Safeguarding (children and adults) policy

Purpose and scope of policy

This policy sets out Springfield’s approach to safeguarding.

Safeguarding children, young people and adults means protecting a person’s right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect. Springfield operates a zero-tolerance approach to neglect, degrading treatment, unnecessary or disproportionate restraint, and/or the deprivation of liberty.

We will:

Safeguard individuals in a way that supports them in making choices
Prevent harm and reduce the risk of abuse or neglect to adults within our services
Support people in a way that meets their needs and best interests
Support and represent people when they need protecting
Work in collaboration with other professionals and local communities
Always be transparent and share information safely and appropriately.

We will do this by:

Ensuring that all our safeguarding systems and processes are person-centered, compliant, and effective
Ensuring that roles and responsibilities in relation to safeguarding are clearly laid out
Ensuring that all our people know how to recognise, respond, report, record and refer
Playing our role in ensuring strong multi-agency safeguarding frameworks within our communities.

We will measure compliance against this policy using the following measures:

Everyone who works at Springfield knows what signs and indicators of abuse to look out for and who to contact for advice and support.
Springfield reports and responds in a timely and effective way to concerns about abuse.
Individuals have access to the support and services that they need from the Designated Safeguarding Lead’s.
People have their voices heard within safeguarding procedures and services.
We maximise their rights to choice and control, within the confines of their mental capacity and competence.
Children and adults are protected when necessary and have improved quality of life as a result.
Springfield recognises that safeguarding children and adults is a shared responsibility and will ensure appropriate arrangements are in place to co-operate with the local authority in the operation of the safeguarding partnerships.

We will achieve best practice by:

Ensuring Springfield employees take appropriate action, in a timely manner to safeguard and promote the welfare of all service users.
Ensuring responsibilities and procedures are fully understood and that everyone can recognise the signs and indicators of abuse or neglect and respond to them appropriately.
Ensuring all relevant safeguarding policies and procedures and regularly reviewed and remain fit for purpose, meeting local and national guidance with all statutory requirements in place.
Sourcing and providing up to date relevant and specialist training staff.
Participating in, and disseminating learning from, serious case reviews and safeguarding adult reviews to all services as appropriate.
Hearing the voice of individuals and making safeguarding personal for adults, young people and children through all safeguarding investigations and enquiries.
Maintaining current, and forging new, collaborative relationships with relevant partner agencies within the local authority safeguarding partnerships, NHS Trusts or other stakeholders relevant to the service.
Actively participating in internal and multi-agency audits to inform best practice
Identifying safeguarding themes and trends within services, geographic areas or service user groups to target learning and development within those services identified within the analysis.
Maintaining and developing our knowledge and expertise within the safeguarding arena including the authorship, involvement and dissemination of lessons learnt within local safeguarding enquires, serious case reviews and safeguarding adult/children at risk reviews.
Disseminating learning and development recommendations from all key enquiries.
Monitoring lessons learnt and service developments to be assured learnings have become embedded in practice.
Utilising cross agency systems to ensure a multi-agency/multi-disciplinary approach to safeguarding.

Applicable Legislation

This policy outlines how we will meet our legislative requirements in relation to:
The Care Act 2014
CQC Reguations
The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
Data Protection Act 2018
The Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) Regulations 2015
Children Act 1989
Children Act 2004
Children and Young Persons Act 1933
Equality Act 2010
Equality Act 2010: Chapter 1 (protected characteristics) Chapter 2 (prohibited conduct) and Chapter 3 (services and public functions)
Human Rights Act 1998
Mental Capacity Act 2005
Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice
Mental Health Act 1983
Mental Health Act 2007 and Code of Practice
Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 – links to The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (Disclosure and Barring Service Transfer of Functions) Order 2012
Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006

Systems and Processes

This policy outlines the safeguarding systems and processes in place at Springfield. They ensure that all Springfield employees comply with all applicable legislation, guidance, and best practice in their fields.

The policy shares the key principles behind our approach to safeguarding, and the legislation and guidance that we comply with.

The protocols establish the ‘how’. They outline our person-centred and transparent safeguarding practice whilst providing a ‘step-by-step’ guide for staff.

All policies and procedures are readily available on the charity shared drive and procedure flow charts are displayed on the office walls. This is to ensure that staff always have immediate access, and that service users can also read about our approach to safeguarding.

Springfield board of trustees review this policy as part of our monitored policy review process. Reviews will also take place upon the release of new or amended legislation/guidance, or newly identified improvements to practice.

Learning and development recommendations from all key enquiries, and lessons learnt in-house, are disseminated to the staff team as appropriate.

We review our service protocols in conjunction with our partners to ensure a collaborative approach and to influence consistently reviewed and improved practice.

Those staff responsible for reviews ensure they consistently develop their knowledge and expertise within the safeguarding arena.

Roles and Responsibilities

Safeguarding is everybody’s responsibility.

All Springfield staff have a responsibility for the safety and wellbeing of their colleagues, and of the people who use our services. All staff must follow this policy.

All Springfield Staff members and Volunteers are required to attend mandatory safeguarding awareness training upon commencing their role and attend regular re-fresher training.

All Staff Members and Volunteers have a role to play in preventing harm or abuse occurring and in taking action where concerns arise.

Safeguards against poor practice, abuse, neglect, and exploitation need to be an integral part in the delivery of care and any child, young person, or adult at risk of abuse, neglect or exploitation they should be able to know how to tell us and to know that they will get a consistent response and for appropriate interventions to take place.

Managers are responsible for ensuring that staff teams and services have access to the relevant Local Authority procedure and are supported to escalate concerns as required.

Managers are responsible for ensuring their staff teams are supported to access regular safeguarding training and have opportunities to increase their knowledge and understanding of what role they play within safeguarding.

The named safeguarding leads are the first port of call for safeguarding issues or concerns, they also ensure that the importance of safeguarding is communicated within their areas of responsibility and can advise staff on matters pertaining to safeguarding.

Managers are responsible for ensuring all staff members and volunteers are subject to safer recruitment procedures and such information can be shared with external regulators as required.

Our People

Springfield recruits appropriately qualified/experienced employees, via safe recruitment processes which helps to ensure suitability and safety.

Upon joining Springfield, all staff undertake an induction, which includes safeguarding training.

Our people are made aware of their individual responsibilities to recognise, respond, report, record and refer via the above induction process and as part of annual refresher training.

All staff read this policy and understand their role and associated responsibilities. Management support is provided where required.

Annual safeguarding training is mandatory for all staff members, irrespective of role held. This is monitored by the managers.

All staff understand their individual responsibilities in preventing discrimination in relation to the protected characteristics set out in S4 of the Equality Act 2010. All staff undertake mandatory annual training on equality, and work within the parameters of the company’s Equality policy. This is to ensure that everybody coming into contact with our services will be treated with respect, in a manner that is not degrading, and not be deprived of their liberty for the purpose of receiving care or treatment without lawful authority.

All managers across the company are provided with Leadership Training and understand how to support their staff in dealing with issues, including domestic abuse.

Extended support is available and provided to both staff and management via the supervision and wellbeing process. There are further additional support mechanisms in place including telephone or face to face counselling. This support is available to our people 24 hours a day, 365 days a week.

Staff understanding of systems and processes is managed by line managers. Instances of non-compliance with this policy or related protocol is dealt with via our company HR policies and procedures.

Our Communities

We will actively take notice to all information received by the chatiry including complaints and incidents. Where potential abuse is identified, preventative actions will be taken, including escalation where appropriate, in line with service protocols. We do not rely solely on reported concerns to tackle safeguarding issues. We actively listen.

We recognise the importance of working in partnership with a wide range of statutory and non-statutory services, and the importance of sharing information appropriately.

We work in partnership with other relevant bodies, sharing information in line with this policy and associated protocols, contributing to individual risk assessments, MARAC, serious case reviews, and regularly review outcomes for people using our services to prevent repeated abuse.

Our policies and processes are discussed with relevant Local Adult Safeguarding Boards to ensure suitable alignment and to ensure we play a collaborative and effective safeguarding role in the communities we work in. A key guiding principle here is not working in silo, and ensuring we are sharing information appropriately and safely to prevent harm.

Safeguarding Procedure

Each office at Springfield has a safeguarding procedure flowchart displayed on the wall for staff to easily follow the procedure when there is a safeguarding concern.

Springfield managers are the designated safeguarding leads (DSL’s) overseen by the CEO.

Springfield understands that many of our clients successfully implement strategies to manage risk until they can access the support they need. Springfield strongly believes that it is important for any interventions to be undertaken in such a manner as to empower the victim of abuse and to increase their autonomy and self-esteem. We strive to involve our clients in all aspects, where appropriate, in order to refrain from ‘doing things to them’, where safe to do so.

Any concerns should be reported immediately to a Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) or the CEO. If neither of these are available concerns should be reported to the Local Authority Safeguarding Team.

On identifying a safeguarding concern, our Internal Safeguarding Alert Form (attached in Appendix 1.) must be completed by the member of staff (full guidance to complete the form is attached with the form) and signed off by one of our DSL’s with agreed actions clearly reported.

APPENDIX 1. Internal Safeguarding Alert Form

Internal Safeguarding Alert Form

Client name:

Client OASIS number:

Staff name:

Designated Safeguarding Lead:

Date of incident: Time of incident:

Description of situation (including safety concerns and risks to self or others). Always distinguish between fact and opinion and please be specific.

What was discussed with the Designated Safeguarding Lead?

Actions taken:

Consent obtained from:

Follow up work and actions completed by Safeguarding Lead: (Include time/date/timescale/actions required by others)

If information was not shared , justification for not sharing (please be specific and provide an evidence base for your decision)

Staff name: ______________ Staff signature: ______________ ☐ Copy held on file

Please attach this document to Client’s OASIS file and send a copy to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.

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