Lawyers4Learners Safeguarding Policy
October 2024
Due for review October 2025
The purpose and scope of this policy statement
At Lawyer4Learners we aim to advance the education of the public, in particular but not exclusively children and young people aged 18 and under, by devising and implementing programmes whereby legal professionals give seminars, workshops, scrum/sprint sessions, drawing on their professional experience, to teach and help students develop skills which will benefit the students in their education and careers.
The purpose of this policy statement is:
to protect children and young people who receive Lawyers4Leaners’ services from harm.
to provide staff and volunteers, as well as children and young people and their families, with the overarching principles that guide our approach to child protection.
This policy applies to anyone working on behalf of Lawyers4Learners, including senior managers and the board of trustees, paid staff, volunteers, sessional workers, agency staff and students.
Legal framework
This policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect children in England/Northern Ireland/Scotland/Wales [select the relevant nation]. A summary of the key legislation and guidance is available from nspcc.org.uk/childprotection.
Supporting documents
This policy statement should be read alongside our organisational policies, procedures, guidance and other related documents:
• code of conduct for staff and volunteers
We believe that:
children and young people should never experience abuse of any kind
we have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young
people, to keep them safe and to practise in a way that protects them.
We recognise that:
the welfare of children is paramount in all the work we do and in all the decisions we take
working in partnership with children, young people, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare
all children, regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation have an equal right to protection from all types of harm or abuse
some children are additionally vulnerable because of the impact of previous experiences, their level of dependency, communication needs or other issues. Extra safeguards may be needed to keep children who are additionally vulnerable safe from abuse.
Find out more about:
safeguarding children who come from Black, Asian and minoritised ethnic communities
safeguarding d/Deaf and disabled children and young people
safeguarding LGBTQ+ children and young people
safeguarding children with special educational needs and disabilities
(SEND).
We will seek to keep children and young people safe by:
valuing, listening to and respecting them
appointing a nominated child protection lead for children and a lead trustee/board member for safeguarding
adopting child protection and safeguarding best practice through our policies, procedures and code of conduct for staff and volunteers
providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support, training and quality assurance measures so that all staff and volunteers know about and follow our policies, procedures and behaviour codes confidently and competently
recruiting and selecting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
recording and storing and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation and guidance [more information about this is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office: ico.org.uk/for- organisations]
using our safeguarding and child protection procedures to share concerns and relevant information with agencies who need to know, and involving children, young people, parents, families and carers appropriately
using our procedures to manage any allegations against staff and volunteers appropriately
ensuring that we have effective complaints and whistleblowing measures in place
building a safeguarding culture where staff and volunteers, children, young people and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns.
Contact details
Nominated child protection lead
Name: Louise Jones
07738522856
Trustee/Senior lead for safeguarding and child protection
Name: Caley Wright
07748987497
NSPCC Helpline
0808 800 5000
We are committed to reviewing our policy and good practice annually.