SAFEGUARDING & CHILD PROTECTION PROCEDURES

PEPPO TUTORS 

SAFEGUARDING & CHILD PROTECTION POLICY

Introduction 

Peppo Tutors takes safeguarding very seriously whilst it is committed to furthering the educational attainment of the children and young people that it tutors it acknowledges that the welfare of the child is of paramount importance. Children have the right to be treated with respect in a safe and nurturing environment and protected from any kind of abuse. 

What is the basis of this policy? 

This policy has been drawn up on the basis of legislation, policy and guidance that seeks to protect children in England.  In this policy, “children or young people”, mean anyone who has not yet reached their 18th birthday and, “Peppo Personnel” mean tutors, members of staff (including managers, directors, paid staff, agency staff), consultants, interns or other persons working on behalf of Peppo (regardless of whether they are Peppo employees).  

What is the purpose and application of this policy?

The purpose of this policy is to provide protection for the children and young people who receive Peppo’s tutoring service as well as the safety and wellbeing of our tutors. This policy should be read alongside the Safeguarding Procedures and Conduct of Behaviour guidelines.  This policy applies to all Peppo Personnel.

What is Peppo’s commitment? 

Peppo is committed to providing a safe environment for children and recognises that:

• the welfare of the child/young person is of paramount importance;

• all children, 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; 

• all suspicions and allegations of inappropriate behaviour will be taken seriously and responded to swiftly and appropriately; and  

• working in partnership with children, young people, their parents, carers and other agencies is essential in promoting young people’s welfare.

How will Peppo seek to safeguard children and young people?

Peppo will seek to safeguard children and young people by:

• valuing them, listening to and respecting them;

• recruiting tutors and staff safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made;

• adopting safeguarding procedures and conduct of behaviour guidelines;

• recording, storing and using information professionally and securely, in line with data protection legislation; 

• sharing information about child protection and good practice with children, parents, staff and tutors; 

• sharing information about concerns with agencies and schools who need to know, and involving parents and children appropriately; 

• providing effective training for tutors and staff; 

• using our procedures to manage any allegations against Peppo Personnel; and 

• building a safeguarding culture where Peppo Personnel, children, young people and their families, treat each other with respect and are comfortable about sharing concerns. 

What is the role of Peppo Personnel?

It is essential that all Peppo Personnel are aware of their duties concerning safeguarding and ensure that:

• the safety and wellbeing of the child is promoted; 

• this policy and the Safeguarding Procedures and Conduct of Behaviour guidelines are read, understood and complied with; and 

• where Tutoring occurs within a school or other third-party organisation, the policies of that organisation are respected

It is also essential that Peppo Personnel should be alert to the signs of child abuse (the main categories of which are set out in the appendix) and should report any concerns about a child or someone else’s behaviour promptly.  It is not the role or responsibility of Peppo Tutors to investigate allegations of harm or risk of harm.

Will this policy be updated?

We are committed to reviewing our policy and good practice annually and will update this policy if appropriate.

Who are the key contacts?

Given the importance that we place on safeguarding the key contact is Peppo’s founder and CEO, Adrian Levy.  He can be contacted at:

Email: Adrian.levy@peppo.org

Tel: 07717542736

Should you wish to discuss any matter with a third party then please contact the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000. 

Date of Policy: January 2021

APPENDIX

FORMS OF ABUSE

Four Main Categories 

The following set out the four main categories of abuse.

Physical Abuse 

A form of abuse which may involve hitting, shaking, throwing, poisoning, burning or scalding, drowning, suffocating or otherwise causing physical harm to a child. Physical harm may also be caused when a parent or carer fabricates the symptoms of, or deliberately induces, illness in a child.

Neglect 

The persistent failure to meet a child’s basic physical and/or psychological needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of the child’s health or development. Neglect may occur during pregnancy as a result of maternal substance abuse. Once a child is born, neglect may involve a parent or carer failing to:

• provide adequate food, clothing and shelter (including exclusion from home or abandonment)

• protect a child from physical and emotional harm or danger

• ensure adequate supervision (including the use of inadequate care-givers)

• ensure access to appropriate medical care or treatment It may also include neglect of, or unresponsiveness to, a child’s basic emotional needs.

Emotional Abuse 

The persistent emotional maltreatment of a child such as to cause severe and persistent adverse effects on the child’s emotional development. It may involve:

• conveying to a child that they are worthless or unloved, inadequate, or valued only insofar as they meet the needs of another person

• not giving the child opportunities to express their views, deliberately silencing them or ‘making fun’ of what they say or how they communicate

• age or developmentally inappropriate expectations being imposed on children

• interactions that are beyond a child’s developmental capability, as well as overprotection and limitation of exploration and learning, or preventing the child participating in normal social interaction

• seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another

• serious bullying (including cyber bullying), causing children frequently to feel frightened or in danger, or the exploitation or corruption of children.

Some level of emotional abuse is involved in all types of maltreatment of a child, though it may occur alone (Working Together 2018)

Any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are, or have been, intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality. The abuse can encompass, but is not limited to psychological, physical, sexual, financial and emotional.

As highlighted above, Domestic Abuse is generally treated as falling under emotional abuse. The cross- government definition (2014) of domestic violence and abuse is as follows:

Peppo Tutors considers that domestic abuse is a child protection issue and that if children witness or hear domestic abuse, this must be treated as a child protection matter, even if they are not directly involved in the incidents. The Adoption and Children Act 2002 states that impairment can be caused by seeing or hearing the ill treatment of another.

Sexual Abuse

Involves forcing or enticing a child or young person to take part in sexual activities, not necessarily involving a high level of violence, whether or not the child is aware of what is happening. The activities may involve:

•             physical contact, including assault by penetration (for example, rape or oral sex) or non- penetrative acts such as masturbation, kissing, rubbing and touching outside of clothing.

•             non-contact activities, such as involving children in looking at, or in the production of, sexual images, watching sexual activities, encouraging children to behave in sexually inappropriate ways, or grooming a child in preparation for abuse

Sexual abuse can take place online, and technology can be used to facilitate offline abuse. Sexual abuse is not solely perpetrated by adult males. Women can also commit acts of sexual abuse, as can other children (Working Together 2018)

Other Concerns

In addition to the above concerns, children self-harming or expressing suicidal ideas must be treated as safeguarding and child protection issues.

Child Criminal Exploitation

Where an individual or group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to coerce, control, manipulate or deceive a child or young person into any criminal activity (a) in exchange for something the victim needs or wants, and/or (b) for the financial or other advantage of the perpetrator or facilitator and/or (c) through violence or the threat of violence. The victim may have been criminally exploited even if the activity appears consensual. Child criminal exploitation does not always involve physical contact; it can also occur through the use of technology.

Child Sexual Exploitation 

Child sexual exploitation is a form of child sexual abuse. It occurs where an individual or group takes advantage of an imbalance of power to coerce, manipulate or deceive a child or young person into sexual activity (a) in exchange for something the victim needs or wants, and/or (b) for the financial advantage or increased status of the perpetrator or facilitator. The victim may have been sexually exploited even if the sexual activity appears consensual. Child sexual exploitation does not always involve physical contact; it can also occur through the use of technology.

County Lines 

County lines is a term used to describe gangs and organised criminal networks involved in exporting illegal drugs into one or more importing areas within the UK, using dedicated mobile phone lines or other form of ‘deal line’. They are likely to exploit children and vulnerable adults to move and store the drugs and money, and they will often use coercion, intimidation, violence (including sexual violence) and weapons.

Extremism 

Any concerns about radicalisation and extremist views or behaviours in children and young people must be reported as a safeguarding concern.  Extremism goes beyond terrorism and includes people who target the vulnerable – including the young – by seeking to sow division between communities on the basis of race, faith or denomination; justify discrimination towards women and girls; persuade others that minorities are inferior; or argue against the primacy of democracy and the rule of law in our society.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM)

Concerns that a child has been, or may be about to be, subjected to FGM, fall under this policy and must also be reported as a safeguarding concern.

Forced Marriage

In forced marriage, one or both spouses do not consent to the marriage and some element of duress is involved. Duress includes both physical and emotional pressure and abuse. 

‘So-called’ Honour-Based Violence  

The term “honour crime” or “honour-based violence” embraces a variety of crimes of violence, including assault, imprisonment and murder where their family or their community is punishing the person. They are being punished for (actually or allegedly) undermining what the family or community believes to be the correct code of behaviour. In transgressing this correct code of behaviour, the person shows that they have not been properly controlled to conform by their family and this is to the “shame” or “dishonour” of the family.

Contextual safeguarding

Contextual Safeguarding is an approach to understanding, and responding to, young people’s experiences of significant harm beyond their families. It recognises that the different relationships that young people form in their neighbourhoods, schools and online can feature violence and abuse.