University Regulation 34

Introduction

The University principles make it clear that we treat everyone with respect, we will not tolerate sexual misconduct, violence or abuse and we will take all reasonable steps to keep our campus and community safe. It is also a principle that “we” means all of us, students, apprentices and staff.

CLL recognises that it has a statutory duty and responsibility to safeguard and promote the safety and welfare of its staff, apprentices and students deemed ‘vulnerable’. These duties and responsibilities are defined in a wide range of legislation, including the Mental Capacity Act (2005), Equality Act 2010, the Counter Terrorism and Security Bill with particular relevance to the Prevent Duty, plus other relevant legislation. The publication of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act (2006) amended in the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, introduced a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks for staff and others who have defined levels of contact with children, young people and ‘at risk’ adults. Furthermore, many of our students /apprentices work, or will be employed in professions working with children, young people and vulnerable adults and we have a shared responsibility in Safeguarding and Prevent.

A vulnerable person is an ‘at risk’ adult and defined as a person ‘who is or may be in need of community care services by reason of mental or other disability, age or illness; and who is or may be unable to take care of him or herself, or unable to protect him or herself, or unable to protect him or herself against significant harm or exploitation’ (Department of Health, 2000).

Safeguarding

CLL takes its safeguarding responsibilities very seriously and strives to ensure that all people using our buildings and services are kept safe from all forms of harm. We are committed to providing the best and safest environment possible to ensure students can succeed and everyone can feel secure.

Safeguarding under the Care Act 2014 means ‘Safeguarding means protecting an adult’s right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect.’ It is about people and organisations working together to prevent and stop both the risks and experience of abuse or neglect, while at the same time making sure that the adult’s wellbeing is promoted including, where appropriate, having regard to their views, wishes, feelings and beliefs in deciding on any action. This must recognise that adults sometimes have complex interpersonal relationships and may be ambivalent, unclear or unrealistic about their personal circumstances. Abuse can be intentional or can be the result of well-meaning ignorance. Abuse can be perpetrated by anyone - relatives, partners, friends, care workers, or strangers - and can happen anywhere. Adult safeguarding is about preventing and responding to concerns of abuse, harm or neglect of adults.

Prevent

Prevent is about safeguarding people and communities from the threat of terrorism. It aims to stop people becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism and violent extremism. The Prevent statutory duty, came into force on 1 July 2015: Prevent duty guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

There is a safeguarding responsibility to provide early intervention to protect and divert people away from being drawn into terrorist activity. CLL is committed to safeguarding staff, apprentices and students in our community from being drawn into terrorism.

Our Aim

Our aim

CLL should provide a safe, caring, positive and stimulating environment that promotes the learning and working environment for every member of staff, apprentice and student. We will empower individuals to create communities that are more resilient to extremism and protect the well-being of individuals or groups who may be vulnerable.

In CLL, we believe it is everyone’s responsibility to:

Respect each other’s right to feel safe
Treat each other fairly and with respect
Not to threaten, hurt or abuse others in any way

and to uphold the fundamental values of:

Democracy
The rule of law
Individual liberty
Mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs

We will provide information and support in accessible ways to help staff, apprentices and students understand the different types of abuse, how to stay safe and what to do to raise a concern about the safety or well-being of an adult.

We will provide an environment in which all staff and students feel safe, secure, valued and respected, feel confident and know how to access help if they are in difficulties.

We will raise the awareness of all teaching and other staff of the need to safeguard students and of their responsibilities in identifying and reporting possible cases of abuse, radicalisation and extremism.

We will support students and staff known or thought to be at risk of harm, and ensure needs are assessed and support plans are in place for any vulnerable students.

We will ensure the need for effective and appropriate communication between all members of staff in relation to safeguarding staff and students.

This approach is underpinned by the University of Warwick’s:

Roles and Responsibilities

All staff working in CLL will:

Complete essential Safeguarding training which includes Prevent as part of their induction programme.
Complete refresher safeguarding training annually
Read and understand the University of Warwick Safeguarding Policy annually
Report instances of actual or suspected abuse to the Designated Safeguarding Lead using the 5 Rs.

The 5 Rs

The 5 Rs outline the steps you should take if you ever have a safeguarding concern.

Recognise
Respond
Report
Record
Refer

Recognise Knowing the signs and indicators of abuse and neglect will help you to recognise when something isn’t quite right. Always trust your instincts. It is your duty to recognise these instances as potential indicators of a safeguarding concern.

Respond Once you have established a reason for concern, it is your professional duty to respond in an appropriate manner. Be aware that this does not mean you should insert yourself into any situation that could result in a negative response or make matters worse. Your safeguarding policy will detail the steps you should take to respond safely and effectively to any potential safeguarding issue. Always be sure to do this as soon as possible, preferably straight away, and under no circumstances should you ever ignore a safeguarding concern.

Report Your first point of contact when it comes to reporting a safeguarding concern should be your Designated Safeguarding Lead (see below for Key Contacts). Remember, all safeguarding matters should remain confidential and must only be shared with people who are involved in the safeguarding process.

Record Make a record of everything you have seen and heard when it comes to a safeguarding incident. Do this as soon as possible after any incident and every time you speak to another individual about what happened. Write down exactly what happened, including (if possible) the exact dates and times. Include the names and details of any individuals involved and record all possible information to ensure the most accurate account of the incident. Even make a record of the date and time you escalated your concern to the Designated Safeguarding Lead. Be sure to keep these records in a safe location where they cannot be accessed by anyone else; this is confidential information and might be used as evidence later along the line.

Refer If there is genuine concern for an individual’s safety, or if you think someone might be a victim of abuse, neglect, or maltreatment, you must refer your concerns to the correct authority. This will happen via your Designated Safeguarding Lead, who will escalate the concern with the University Services. In this case, you need to ensure that any supporting records and information you have about the incident or individual are passed on as well.

Risk Assessments

When running events involving children or adults at risk, a Safeguarding Risk Assessment FormLink opens in a new window must be completed and emailed to the safeguarding team for comment/approval. A new form is required for each new activity, so please can we ask you to review these at least annually if involving the same activity as the previous year, or to create a new RA if the event is different to previous activities. It may be that the risks remain the same and it can be rolled over to the new academic year but please ensure that all risks are considered when hosting events.

Training

The University of Warwick provides Safeguarding and Prevent training via Educare training which includes the following modules for all staff:

Child Protection Fundamentals
Safeguarding Young People
Prevent Duty

Please contact Safeguarding, Resource Safeguarding@warwick.ac.uk for registration on these modules.

Staff involved in Ofsted inspection visits should also complete Education Training Foundation courses for Prevent and Safeguarding:

Prevent courses:

Safeguarding courses:

Safeguarding in the FE and Training sector

Resources and Case Studies Health, Safety and Well-being

Health, Safety and Well-being

Concerns about general health and safety should follow the guidance on Health and Safety Services Homepage (warwick.ac.uk).

For emergencies or urgent concerns, please contact the University 24-hour Community Safety line: +44 (0)24 7652 2083. Community Safety operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

In the event of an emergency requiring ambulance, police or fire brigade, call 22222 from an internal telephone. If you are on campus and you use a mobile to call for an emergency service (999), you should also then call 024 76 5 22222. This alerts the University Community Safety team and will enable the emergency vehicle to be speedily escorted to where it is required on the campus

Key Contacts

For any concerns relating to Safeguarding or Prevent the CLL Designated Safeguarding Lead should be your first point of contact:

Designated Safeguarding Lead for multi-agency procedures

Professor Ruth Hewston, Head of Department

Ruth.hewston@warwick.ac.uk

024 765 74557

In her absence:

Dr Nalita James, Director of Academic Studies– Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead, Nalita.james@warwick.ac.uk

024 765 23098

Dr Phil Goss – Safeguarding Officer

Course Director, Counselling and Psychotherapy

Phil.goss@warwick.ac.uk

024 765 23827

Dr Charlotte Jones - Safeguarding Officer

Course Director, Early Childhood, PTD and 2+2 programmes

Charlotte.e.jones@warwick.ac.uk

024 7657 4131

Director of Student Experience and Progression – Safeguarding Officer (TBC)

In the absence of the above: Central University Safeguarding Lead

Alex Malin a.malin@warwick.ac.uk, 024 7657 4792 and copied to

For immediate advice and support out of hours, please contact the Community Safety team on 02476 522083, noting that if any individual child or adult is perceived to be at serious risk of immediate harm off campus, the relevant emergency service should be contacted

Remember the Police should always be called where there is an immediate threat to staff, student or the public or where you think a criminal offence has been committed.

In an Emergency, call 999 or follow the link on Health and Safety Services Homepage (warwick.ac.uk)

Disclosures

A disclosure refers to the sharing of information that has the potential to impact the level of risk on a child, young person or vulnerable adult. A disclosure could occur in a number of forms, e.g. via email or verbally. In cases of doubt about whether you are dealing with a disclosure, it is generally good practice to be more cautious rather than less, and you should seek advice from the CLL Designated Safeguarding Lead.

Responding to a disclosure

If a member of staff receives a disclosure from an apprentice, student, a child when on a school visit, or a member of staff the following best practice guidance should be followed:

Actively listen, without interruption, giving the discloser/victim/survivor time to share their experience
Show that you believe what the discloser/victim/survivor is saying to you
Affirm that they have done the right thing in disclosing their experience
Take their fears or concerns seriously
Emphasise that they are not to blame for their experience
Be clear about the limits (if any) to confidentiality, including the possibility that you might have to share some of this information with other people if you believe that there is an immediate risk of harm
Provide information about what you will do in response to the disclosure

Remember, always report your concern to the Designated Safeguarding Lead rather than acting yourself.

Confidentiality

We recognise that all matters relating to safeguarding are confidential. The Designated Safeguarding Lead will disclose personal information to other members of staff on a need-to-know basis only. However, all staff must be aware that they have a professional responsibility to share information with other agencies to safeguard vulnerable students and /or staff. Cases will only be referred to the CLL Well-being and Professionalism Group where there is a concern about fitness to practice.

Process last reviewed – September 2022 (Designated Safeguarding and Deputy Safeguarding Leads)

Quick Links

Read more about key policies and guidelines at Centre for Lifelong Learning and the University of Warwick.