Creating safe enrivonments.
We take safeguarding very seriously, especially online,
and our full safeguarding policy can be obtained on request.
Below are our key commitments:
Individual team members will not make contact with young people privately, except where specifically arranged with the young person's parent/guardian in advance (for example as part of a mentoring arrangement). If any other personal contact is required, this will be made with accountability by copying in our Safeguarding Officer using the address safeguarding@theascentuk.co.uk.
1-to-1 mentoring between young people and team members will take place only with express consent of parents/guardians during the last PoD session of the month. While theASCENT respects the privacy of these mentoring sessions – and indeed all sessions – we do not promise absolute confidentiality. This ensures we are able to deal appropriately with any safeguarding concerns either raised during, or regarding, any of our sessions.
Online small groups (Pockets of Disciples, PoD) gather through a Zoom video conference each week. This is to take place at 7.30pm on a MONDAY night for 1 hour. These sessions are not to continue beyond 8.45pm as this increases parental availability and transparency, as well as respects the needs of the young people to sleep sufficiently.
Team should ensure all present during video conferences are comfortable and respected. Any excluding or bullying behaviour is to be prevented where possible, and acted on if it presents itself. All should be dressed modestly. Any young person or team member who is not dressed or behaving appropriately should be removed from the video conference to address the issue.
In the event that only one team member is available, recordings may be made of online sessions and used only for the purposes of verifying what happened during those sessions should any complaints or questions arise. Recordings will be kept for the duration of the process or for a year after the event, whichever is longer.
Any concerns regarding the welfare of young people that arise during a video conference or any other electronic communication should be acted on in accord with the relevant guidelines for safeguarding. If a team member is in doubt they must contact our dedicated Safeguarding Officer (safeguarding@theascentuk.co.uk) for advice.