Safeguarding

Safeguarding means protecting people who interact with your charity from harm, abuse, neglect, or exploitation. This applies to children (under 18), adults at risk, and anyone else your organisation works with or supports. Good safeguarding isn’t just good practice — it’s a legal responsibility of every charity and its board, because it keeps people safe, builds trust, and ensures your charity operates responsibly and legally.

Your Charity’s Safeguarding Responsibilities

Have a safeguarding policy

Your charity must have a written safeguarding policy that:

• Explains how you protect people from harm;

• Outlines roles and responsibilities;

• Describes how concerns will be raised, recorded, and acted on;

• Identifies who will oversee safeguarding — typically a Designated Safeguarding Officer (DSO) or Lead responsible for implementing the policy and coordinating responses;

• Is reviewed and updated regularly.

This policy should be appropriate for the people you work with and publicly available where possible. Appointing a DSO is widely recognised as good practice, providing a clear point of contact for staff, volunteers, and the board, while the board remains ultimately accountable.

Safe recruitment

Recruitment practices, both for volunteers and staff, should protect the people you work with.

These should include:

• Checking suitability of volunteers, staff, and trustees;

• Asking for references and carrying out background checks (DBS) where appropriate;

• Using clear role descriptions and vetting procedures before anyone starts work.

This applies to all roles where people may have contact with children, adults at risk, or other beneficiaries.

Training and awareness

Everyone involved in your charity should understand safeguarding, including:

• Recognising signs of abuse or neglect;

• How to raise concerns internally;

• Specialist training for those with safeguarding responsibilities.

Training ensures people can follow your policy and respond appropriately. Free safeguarding training is available locally through the States of Guernsey and the ISCP.

Raising a concern

• If you are worried about a child’s safety or welfare, you can report it to the Multi-Agency Support Hub (MASH)

• Raising a concern about a vulnerable adult: If you suspect abuse or neglect of an adult at risk, contact the Adult Safeguarding Team through Social Services or, in urgent situations, the police.

• Raising a concern about a charity: If you have concerns about misconduct or unsafe practices within a charity, please contact the Association of Guernsey Charities, chair@charity.org.gg.

Commitment to Welfare

Charities should recognise that welfare extends beyond beneficiaries to include volunteers, staff and trustees. Even with limited resources, charities should aim to create an environment where people feel safe, respected and supported.

In practice this may include:

• Promoting a respectful and supportive environment for everyone involved

• Encouraging people to raise concerns or ask for support if needed

• Ensuring volunteers and staff know who they can speak to about wellbeing concerns

• Signposting people to appropriate support services where necessary

Taking simple steps to support welfare helps ensure those involved in charitable work feel valued and supported.