Purpose
The purpose of the policy is to provide protection for the children and young people who participate in our festivals, including the children of festival members, to provide staff and volunteers with guidance on procedures they should adopt in the event that they suspect a child or young person may be experiencing, or be at risk of, harm.
We will seek to safeguard children and young people by:
- valuing them, listening to and respecting them
- adopting child protection guidelines through procedures and safe working practice for staff and volunteers
- recruiting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
- sharing information about child protection and safe working practice with children, parents, staff, and volunteers
- sharing information about concerns with agencies who need to know, and involving parents and children appropriately
- providing effective management for staff and volunteers through supervision, support, and training.
- One or more designated Festival Safeguarding Officers (FSO) will be appointed for each Festival. Joanne Hutson-Thornton is the dedicated Safeguarding Officer and will be in attendance at each festival.
- Some children and vulnerable adults may have specific needs in order to take part. If this is the case, we ask the responsible teachers, parents, guardians, or carers to contact the festival organisers prior to arrival via email at southfestivals@gmail.com. The festival actively seeks wherever possible to meet these needs but must know beforehand in order to prepare, support or to advise that help cannot be provided on this occasion.
- By completing and signing the entry form all parents, guardians, carers and teachers of entrants under 18 (or vulnerable adults of any age) confirm that they give (or have obtained) the necessary consents for the entrants to take part in the festival. Without this consent entries to the festival cannot be accepted.
- For the duration of a festival all teachers, parents, guardians, and carers are responsible for the continuous care and supervision of their own children/pupils. If they are unable to attend personally, they must delegate their responsibilities to an identified adult and ensure that their children/pupils are aware of the identity and name of the person responsible for their care. This includes supervision throughout the festival venues, practice and changing areas that may be provided.
Please contact southfestivals@gmail.com with any safeguarding queries or information that should be considered ahead of the festival.