Every charity has a responsibility to safeguard people from harm or abuse.
This responsibility extends to anyone that interacts with your charity in any way. So it doesn’t matter if they’re a supporter, a volunteer, a paid member of staff, or a beneficiary. We all have a right to a life free from harm or abuse. Safeguarding is a shared responsibility, and the responsibility extends to everyone.
The Safeguarding Checklist
In 2019 we launched our Safeguarding Checklist. We designed it to help you or your organisation assess your own understanding of safeguarding. It’s also a chance to access essential resources to fill the gaps in your knowledge.
The Checklist should take you about 15 minutes to complete. Once you complete it, you will receive a tailored report featuring a summary of your responses. You’ll also receive a unique link to additional learning resources and materials. This will allow you to develop right safeguarding measures for young people and adults at risk.
Find the Safeguarding Checklist here.
Our Safeguarding Checklist is a small part of a much larger project. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the National Lottery collaborated to produce a suite resources on safeguarding.
The rest of the resources are now live. You can now access an online Government portal featuring comprehensive guidance on handling safeguarding allegations in a charity.
Strengthening Safeguarding in the Third Sector
The main part of the Government’s online portal is a safeguarding tool to help you handle issues with the right people and agencies. Find it here.
Among the additional guidance you’ll find:
- Our Safeguarding Checklist.
- NSPCC advice for safeguarding children.
- A suite of safeguarding resources by NCVO.
- Charity Commission advice on safeguarding in the third sector.
- Protect – the Charity Commission’s confidential whistleblowing helpline.
- Bond – Safeguarding resources for overseas safeguarding concerns.
You can access the Government’s new charity safeguarding hub here.