the safeguarding of people who may be vulnerable, ensuring their well-being in the life of the church
- We commit ourselves to promoting the inclusion and empowerment of people who may be vulnerable
- We commit to informing the whole church community about our safeguarding policy and procedures and recognise the responsibility of each of us to prevent and report abuse that we discover or suspect
- We will ensure the children, young people and adults in our care know who they can talk to if they have any concerns
- We recognise our responsibility to always respond to and report abuse in whatever context, inside or outside the church environment and will always listen to and take seriously any child, young person or adult who reports that they have been abused
- We will always report allegations of abuse and concerns about a child, young person or an adult who is experiencing or at risk of abuse due to their illness or disability, in accordance with our procedures
- We will always report all allegations of abuse against Church Officers* to the appropriate statutory agency and to the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser and co-operate with any investigation
- We will keep records in relation to safeguarding concerns, allegations and the recruitment of volunteers and paid workers securely
- We commit to the safe recruitment of all new and current Church Officers* who have contact with children, young people and adults experiencing or at risk of abuse due to their illness or disability
- We will assess all new and current Church Officers* roles and, in every case where the role is deemed to be eligible, apply for an appropriate level criminal record check every five years
- We commit to providing every church Officer* with clear instructions and information in respect of their role, adequate resources and support and regular opportunities for review
- We will ensure that all Church Officers* working with children, young people and adults experiencing or at risk of abuse due to their age, illness, disability, or are in a trusted role attend Church of England safeguarding training every three years
- We will inform the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser, and ensure appropriate supervision, of anyone who is known to have offended against a child, young person or an adult at risk of abuse due to their age, illness or disability who attends activities organised by the Parish Church Council of Christ the Servant King, Hampton and will follow all recommendations of the Diocesan Safeguarding Adviser in this regard
- We require all groups and organisations using our premises for activities involving children or vulnerable adult activities to provide a copy of their own safeguarding policy and procedures, or adopt CSK’s and provide us with an assurance that these are implemented. This is a condition of the use of CSK’s premises’.
- We will review our safeguarding policy annually to ensure it meets with all current legislation, House of Bishop’s and The church of England – Ely policies and practice guidance
- Each person who works with vulnerable people will agree to abide by these recommendations and the guidelines established by the church.
The church appoints Sally Bright to represent the concerns and views of vulnerable people at our meetings and to outside bodies as the parish safeguarding officer.
The church appoints Sally Bright as the Parish ID Checker to process online Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) applications.
*A Church Officer is anyone appointed by or on behalf of the Church to a post or role, whether they are ordained or lay, paid or unpaid
Diocese of Ely Safeguarding Policy and Procedures
The parish of Christ the Servant King, Hampton is committed to safeguarding all those who attend the worship and other activities that we offer. We follow the House of Bishops’ Policy, ‘Protecting All God’s Children’ (2010), and the Diocese of Ely Policy and Procedures (2011). We seek to create a culture where everyone is included, respected, listened to, and taken seriously. We accept the prime duty of care for children and vulnerable adults, and have appointed a safeguarding co-ordinator to ensure that what we do is informed by up-to-date policies and procedures from local and national authorities.
Our safeguarding co-ordinator is: Sally Bright and she can be contacted on: [email protected]
The Ely Diocese Safeguarding Officer is Sarah King and she can be contacted on [email protected] or 01353 652735
We follow recommended safeguarding practice in recruiting, training and supporting our ordained and lay ministers, our employees and our volunteers. Recruitment includes Criminal Records Bureau checks for those working regularly or substantially with children and/or vulnerable adults. Health and safety policies are in place and we have provided adequate insurance cover for all activities undertaken in the name of the parish. All those working on behalf of the parish have agreed to comply with the safeguarding policy and with the good practice guidelines for their work.
We respond without delay to any complaint that a child or vulnerable adult in our care may have been harmed by the behaviour of an employee or volunteer working on behalf of the church. We always seek advice on such matters from outside this church, and we will co-operate with statutory agencies during any enquiries they need to make into allegations against a member of the church community. During those enquiries we will do our best to ensure that those making an allegation, and those against whom an allegation is made, are supported appropriately.
We seek to offer informed pastoral care and support to any child or adult whose life has been affected by abuse, whether the abuse was recent or long ago. Where there is a current risk to vulnerable people that has not yet been brought to light, we support the person who has suffered abuse in taking information to the appropriate agencies.
This church wishes to welcome and support all members of its community. Those who have a history of offences against children or vulnerable adults, and/or who may pose a risk to them are offered a supportive agreement to help them take part in church life; they are supported pastorally, and boundaries are set to protect those who might be vulnerable within the church. Confidential safeguarding agreements are the responsibility of the Safeguarding Adviser and the incumbent, who work together.
We regularly review and update our safeguarding policy, and we welcome comments from those using our services on how we could improve our awareness and safeguarding practices. The next review of this policy is due in: May 2022