Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults

Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults
When working with children and vulnerable adults two of the most important considerations are the planning and supervision of their activities. To create a safe environment, both of these are significant factors in helping to protect them, and others from incidents and accidents.
Any person under the age of 18 is defined by the word ‘children’, and ‘vulnerable adult’ would be any person over the age of 18 who may be, or actually is, in need of the community care services because of a disability, whether mental, or other illness and who may be or is, unable to fully take care of their self, or unable to protect their self against exploitation or harm.
Safeguarding
The definition of ‘safeguarding’ describes a wide approach to meeting the requirements of all children and vulnerable adults (including individuals who may be at risk from abuse).
All people indirectly or directly involved in activities with leisure activities for children and vulnerable adults have a responsibility which includes:

Don't use plagiarized sources. Get Your Custom Essay on
Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults
Just from $13/Page
Order Essay

To review their practices in all situations and thus to ensure that they comply with recognised codes of conduct.
To be able to identify the symptoms, indicators and signs of abuse and also the impact this has upon children and the vulnerable adults.
To respond in appropriately and take relevant action if any concerns are raised.
To provide opportunities to engage with children and vulnerable adults and to use the opportunities to keep the person(s) safe, healthy, enjoying their activities and achieving.

The responsibilities and limitations of a fitness instructor
As a mentor it is crucial to example your safeguarding behaviour at all times, this includes:

Assume you are a role model
Adhere to the procedures and policies
Adhere to the code of behaviour and practice
Always wear your uniform and / or your name/id, badge if it is provided
Understand and act upon your responsibilities
Recognise the need and also protect the rights of participation, for enjoyment, fun and achievement for all others
Report any suspected abuse to a senior manager, superiors or a protection officer
Respond to any case of abuse in a responsible fashion
Conduct activities or work in an open environment
At all times conduct activities or work in an open environment even if interacting one to one

The types of abuse which an instructor may encounter
Abuse can manifest itself in many different forms, but broadly it’s separated into five categories:

Emotional
Physical
Bullying
Sexual
Neglect

The possible signs of abuse
Physical Abuse. The indicators are:

fear of a parent or a carer being contacted
angry or aggressive outbursts
a fear of going home
easily flinching
evidence of depression
habitually keeping their legs and arms covered
more withdrawn behaviour
unexplained body bruises or other injuries
bruises which look like hand marks
cigarette burns
bite or teeth marks
scalds, broken bones and very alarming injuries or behaviour

Emotional abuse
The indicators are:

unable or unwilling to participate in an activity
clearly neurotic behaviour

sudden or recently developed speech disorders
a fear of making any mistake
fear of parents or carers being contacted
self-harm
withdrawn and closed in type of behaviour
depression

Sexual abuse
The indicators are:

sudden changes in behaviour
becoming aggressive or conversely, withdrawn
an apparent fear of one particular person
self- harm or suicidal
seen in children; knowledge sexually advanced, or behaviour that is beyond their age
language or behaviour that is sexually explicit
bruising, itching or pain in the genital area
evidence of diseases that are sexually transmitted
pains in the stomach
discomfort when sitting, exercising, even walking

Bullying
The indicators are:

Insecurity
Seems ‘over’ sensitive
Withdrawn behaviour
Indications of emotional and or physical abuse

Neglect
The indicators are:

In children; lateness and truancy
unsupervised and regularly alone
constantly hungry
unkempt condition
obesity or weight loss
inappropriately dressed

Policies & Procedures for Safeguarding a Fitness Environment
The central principles of a policy are:

Proper personal behaviour and conduct by instructors must be maintained at all times
Instructors must retain a high level of competency via a commitment to ongoing training which ensures a correct and safe practice.

Volunteers and paid instructors and must possess a current Criminals Records Bureau Check
Maintain confidentiality always.

Follow these key principles of procedure which are:
Refer any suspicions to a senior manager or supervisor and ensure a response. In an emergency, call emergency services. If a child or a vulnerable adult chooses you as their trusted adult while in the fitness environment, then follow these procedures:

Do not make any promise to keep any secrets
Be calm, reassure the individual, listen carefully and allow the individual to speak
Refrain from asking leading questions or appearing to interrogate
Do not confront or approach the suspected abuser, or the parents or the carer of the individual
It is very important to record in writing the details of what has transpired and what was said, heard and seen

To protect oneself from accusations of abuse, then follow the previously outlined guidelines while also remembering a procedure that it is preferable to follow:

At all group times and also one to one, work in an open environment.
Never take photographs of children and young people without permission of their guardian.
Consider always your behaviour towards vulnerable adults and children
Make your sessions enjoyable, achievable, safe and healthy for all the participants
Take appropriate action if you have a concern about the behaviour of an adult or child towards another child or vulnerable adult
Promote the welfare of your clients, even if this means letting another professional take over.
As a trusted instructor, Do not engage in intimacy with a vulnerable person at any time nor spend time alone with a vulnerable person, e.g. offering a lift home to a child after the session

For the respect of the rights of vulnerable people, key principles flow regarding their entitlement:

Privacy
To be treated with dignity and respect
To lead an independent lifestyle and to be enabled to do so
To be able to choose how to conduct their lives
Protection of the law
To have their rights upheld without condition
To be able to realise full potential in all aspects of daily life while fulfilling personal aspirations

Planning & Supervision
Preferably, all the activities involving vulnerable adults and children, irrespective of their nature or apparent risk level, should be planned. Planning involves considering the “risk assessment” of the difficulties and potential dangers that may arise and so to make plans that minimalize risks.
If you are supervising or leading an activity where children are involved, then you have a legal, professional and a moral responsibility to safeguard their welfare. This means that you must strive to deliver a supportive and safe environment. Failure to prevent harm could result in abuse.
Adequate supervision implies that you must:

Consider the participant to supervisor ratio. This needs to consider the age of the children, any special educational or medical needs, even disabilities, and the degree of risk involved in the proposed activities.
If the activity involves mixed gender participation, then attention must also be given to having both male and female supervisors in attendance or available.
Some local Authorities and professional associations may set recommended supervision levels, to be followed where applicable.

Can I learn more about protecting and safeguarding children?

You may contact your county administration to find out about education or safeguarding workshops.

If I work with children what are my child protection responsibilities?

You have a duty of care for any children that you may work with, meaning you must take reasonable precautions to keep those children from harm.
You must also ensure that any other adults involved in the activities are correctly vetted if recruited.
If you work in a fitness environment, then it should be encouraged that the entity put in place those child protection measures necessary to support the activities taking place.

How to improve the child protection measures and the safeguarding in my gym, club, facility?

Make sure that a Child Protection Officer has helped to co-ordinate the planned strategy.
Then put in place the child protection policy with a commitment that is visible and clear.

Who needs to complete a CRB check?
A criminal record check is just one of the methods by which it is possible to ensure that the right character of people in place when working with children and vulnerable adults.
Moral Duty of Care
There are specialized courses in all of the topics dealt with in this publication. The onus is on you to research and study further. Research and study and the practical implementation of all that is absorbed learnt and assimilated, is of course essential, therefore the best we can hope to do herein is inspire and guide you in the right direction regarding what may be in store, if you choose a career in the field and the level of professionalism you will have to employ, in order to instruct others to the best of your potential and abilities, and equally progress in your career.
The Moral Duty of Care is an overarching principle that encompasses all of what has been outlined in this subject matter. One can only give a reasonable appreciation of this topic as space does not permit a full in-depth exploration of, nor indeed in any of the topics in this publication regarding the fitness work and career environment.
Duty of Care, is your responsibility for the safety and welfare of those under your temporary guidance. In fitness and sports activities the staff member, instructor cum coach, has a duty of care for all those participating irrespective of age or position. Where children are included, those in responsibility have to act in ‘loco parentis’ which requires the adult to be as “a reasonable parent”. Within the fitness and sporting environment the duty of care begins by ensuring that the activity itself is authorized and that the instructors are so qualified for the activity; therefore the activity is managed in a safe manner throughout.

Find Out How UKEssays.com Can Help You!
Our academic experts are ready and waiting to assist with any writing project you may have. From simple essay plans, through to full dissertations, you can guarantee we have a service perfectly matched to your needs.
View our services

Child Protection Policies
For long child protection policies had been developed in haste and as responses to individual tragedies, the good intentions, though at times perhaps misguided, they assumed that every risk could be mitigated against and that every loophole could be plugged. The pressure was to prescribe and legislate more which led to the public’s confusion, or an often fearful workforce. Thus a dysfunctional culture grew which was of mistrust, between Children and Vulnerable Adults.
We should prefer to begin with a presumption of confidence and trust in those people who will be working with children in a fitness environment, and also with the good sense and judgment of facility supervisors, managers and owners.
If an instructor or teacher’s supervision may fall below the standard of a reasonably prudent parent, and a child gets hurt as a result, then that instructor or teacher may be held negligent. Anyone instructing, managing or supervising children and vulnerable adults in a setting of gym, club etc., must consider what steps they shall need to accomplish to demonstrate that a reasonable standard of care is being provided.
Examples of this could include:

Attendance registers kept updated
Contact details and records kept updated
Appropriate supervision ratios are maintained
Specific medical conditions – allergies, asthma, epilepsy are updated and maintained
Ensure that first aid is available at the venue
Ensure that those who are supervising the children and vulnerable adults have undergone an appropriate selection and recruitment process.

 

What Will You Get?

We provide professional writing services to help you score straight A’s by submitting custom written assignments that mirror your guidelines.

Premium Quality

Get result-oriented writing and never worry about grades anymore. We follow the highest quality standards to make sure that you get perfect assignments.

Experienced Writers

Our writers have experience in dealing with papers of every educational level. You can surely rely on the expertise of our qualified professionals.

On-Time Delivery

Your deadline is our threshold for success and we take it very seriously. We make sure you receive your papers before your predefined time.

24/7 Customer Support

Someone from our customer support team is always here to respond to your questions. So, hit us up if you have got any ambiguity or concern.

Complete Confidentiality

Sit back and relax while we help you out with writing your papers. We have an ultimate policy for keeping your personal and order-related details a secret.

Authentic Sources

We assure you that your document will be thoroughly checked for plagiarism and grammatical errors as we use highly authentic and licit sources.

Moneyback Guarantee

Still reluctant about placing an order? Our 100% Moneyback Guarantee backs you up on rare occasions where you aren’t satisfied with the writing.

Order Tracking

You don’t have to wait for an update for hours; you can track the progress of your order any time you want. We share the status after each step.

image

Areas of Expertise

Although you can leverage our expertise for any writing task, we have a knack for creating flawless papers for the following document types.

Areas of Expertise

Although you can leverage our expertise for any writing task, we have a knack for creating flawless papers for the following document types.

image

Trusted Partner of 9650+ Students for Writing

From brainstorming your paper's outline to perfecting its grammar, we perform every step carefully to make your paper worthy of A grade.

Preferred Writer

Hire your preferred writer anytime. Simply specify if you want your preferred expert to write your paper and we’ll make that happen.

Grammar Check Report

Get an elaborate and authentic grammar check report with your work to have the grammar goodness sealed in your document.

One Page Summary

You can purchase this feature if you want our writers to sum up your paper in the form of a concise and well-articulated summary.

Plagiarism Report

You don’t have to worry about plagiarism anymore. Get a plagiarism report to certify the uniqueness of your work.

Free Features $66FREE

  • Most Qualified Writer $10FREE
  • Plagiarism Scan Report $10FREE
  • Unlimited Revisions $08FREE
  • Paper Formatting $05FREE
  • Cover Page $05FREE
  • Referencing & Bibliography $10FREE
  • Dedicated User Area $08FREE
  • 24/7 Order Tracking $05FREE
  • Periodic Email Alerts $05FREE
image

Our Services

Join us for the best experience while seeking writing assistance in your college life. A good grade is all you need to boost up your academic excellence and we are all about it.

  • On-time Delivery
  • 24/7 Order Tracking
  • Access to Authentic Sources
Academic Writing

We create perfect papers according to the guidelines.

Professional Editing

We seamlessly edit out errors from your papers.

Thorough Proofreading

We thoroughly read your final draft to identify errors.

image

Delegate Your Challenging Writing Tasks to Experienced Professionals

Work with ultimate peace of mind because we ensure that your academic work is our responsibility and your grades are a top concern for us!

Check Out Our Sample Work

Dedication. Quality. Commitment. Punctuality

Categories
All samples
Essay (any type)
Essay (any type)
The Value of a Nursing Degree
Undergrad. (yrs 3-4)
Nursing
2
View this sample

It May Not Be Much, but It’s Honest Work!

Here is what we have achieved so far. These numbers are evidence that we go the extra mile to make your college journey successful.

0+

Happy Clients

0+

Words Written This Week

0+

Ongoing Orders

0%

Customer Satisfaction Rate
image

Process as Fine as Brewed Coffee

We have the most intuitive and minimalistic process so that you can easily place an order. Just follow a few steps to unlock success.

See How We Helped 9000+ Students Achieve Success

image

We Analyze Your Problem and Offer Customized Writing

We understand your guidelines first before delivering any writing service. You can discuss your writing needs and we will have them evaluated by our dedicated team.

  • Clear elicitation of your requirements.
  • Customized writing as per your needs.

We Mirror Your Guidelines to Deliver Quality Services

We write your papers in a standardized way. We complete your work in such a way that it turns out to be a perfect description of your guidelines.

  • Proactive analysis of your writing.
  • Active communication to understand requirements.
image
image

We Handle Your Writing Tasks to Ensure Excellent Grades

We promise you excellent grades and academic excellence that you always longed for. Our writers stay in touch with you via email.

  • Thorough research and analysis for every order.
  • Deliverance of reliable writing service to improve your grades.
Place an Order Start Chat Now
image

Order your essay today and save 30% with the discount code Happy