SAFEGUARDING POLICY

Girls Leadership Academy Meetup, NPO

Safeguarding Policy of GLAM-ReadyToLead.com

Last Updated: December 8, 2020

Introduction
Girls Leadership Academy Meetup (“GLAM”, “we”, “us”, “our”) makes a positive contribution to a strong and safe community and recognizes the right of every individual to stay safe. Our mission at GLAM is a simple one: to equip girls across the globe with the skills and confidence to seek leadership roles, to feel power within their voice, and to create positive change in the world. Together with our partners and our friends of GLAM, we are committed to reaching and empowering 1 million girls by 2030 and showcasing 1,000 women in STEM. Due to the nature of GLAM, we connect with children and/or vulnerable adults through various activities and we are committed to ensuring the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults.

As an employee, volunteer, or anyone involved in GLAM, you must know how to use the safeguarding procedure. This procedure explains how you use the safeguarding policy when you recognize, receive, or refer a safeguarding allegation, concern or disclosure.

GLAM Safeguarding Policy (“Policy”) seeks to ensure that we and those that represent GLAM, undertake our responsibilities with regard to the protection of children and vulnerable adults and respond to concerns appropriately. The policy establishes a framework to support employees, volunteers and those working on behalf of GLAM in their safeguarding practices and clarifies our expectations.

Definitions

Safeguarding: is about embedding practices throughout the organization to ensure the protection of children and vulnerable adults wherever possible. In contrast, child and adult protection is about responding to circumstances that arise. Safeguarding is the action we take to promote the welfare of girls, young women and adults and protect them from harm.
Definition of a child: A child is under the age of 18 (as defined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of a Child)
Definition of Vulnerable Adults: A vulnerable adult is a person aged 18 years or over who may be unable to take care of themselves or protect themselves from harm or from being exploited.

Our Responsibilities
All employees and those representing GLAM, including volunteers, have a responsibility to follow the guidance laid out in this policy and related policies, and to pass on any welfare concerns using the required procedures. We expect all employees and those acting on behalf of GLAM to promote good practice by being an excellent role model, contribute to discussions about safeguarding and to positively involve people in developing safe practices.

What we mean by safeguarding concern
A safeguarding concern, allegation, or disclosure could be anything relating to an adult’s or child’s safety or welfare, or it could be about the potential risk a person may pose. It could include any of the following:

A disclosure of abuse, neglect or harm made by any young member or volunteer.
A disclosure about conduct or behavior that failed to protect a child, young person or adult.
Something concerning in a person’s behavior, conduct or appearance that may indicate abuse, neglect, harm, or criminal behavior.
A concern about the behavior of one child or young person to another (peer on peer abuse).
A concern, allegation, or disclosure about a GLAM volunteer who has behaved or may have behaved in a way that indicates they may not be suitable to work with children or vulnerable adults at that time.

How to report a safeguarding concern
Sometimes, a girl, young woman or adult will trust you with personal information, or you will have a concern about their safety or wellbeing. It is extremely important that you understand your role, including what to say and how to behave.
All employees, volunteers and representatives of GLAM need to follow the following safeguarding behaviors which help ensure a safe space for all of us.

Vigilance and understanding - Take time to understand situations and be alert so that you notice when something is wrong.
Awareness – Be alert to your surroundings and ensure no one is unnecessarily left alone with a child or vulnerable adult.
Early help - Take action and provide support as soon as a problem emerges and before it gets any worse.
Inclusion - Safeguard every individual because everyone is equally important and valuable. Everyone involved in GLAM has a right to equal protection from all types of harm and abuse.
Resilience - Support individuals to develop the knowledge, ability and the confidence to be actively involved in and responsible for their own safety and wellbeing.
Stability - Develop ongoing stable relationships of trust with all those you work with. This means you are more likely to notice if something is wrong.
Respect - Treat everyone with the expectation that they are responsible and accountable rather than not.
Advocacy - Help others to put forward their own point of view.
Accountability - Always respond if you are concerned; never assume someone else has or someone else will.

If you notice signs or behavioral indicators of abuse or harm, or someone shares information with you directly (either about themselves or about someone else):

Listen carefully and patiently. But do not investigate but try to find out as much as you can from them, using open questions. A good way to seek further information is to repeat the person’s statement back to them. For example, if you are told, ‘I feel unsafe at home’ you could say, ‘You feel unsafe at home?’
Trust what is said is correct and reassure the individual that they done the right thing in telling you and you will help them get the support they need.
Affirm whatever feelings they may have. Stay calm and don’t make assumptions or judgments about the information they have told you.
Refer and tell the person that you cannot keep it a secret. Explain that you may need to pass the information on to keep them, or other people, safe. Record a factual account of the conversation immediately. Contact a member of the GLAM Squad HQ team immediately either in person or by email: glamsquad@glam-readytolead.com.
Support them following the disclosure and offer immediate reassurance that you will help get them the support they need. Then continue to be consistent and reliable in the support offered.

Implementation

The scope of this Safeguarding Policy is broad-ranging and in practice, it will be implemented via a range of policies and procedures within GLAM. GLAM policies and procedures are reviewed and updated from time to time as part of a review cycle. If you have any concerns about safeguarding at GLAM, please contact glamsquad@glam-readytolead.com.