1 Holbeach Town Band (the Band) believes that it is always unacceptable
for a child or young person to experience abuse of any kind and
recognises our responsibility to safeguard the welfare of all band
members by a commitment to a practice which protects them.
2 We recognise that:
o The welfare of band members is paramount.
o All band members regardless of age, disability, gender, racial
heritage, religious belief, sexual orientation or identity have
the right to equal protection from all types of harm or abuse.
o Working in partnership with band members, their parents, carers
and other agencies is essential in promoting young people's welfare.
3 The purposes of the policy are:
o To provide protection for band members.
o To provide trustees, tutors and other volunteers with guidance
on procedures they should adopt if they suspect a child or young
person may be experiencing, or be at risk of, harm. This policy,
therefore, applies to everyone working for or with the Band.
4 We will endeavour to safeguard band members by:
o Valuing them, listening to and respecting them.
o Adopting child protection guidelines through procedures and a
code of conduct for trustees, tutors and other volunteers.
o Recruiting trustees, tutors and other volunteers safely, ensuring
all necessary checks are made.
o Sharing information about child protection and good practice with
band members, parents, trustees, tutors and other volunteers.
o Sharing information about concerns with agencies who need to know,
and involving parents and children appropriately.
o Providing effective supervision, support and training for trustees,
tutors and other volunteers.
5 We are also committed to reviewing our policy and good practice
annually.
Code of Conduct
6 Trustees, tutors and voluntary helpers must:
o Treat all band members with respect.
o Provide an example of the good conduct they wish others to follow.
o Ensure that whenever possible there is more than one adult present
during activities with band members, or at least that they are within
sight or hearing of others.
o Respect a young person's right to personal privacy, whilst encouraging
young people and adults to feel comfortable and caring enough to
point out attitudes or behaviour they do not like.
o Remember that someone else might misinterpret their actions, no
matter how
well intentioned.
o Be aware that physical contact with a band member may be misinterpreted.
o Recognise that special caution is required when discussing sensitive
issues with band members.
o Operate within our principles and guidance and any specific procedures.
o Challenge unacceptable behaviour and report all allegations/suspicions
of abuse.
7 Trustees, tutors and voluntary helpers must not:
o Have inappropriate physical or verbal contact with band members.
o Allow themselves to be drawn into inappropriate attention-seeking
behaviour, or make suggestive or derogatory remarks or gestures
in front of band members.
o Jump to conclusions about others without checking facts.
o Either exaggerate or trivialise child abuse issues.
o Show favouritism to any individual.
o Rely on their good name or that of the Band to protect them.
o Take a chance when common sense, policy or practice suggests another
more prudent approach.
Abuse
8 Abuse may take a number of forms, and may be classified under
the following headings:
Neglect: This is where adults fail to meet a child's basic needs
like food, shelter, warm clothing or medical care, or to protect
them from physical harm. Children might also be constantly left
alone or unsupervised.
Physical Abuse: This is where someone physically hurts or injures
children, for example by hitting, shaking, throwing, squeezing,
burning, suffocating and biting or otherwise causing physical harm
to a child. Giving children alcohol or inappropriate drugs would
also constitute physical abuse.
Sexual Abuse: Adults or other children, both male and female, who
use children to meet their own sexual needs.
Emotional Abuse: Persistent lack of love and affection, where children
may be led to believe that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate
or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person.
It may involve the child being constantly shouted at, threatened
or taunted which may make the child very nervous and withdrawn.
It may also feature age or developmentally inappropriate expectations
being imposed on children. Emotional abuse also occurs when there
is constant overprotection, which prevents children from socialising.
Emotional abuse in banding might include situations where children
are subjected by a parent or tutor to constant criticism, name-calling,
sarcasm, bullying, racism or unrealistic pressure in order to perform
to high expectations.
Bullying: This may be bullying of a child by an adult or another
child. Bullying is defined as deliberate hurtful behaviour, usually
repeated over a period, where it is difficult for those bullied
to defend themselves. It may be physical (e.g. hitting, kicking,
theft), verbal (e.g. racist or homophobic remarks, threats, name-calling,
graffiti, abusive text messages transmitted by phone or on the internet),
emotional (e.g. tormenting, ridiculing, humiliating, ignoring, isolating
from the group), or sexual (e.g. unwanted physical contact or abusive
comments).
9 Indicators of abuse may include one or more of the following:
" Unexplained or suspicious injuries such as bruising, cuts
or burns, particularly if situated on a part of the body not normally
prone to such injuries.
" An injury for which an explanation seems inconsistent.
" The child describes what appears to be an abusive act involving
him/her.
" Someone else - a child or adult, expresses concern about
the welfare of a child.
" Unexplained changes in a child's behaviour - e.g. becoming
very quiet, withdrawn, or displaying sudden outbursts of temper
- or behaviour changing over time.
" Inappropriate sexual awareness.
" Engaging in sexually explicit behaviour in games.
" Distrust of adults, particularly those with whom a close
relationship would normally be expected.
" Difficulty in making friends.
" Being prevented from socialising with other children.
" Displaying variations in eating patterns including overeating
or loss of appetite.
" Losing weight for no apparent reason.
" Becoming increasingly dirty or unkempt.
10 Signs of bullying may include:
" Behavioural changes such as reduced concentration or becoming
withdrawn, clingy, depressed, tearful, emotionally up and down,
reluctant to go to band rehearsals or to competitions.
" An unexplained drop-off in standard of performance.
" Physical signs such as stomach aches, headaches, difficulty
in sleeping, bed-wetting, scratching and bruising, damaged clothes
and bingeing on food, cigarettes or alcohol.
" A shortage of money or frequent loss of possessions.
Responding to Suspicions and Allegations
11 Many cases of child abuse in fact take place within the family
setting. However, abuse can and does occur in other situations as
well, which may include brass banding or other social activities,
and is rarely a one-off event when it occurs within such a setting.
It is crucial that those involved in the Band are aware of this
possibility and that all allegations are taken seriously and appropriate
action taken. It is, however, NOT the responsibility of anyone in
the Band to decide whether or not child abuse is taking place. Our
responsibility is to inform appropriate agencies of possible abuse
so that they can then make inquiries and take any necessary action
to protect the child. This applies both to suspicions of abuse occurring
within the Band and to allegations that abuse is taking place elsewhere.
This section explains how members should respond to such concerns.
12 We may become aware of possible abuse in various ways. We may
see it happening ourselves; we may suspect that it is occurring
because of signs such as those listed above; it may be reported
to us by someone else, or directly by the child affected. In the
last of these cases, it is particularly important to respond appropriately.
If a child says or indicates that he or she is being abused, or
information is obtained which gives you concern that a child is
being abused, you should:
" React calmly so as not to frighten the child.
" Tell the child they are not to blame and that it was right
to tell.
" Take what the child says seriously, recognising the difficulties
inherent in interpreting what a child who has a speech disability
and/or differences in language says.
" Keep questions to the absolute minimum necessary so that
there is a clear and accurate understanding of what has been said,
and be careful not to ask leading questions.
" Reassure the child, but do not promise to keep the matter
secret - explain that to resolve the problem it will be necessary
to inform other people as appropriate.
13 As with other forms of information arising in relation to child
protection, information of this kind is highly sensitive and confidential.
Accordingly, it should be held under secure conditions and only
made available to those who have a definite need for it. You should
make a note as soon as possible of whatever information you obtained,
both for your own future reference and possibly for passing on to
others, appropriate agencies such as the social services department
or the police. In writing such a note, you should confine yourself
to the facts, and distinguish between what is your own personal
knowledge and what you have been told by other people. You should
not include your own opinions on the matter, to avoid the possibility
of libel. Information should include the following:
o The nature of the allegation, in as much detail as possible,
including times, dates, locations and other relevant information
" Details of the child involved, including name, age, address
and other contact details, and identifying who has parental responsibility
for the child
" Details of the person against whom the allegation is made,
including name, relationship with the child, age and contact details
(if known)
" The identity and contact details of any informants or other
witnesses
" The child's account, if he or she can give one, of what has
happened
" A description of any visible bruising or other injuries
" Details of who else has been informed of the alleged incident
" Any other relevant information
An example of an incident report for recording such information
is set out in Appendix 1. You should report
your concerns immediately to a Welfare Trustee or, in his or her
absence, to a Band Officer.
Welfare Trustees
14 The Welfare Trustees are Mel Hopkin (Musical Director), Yvonne
Butter (Chairman) and Bev Davey (Membership Secretary)
15 The role of the Welfare Trustees is to:
o Receive and record information from trustees, tutors, other volunteers,
children or parents and carers who have child protection concerns.
o Assess the information promptly and carefully, clarifying or obtaining
more information about the matter as appropriate.
o If appropriate, make a formal referral to the social services
office that covers the area in which the band member lives.
16 In addition, the Welfare Trustees are responsible for:
o Ensuring that our child protection policy and procedures are
followed, in particular our recruitment processes and Criminal Records
Bureau (CRB) checking.
o Promoting awareness of the policy within the Band and amongst
band members and the parents and carers.
o Ensuring that trustees, tutors and voluntary helpers are sufficiently
trained in child protection matters.
o Keeping the Chairman of the Band informed about any action taken
or further action required, for example, disciplinary action against
a trustee, tutor or voluntary helper.
o Ensuring that our child protection policy and procedures remain
appropriate, including reviewing them annually and reporting thereon
to trustees.
o Arranging three yearly renewals of CRB checks.
Personnel
17 Our vetting procedure will be used prior to the appointment of
Welfare Trustees, tutors and voluntary helpers having significant
access to band members. All applicants will be required to:
o Complete a Declaration Form (Appendix 2)
o Permit us to take up two references (Appendix
3)
o Obtain Enhanced CRB Disclosure (Appendix 4)
18 On adoption of this policy, existing Welfare Trustees, tutors
and voluntary helpers having significant access to band members,
will be required to:
o Complete a Declaration Form (Appendix 2)
o Obtain Enhanced CRB Disclosure (Appendix 4)
19 Anyone who receives an unsatisfactory CRB Disclosure will be
given the opportunity to challenge its conclusions and require errors
to be corrected. If, however, the Disclosure is not erroneous, the
application will not be confirmed or the individual's existing association
with the Band will be ended.
Internet
20 The Band website will not permit direct contact through the website
with band members.
21 Photographs of band members may, with their consent, appear
on the Website but only without the identification of the band members.
22 The child protection policy and procedures will be added to
the Website.
Policy adoption
23 This policy was adopted by the Band on 14rh March 2007.
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OBTAINING AN ENHANCED CRB DISCLOSURE
Appendix 4
Obtaining the CRB form
1 Bev Davey holds a stock of CRB Disclosure Application Forms.
Completing the CRB form
2 Please note that the form must be completed in black ink. Any
mistakes should be crossed through and the correct information written
in the given boxes immediately to the right if space permits, or
as close as possible to the intended area. Do not use correcting
fluid as this will cause the CRB computer to reject your form.
3 Sections A-D and Sections G-H on the form must be completed by
the applicant. It is important to record all details. A supplementary
sheet can be used if necessary but must be clearly marked with the
applicant's name and the application reference on the CRB form.
You should also put a cross in box 67 of Section H.
4 Section B should be completed as follows:
" B13 your job title ie either Welfare Trustee, tutor or voluntary
helper
" B14 the 'organisation' means Holbeach Town Band
o B15-B19 the band's full address is Back Lane, Holbeach, Lincolnshire
PE12 7LN
5 Sections E and F are no longer required. You should leave these
sections blank - please do not put a line through these parts of
the form or state not applicable.
6 Only one signature is now required in Section H. You should leave
the consent signature box (69) blank.
Adoptive names
7 If you were adopted before the age of 10, you do not need to provide
your name at birth in Section C. However, if you were 10 or older
when adopted you do need to complete Section C and to provide all
previous and current names.
Changing address in the next few weeks
8 If you know that you are changing address within the next few
weeks, please state the following on a continuation sheet:
"Please note that from [insert date] I will be living at [insert
address]"
Please ensure that the continuation sheet includes your form reference
number and that you have put a cross in box 67 of Section H.
Identity checking
9 Section X is to be completed by one of the Band's Welfare Trustees,
who will check the documentary evidence to confirm your identity.
This must always be provided, even if the Welfare Trustee knows
you. You will need to provide at least three original documents
(photocopies are not permitted) as evidence of identity. These must
all be in your name as given on the form including any middle names,
and any addresses must be the same as the current address given
on the form. The Welfare Trustee will complete item 16 of Section
X to confirm that the details have been checked.
10 You can either provide three documents (one from Group 1 and
any two from Group 2) or five from Group 2.
Group 1
Passport
UK birth certificate issued within 12 months of the date of birth
UK driving licence
EU photo identity card
HM forces ID card
UK firearms licence
Group 2
Marriage certificate
Financial statement ** (eg pension, endowment, ISA)
Birth certificate
Vehicle registration document
UK P45/P60 **
Mail order catalogue statement*
Bank/building society statement*
Court claim form** (documentation issued by Court Services)
Utility bill* (electricity, gas, water, telephone - inc mobile phone
contract/bill)
Exam certificate (eg GCSE, NVQ)
TV licence**
Addressed payslip*
Credit card statement*
National insurance card
Store card statement*
UK NHS card
Mortgage statement**
Benefit book (child allowance or pension)
Insurance certificate**
Certificate of British Nationality
Council tax statement**
Work permit/visa**
A document from UK central/local government/government agency/local
authority giving entitlement* (eg from the Benefits Agency, the
Employment Service or HM Revenue & Customs)
Connexions card
* documentation should be less than three months old
** issued within past 12 months
Sending the form to Lincolnshire County Council
11 Once the identity checks are complete, the Welfare Trustee will
send the form to Lincolnshire County Council (LCC) for you. LCC
is the Registered Body that will support your application and complete
Section Y before it is sent to the CRB. You should not, therefore,
complete Section Y.
Disclosure
12 The Disclosure will be sent to you and to LCC. An authorised
person at LCC will deal with information received, as required by
the CRB. The Band will be advised of the names of persons for whom
checks have been completed.
Further advice
13 Further advice and detailed procedures for completing the form
is available on the CRB website www.disclosure.gov.uk. The CRB also
have a telephone helpline for completing forms which is 0870 90
90 844.
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