Safeguarding children and adults at risk of abuse and neglect policy

This policy and the supporting procedures are based on the following principles:

• The welfare of children and adults at risk is the primary concern.
• All children and adults at risk irrespective of their age, culture, disability, gender, language, racial origin, socio-economic status, religious belief and/ or sexual orientation have the right to protection from abuse and harm.
• It is everyone’s responsibility to act on any concerns about abuse in order that children and adults at risk are appropriately safeguarded.
• All incidents of alleged poor practice, misconduct and abuse will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately.

All personal data will be processed in accordance with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998.

Recognising abuse is not easy, and it is not the responsibility of council staff, elected members or volunteers to decide whether or not abuse has taken place or if there is significant risk. We do however have a responsibility to act if we think it may be happening.

Abuse, including neglect, are forms of maltreatment of a child or adult. Somebody may abuse a child or adult by inflicting harm, or by failing to act to prevent harm. Children and adults at risk may be abused in a family or in an institutional or community setting; by those known to them or, more rarely, by a stranger for example via the internet. They may also be abused by an adult or adults, or by another child or children.

Children and adults at risk can be subjected to more than one form of abuse at any one time and emotional abuse is present in almost all cases.