SAFEGUARDING POLICY
1. Introduction
I. Chilli Children Trust is a UK registered charity which raises funds for Chilli
Children Project based in Rukungiri SW Uganda.
This Safeguarding Policy applies to trustees fundraising activities in the UK and Trustees and others visiting the Chilli Children Project in Uganda with the approval of or on behalf of Chilli Children Trust.
Chilli Children Project adheres to the Church of Uganda Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy.
II. Chilli Children Trust is based at:
37 Forest Road
Bingham
Nottinghamshire
NG13 8RL
Charity Number: 1106601
III. The Charity has adopted this safeguarding policy and expects every adult
working or helping to support it and comply with it. Consequently, this policy
shall apply to all staff, managers, trustees, directors, volunteers, students or
anyone working on behalf of charity.
2. Purpose of the Policy
I. This policy is intended to protect children and young people who receive any service from us, including those who are the children of adults who may receive services from us.
II. The Charity believes that no child or young person should experience abuse or harm and are committed to the protection of children and young people and this policy is intended to provide guidance and overarching principles to those who represent us as volunteers or staff, to guide our approach to child protection and safeguarding.
3. The Risks to Children
Nearly every child grows up in a safe and happy environment and it is important not to exaggerate or overestimate the dangers. Nevertheless, there are situations where children need protection including but not limited to:
- Sexual abuse;
- Grooming;
- Physical and emotional abuse and neglect;
- Domestic violence;
- Inappropriate supervision by staff or volunteers;
- Bullying, cyber bullying, acts of violence and aggression within our
schools and campuses;
- Victimisation;
- Self-harm;
- Unsafe environments and activities;
- Crime; and
- Exploitation.
4. Universality of Protection
The Charity recognises that:
- the welfare of the child is paramount;
- all children regardless of race, gender, religious belief, disability, age, sexual
orientation or identity have a right to equal protection from harm;
- some children are more vulnerable to harm as a result of their
circumstances, prior experiences, communication needs or level of
dependency; and
- working with children, young people, their parents and/or guardians, carers
or other agencies is essential to protecting their wellbeing.
5. Safeguarding Children at Events/Activities
I. There are three kinds of events/activities:
(A). those open to adults and children of all ages.
(B). those for children accompanied by a 'parent'; and
(C). those for unaccompanied children, which are sometimes run alongside
other events/activities.
II. At events and activities open to all ages, children under 16 must be accompanied
throughout by an adult over the age of 18 who not only brings the child but also
takes the child home again afterwards. Young people aged 16 or 17 may attend
unaccompanied if they bring the written consent and mobile telephone number of
one of their parents.
III. At events and activities for children accompanied by a 'parent', children under 16
must be supervised throughout the event by an adult over the age of 18 who not
only brings the child to the event but also takes the child home again afterwards.
If a lone adult brings more than one child, then the children will have to stay
together, so that the one adult can supervise them. Young people aged 16 or 17
may attend unaccompanied if they bring the written consent and mobile
telephone number of one of their parents.
IV. At events and activities for unaccompanied children, children under the age of 16
must be enrolled by a responsible adult before being left with the event leader.
The enrolment must record the child's name, age and address and the names and
addresses of the child's parents, plus the parents' mobile telephone numbers.
Young people aged 16 or 17 may attend unaccompanied if they bring the written
consent and mobile telephone number of one of their parents.
V. Both events and activities are to be defined broadly to include any occasions
where the Charity will be providing a service.
6. Disclosure and Barring
I. The Project offers the following activities for children and caregivers:
Chilli growing for income.
Education for special needs children.
Teaching life skills.
Medical outreach.
Surgery.
II. Some of the activities may therefore require adult participants from the UK or
adult leaders to undergo DBS and/or police checks under the Safeguarding
Vulnerable Groups Act 2006. The required level of checking (if any) will broadly
reflect the degree and frequency of unsupervised access given to other people's
children.
Activities in the UK involving children will be subject to risk assessment,
III. The Charity will take very seriously any allegation of impropriety on the part of
any member of the Charity. A member of the Charity who discovers anything
amiss should get in touch immediately with the following: The Chairperson
IV. Allegations will be appropriately reviewed and the likely risk to children assessed
and if appropriate, will consider banning the member from future events or revoking his or her membership or both.
The relevant authorities will be alerted immediately in the event of a breach of this child protection policy.
7. Health and Safety Aspects of Safeguarding Children
I. Before starting any event for unaccompanied children, the Board will carry out a
risk assessment and then take steps to minimise or remove all risks to health and safety. Parents and children will be made aware of any risks and of the steps to be taken to minimise those risks.
The Board will keep a record of all risk assessments.
II. Sufficient adults must be present at any event for unaccompanied children to
enable one adult to deal with any emergency while another adult supervises the
children not directly affected by the emergency.
8. Prevention of Bullying
The trustees will not tolerate the bullying of children either by adults or by other children. If any incident of child-on-child bullying should arise at the charity event, those involved will be separated immediately and the parents of the children involved will be asked to deal with the matter. The Board will review all incidents of child-on-child bullying and assess the likely future risk to children. If appropriate, the Board will consider banning a child from future events. Allegations of adults bullying children will be dealt with in accordance with this Policy.
9. Photographing Children
No photographs will be taken or published of any child attending an event or activity unless prior written permission is sought from a person with parental responsibility. If a person has any concerns regarding any person taking photos at an event or activity, that person should contact the Charity immediately.
10. Managing Behaviour, Discipline and Acceptable Restraint
I. Adults supervising children at the Charity events must never use any form of
corporal punishment. If physical restraint is necessary to prevent injury
to any person or to prevent serious damage to property, then the minimum
necessary restraint may be used — but for that purpose only.
II. Unacceptable behaviour at the Charity events for unaccompanied children will
generally be stopped by separating the children from each other and from the
group. The miscreants will be suitably supervised and will be returned as soon as
possible to the care of their parents.
III. The Charity may apply a further disciplinary sanction; namely the banning of the
child from one or more future events over the following 18 months. Any such
sanction would be determined and applied by the following officer: The
Chairperson.
.IV. A parent who is aggrieved by this ban may appeal to the Charity who will hear
the views of all relevant persons. The decision of the Charity is then final. Any
such appeals should be made to and will be determined by the following officer:
The Chairperson.
12. Legal Framework
This policy has been drawn up in accordance with all relevant and applicable legislation and guidance available to the Charity in the jurisdictions it operates within in the United Kingdom. Chiefly, this policy operates in accordance with the:
- Children Act 1989
- United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
- Children Act 2004
- General Data Protection Regulation
- Data Protection Act 2018
This Policy is approved and robustly endorsed by Chilli Children Trust and is due for review every 2 YEARS.
Signed: _______________________________ BRIAN FLEMING (CHAIRPERSON OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES)
Date: 23rd February 2021
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CHURCH OF UGANDA
CHILD PROTECTIONAND SAFE GUARDING POLICY
1. Introduction:
The Church of Uganda takes children’s issues seriously because Jesus valued them and called them to himself.
Children are the future of the Church and as such they hold a unique and privileged position. The Church of Uganda Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy is a key aspect of our Ministry to Children and aims at strengthening the work and ministry so that our young people are ministered to holistically.
By this the Church, ensures that the body, mind and soul for each Child is cared for. Through the use of our head, heart and hands, we protect and safeguard the Young people in our care. It is generally accepted that without guidelines our children face potential risks. This often happens in the hands of adults working in positions of trust. The Church of Uganda, therefore has come up to ensure that children are cared for, loved and protected by parent, workers and volunteers in contact with are them.
Many people, including Church members, are still not sufficiently aware of the importance of building child protection measures into their work. The Child Protection and safeguarding Policy is thus a necessary step to address this challenge and make their interactions ‘child safe’. We hope to develop good practice in all areas of work relating to children in Church Institutions and organs, thereby increasing accountability- which if the measures laid out in this policy are adopted, we believe will significantly strengthen child protection ad safeguarding.
This policy comes at a time when our Country is faced with debates of the future of young people and their safety. This is a step for the Church to assess what we are doing and moving towards achieving children’s rights for provision, protection, and participation and by this the Church is saying that we are accountable to the children under our care.
If children are protected from abuse, neglect, violence and exploitation, then they will enhance their potential and work to build a nation that is fit not only for them but for all humanity. Thus as a Church, we continue to support the Government of Uganda, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), law enforcement officers and all individuals committed to implement children’s rights. We need collective effort with other stake holders and development partners to make protection and safeguarding of children and upholding of their rights a reality in Uganda and beyond.
The Church of Uganda, Child Protection and safeguarding policy as a step taken to ensure that we are keeping children safe. The position of Children in our Church in the Past, the Present and the Promises we make, are based on the biblical foundations identified as pivotal in the passage and making impact in the Ministry to Children. The Children are viewed as vital components of the Mission of the Church whose lives are precious in the Present and Future. The future is based on the Promises that all the Leaders make today.
2. Objective of Child Protection
The Church of Uganda’s Child’s Protection and Safeguarding Policy was approved by the 22nd Provincial Assembly in August 2014 as a working document for the whole Province.
• To raise awareness about risks to children’s wellbeing and protection.
• To mobilize communities to respond and prevent children’s risks
• To monitor possible risks on an ongoing basis
• To help develop local teams and networks to solve the problems
• To liaise with authorities and other players on issues beyond their jurisdiction.
• To ensure that children get justice, counseling and rehabilitation
The policy is meant to provide awareness of children’s needs and through training and understanding, help to protect children throughout Uganda.
3. The Challenge
A. Children are identified as core valuables for both the Church and the Nation. Quoting the Uganda’s Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development; given statistics in 2013 which shows Uganda having 30.7 million Children and of these 17 million are Children below the age of 18 years. The Children accounts for over 56% of the Population and of these 56% are categorized as OVCs.
B. The Churches have up to 57% of the congregations as Children yet they still remain the least budgeted and planned for by the Churches. The 4/14 Window shows vital statistics of what is believed to be the impact of Christian Ministry on different people and their response to the Gospel. 5-12 years; 32% believe and embrace Jesus as their Savior in response to the Gospel; 13-18 years; only 4% believe and respond to the Gospel while; above 19 years only 6% become believers and respond to the Message of Christ. This shows how vital Children in the Mission Ground are very important in not only responding to the Gospel Message but also in having their faith grow.
C. As seen in John 10:10 and 1 Peter 5:8; the Devil is our enemy looking for soft target and often it is the Children. Thus, we as leaders have to do all we can in our power to see that the Ministry to Children is made strong and intentional. Discussions on the status of Children’s Ministry in Churches and what leaders could do, have identified the need for sensitization forums where parents, children’s teachers/leaders and the Church leaders share on how to prioritize and make Children apart of the Churches.
It should therefore be our commitment to place children at the center of the Church and to uphold the dignity of each individual child. With the increasing cases of vulnerable Children and Child abuse the Church is being encouraged to be more watchful and alert in the Ministry to Children. Children’s leaders/teachers in the Churches can be effective in working with the Church leaders, Parents and other stakeholders like village leaders and the police to help children affected by various risks. The Diocese has a mandate to:
• Advocate for Intentional Ministry to Children
• Carefully select, Recruit and Retain the right people for the work and Ministry among Children
• Train and Equip Leaders, Teachers and Parents
• Support and sustain Ministry and Work to Children
• Teach, Encourage, Care, Safe guard and Counsel children within the church and communities
• Set guidelines and standards for children’s programs and events
• Cooperate with all Gov’t and non Gov’t agencies concerned with children and
• Respond to children’s needs appropriately and Give informed pastoral support such shelter, food, clothing and medical care
The need to create a safe place for Children is the responsibility of every individual, Church ministry, Organisation and Government and thus leaders must be purposed and determined to make this a part of their work.
The Church of Uganda Child protection policy comes at a time when our Country is faced with debates of the future of young people and their safety. This is a step for the Church to assess what we are doing and moving towards achieving children’s rights for provision, protection and participation and by this the Church is saying that we are accountable to the children under our care. The COU Child Protection Policy has most of these and many more guidelines.
4. Implementation
So far over 150 Children’s Leaders and Teachers have been training. The first team comprised of all Diocesan Children and Education Coordinators from all the 35 Dioceses of the Province. All Dioceses have already received copies of the Policy Manual. Other Diocesan Teams trained include; Ankole, Kampala, Namirembe, West Buganda Dioceses and still rolling it out more.
Every Church and Every Leader/ Teacher has been called upon to show commitment in matters concerning children by
1) Keeping all relationships with children and young people open, observable, readily understood and shared with more than one responsible adult.
2) Making sure that all work with children and young people must be well supervised and the people doing it carefully selected, well trained and advised of their child protection duties.”
3) Safeguarding, caring and nurturing all the children within our church community.
4) Taking care in selection and training of either ordained or lay ministers; volunteers and paid workers working with children and young people through referees or checking the backgrounds of each person.
5) Responding without delay to every complaint made of a child or young person affected by abuse especially while under our responsibility.
6) Making sure that we fully cooperate with statutory agencies during any investigation concerning a member of the church community on matters of Children.
7) Seeking to offer informed pastoral care to any child, young person or worker who has suffered abuse.
8) Caring for and supervising any members of the church or community known to have been offended against.
Rev Richard M. Rukundo
Provincial Children’s Ministry Coordinator
Church of the Province of Uganda.
