Child Protection

 Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy

The NAC’s Children & Vulnerable Adults Policy was last updated in November 2024 by Pasco Kevlin and Bradley Glasspoole, who is the designated Safeguarding Officer.

DEFINITION

‘Child’ in the context of this policy refers to any individual under the age of 18. The policy is also applicable to other young people and vulnerable adults who use Norwich Arts Centre’s facilities.

POLICY STATEMENT

It is the policy of Norwich Arts Centre that the welfare of the child, young person and vulnerable adult is paramount regardless of age, culture, disability, gender, language, racial origin, religious beliefs, class or sexual identity.

PRINCIPLES

The Norwich Arts Centre will prioritise the welfare of all children who use the venue, by ensuring that all employees and volunteers are clear of their responsibilities in respect of child protection. The Norwich Arts Centre’s staff and volunteers have a responsibility to report any concerns of child abuse to a senior staff member without delay.

MANAGEMENT OF STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS

It is very important that each member of staff and each volunteer is aware of the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy and trained accordingly.

● As part of their induction, all new volunteers or members of staff are provided with a copy of the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy. Any staff or volunteers likely to be involved in children’s and vulnerable adults workshops/courses/events are also DBS checked at this time.

● New staff and volunteers will be assigned to an experienced member of staff to assess their initial involvement in children’s activities.

● Any staff or volunteers with questions or concerns regarding the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy are encouraged to contact the Child Protection Officer.

● The Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy will be reviewed annually to ensure it is kept up-to-date with any changes in the Arts Centre programming or other policies.

● Prior to the annual review of the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy, all staff and volunteers are encouraged to offer ideas to improve it.

● After the annual review of the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy, all staff and volunteers are made aware of any changes.

RESPONSIBILITIES WITHIN THE CHILDREN & VULNERABLE ADULTS SAFEGUARDING POLICY

● All employees and volunteers are responsible for the operation of the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy and that they should act upon any concern no matter how small or trivial it may seem.

● All employees and volunteers recognise the position of trust in which they have been placed.

● In every respect, employees and volunteers ensure that the relationships they form with people are appropriate.

● All staff and volunteers working independently with young or vulnerable people have a Disclosure from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) and uphold the Code of Good Practice (see below). They will also use good supervision as a means of protecting children, taking and creating opportunities to observe staff while they are working with children.

● In cases where there is an allegation or suspicion of child abuse, the senior member of staff will take steps immediately to ensure that no child or adult is placed in a position which could cause further compromise.

● Norwich Arts Centre will work with the appropriate local agencies, and in particular the Norfolk Area Child Protection Committee, Norfolk Social Services and the local Police Authority, to ensure that children and vulnerable adults are safeguarded through the effective operation of the Norwich Arts Centre’s safeguarding procedures.

● Norwich Arts Centre is committed to supporting, resourcing and training those who work with, or who regularly come into contact with, children and vulnerable adults, and to providing appropriate supervision.

● Norwich Arts Centre is committed to reviewing our policy and good practice on an annual basis.

CODE OF BEHAVIOUR

The Code of Behaviour outlined here is a general outline for all staff and volunteers.

● All staff and volunteers should be committed to having a friendly, professional, and approachable attitude.

● Children and vulnerable adults should be treated with respect and dignity; listened to and responded to appropriately.

● All staff and volunteers must endeavour to set an example to children under their duty of care.

An appropriate use of language and manner is essential in this regard.

● All staff and volunteers must avoid physical contact with children and vulnerable adults under their duty of care unless absolutely necessary. Where necessary, contact should be minimal and reported to the Safeguarding Officer.

● All staff and volunteers should avoid being alone with individual children unless absolutely necessary. It is important to remember, however, that a child has the right to talk in privacy. Where necessary, it is important to inform another member of staff, in advance, when and where one-to-one contact will take place.

● All staff and volunteers should be aware that, however well-intentioned, actions may be misinterpreted. Similarly, all staff and volunteers should never jump to conclusions before the facts surrounding a particular action are clear.

SPECIFIC PROCEDURES

Broadly, there are three different types of contact with children and vulnerable adults run by Norwich Arts Centre:
● Theatre/Music- All children under 14 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian who retain responsibility for their children. Young people over 14 are allowed to attend events independently, and all staff has a duty of care for these young people.

● Workshops/Courses/Events- Held in various spaces and occasionally off site, children supervised by Arts Centre staff, volunteers, or external self-employed tutors with a minimum of two staff. During these workshops/courses/events, the staff has a duty of care for the children and vulnerable adults present. All staff for these workshops/courses/events are DBS checked.

● Work experience placements and apprenticeships: These are typically offered to young people aged 14 and over, and are primarily supervised by a member of staff with a DBS check. Within the placement there may be short periods where the student works with a different member of staff (necessary for certain types of experience, such as shadowing event technicians). In these instances, the session will be introduced by the DBS checked supervisor to ensure both parties are happy to proceed. All students are informed in advance of any sessions that take place in the evening, and are asked to arrange travel. Students will remain inside the building until their parent or guardian collects them. During the placement, students will not leave the premises unsupervised. All staff and volunteers should be continually aware that

Norwich Arts Centre is open to the general public who are a potential risk to children and vulnerable adults in their duty of care. The following procedures aim to minimise this risk:

●Throughout the duration of children and vulnerable adults theatre/music performances, an assigned duty manager should be present to ensure the safety of the children present. Any suspicious activity should be monitored and appropriate action taken.

●Throughout the duration of children and vulnerable adults theatre/music performances, all Norwich Arts Centre Staff in or around the auditorium must be identifiable as such, to avoid confusion to staff or parents.

● Should a child in the duty of care of a member of Arts Centre staff need to use the bathroom, the child should be accompanied to the nearest single occupancy toilet, ensure that it is empty, and wait outside for the child to finish.

● Unless approval has been granted by the Child Protection Officer, no photography is allowed during children’s theatre, workshops, or music performances. Signs to this effect should be clearly visible to communicate this. Where permission has been granted, any images containing children must be signed in writing by each child’s parent or guardian.

SHARING INFORMATION ABOUT CHILD PROTECTION

For Parents and Guardians:

A copy of Norwich Arts Centre’s Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy is publicly available as a hard-copy from the Norwich Arts Centre Box Office, or the website at www.norwichartscentre.co.uk Should a parent or guardian have any questions or concerns regarding the Child Protection Policy we encourage them to contact the Child Protection Officer:

Bradley Glasspoole
Norwich Arts Centre, 51 St. Benedict’s Street, Norwich NR2 4PG
bradley@norwichartscentre.co.uk .
01603 660352

For Norwich Arts Centre Staff and Volunteers:

Norwich Arts Centre aims to ensure that all its members of staff and volunteers are aware of their responsibilities regarding the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy. Each member of staff will receive annual updates and any necessary new training in Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy. Should a member of staff or volunteer have a question or query regarding the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy they should contact the Child Protection Officer. Similar contact should be made if a member of staff or volunteer has an idea of how the Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy can be improved.

For Other Bodies:

A copy of Norwich Arts Centre’s Children & Vulnerable Adults Safeguarding Policy is publicly available as a hard-copy from the Norwich Arts Centre Box Office, or the website at www.norwichartscentre.co.uk

SHARING INFORMATION ABOUT CONCERNS

If the matter requires immediate attention, the staff member or volunteer must decide a course of necessary action. The following are potentially relevant outside organisations to contact for guidance:

Norfolk County Council Child Protection Services 0344 800 8020
https://www.norfolk.gov.uk/children-and-families/keeping-children-safe/report-concerns
NSPCC Helpline 0808 800 5000 or email help@nspcc.org.uk
Child Line 0800 1111 (for people 18 or under)
Police 101 (or 999 in an emergency)