Policies

Guiding Principles:

The welfare of the child is paramount.

All children, without exception, have the right to protection from abuse.

Policy: No Parish Council member or any employee of the Parish Council will have unsupervised access to children unless appropriately vetted.

Procedure: Parish Council members and employees will be made aware of this policy and the relevant vetting procedures. Should checks become necessary, they will be undertaken in compliance to The Protection of Children Act 1999, The Children Act 1989 and part V of the Police Act 1997.

Policy: All suspicious or allegations of abuse against a child will be taken seriously and dealt with speedily and appropriately.

Procedure: The Chairman will be appointed to be responsible for Child Protection matters. This person will have responsibility for reporting concerns that arise, as a matter of urgency, to the local authority Child Protection lead agency.

Policy: All Parish Council members, staff and volunteers will be required to become aware of Child Protection issues.

Procedure: Copies of the relevant Acts and DOH guidelines will be obtained by the Clerk as a reference material for Parish Council members as and when required. Relevant Child Protection training for Parish Council members and staff will be encouraged.

Policy: The policies and procedures outlined above will be regularly reviewed.

Procedure: An annual review will take place at the Annual Meeting of the Council to allow for any required up-date of policies and/or procedures. New Parish Council members will be provided with an understanding of their responsibilities in matters of Child Protection.

A copy of this document will be displayed on the Parish Council’s web site.

Adopted 16th July 2013