THE B!G iDEA House is committed to safeguarding the wellbeing of all the children and young people with whom our staff come into contact. Our policy on child protection is in accordance with “Children First – National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children” (Department of Children and Youth Affairs, 2011) and Our Duty to Care. The principles of good practice for the protection for children and young people”. We are committed to promoting the rights of the child to be protected, be listened to and have their own views taken into consideration.
This policy is underpinned by Children First: National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children.
This policy applies to all employees and volunteers who have contact with children and young people through their work on behalf of THE B!G iDEA House (legal name). It is of high importance to ensure all employees/ volunteers have the ability to recognise abuse as it can be defined in many ways.
All employees and volunteers of THE B!G iDEA House, will be made aware of and be familiar with the child protection policy through an in-house induction, on-going training and they will sign up to the overall child protection policy of THE B!G iDEA House. The Designated Liaison Person acts as a liaison with outside agencies and a resource person to any staff member or volunteer who has child protection concerns. The Designated Liaison Person is responsible for reporting allegations or suspicions to the Child and Family Agency Tusla or An Garda Siochana. (See Children First 3.3) The B!G iDEA House has put in place a standard reporting procedure for dealing with disclosures, Principle: Purpose Dealing with Child Protection and Welfare Concerns
THE B!G iDEA House has appointed a Designated Liaison Person who will be Kim Mackenzie-Doyle.
If the report is in relation to the safety and welfare of children / young people, the report should be made to the Designated Liaison Person in The Big Idea House.
However, these suspicions should be recorded or noted internally by the Designated Liaison Person as future suspicions may lead to the decision to make a report and earlier suspicions may provide important information for the statutory child protection agency or An Garda Siochana.
Reports can be made by:
In the event of a child / young person disclosing an incident of abuse, it is essential that this is dealt with sensitively and professionally by the employee/volunteer involved. In such circumstances, the employee/volunteer should:
React calmly;
The Big Idea House nominated Designated Liaison Person is Kim Mackenzie-Doyle,
and The Big Idea House Deputy Designated Liaison Persons will be Fergal Doyle.
The Designated Liaison Person in The Big Idea has the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that the child protection and welfare policy is promoted and implemented. The role of the Designated Liaison Person involves the following duties:
In matters of child abuse, an employee/volunteer should never promise to keep secret any information that is divulged. It should be explained to the child/young person that this information cannot be kept secret but only those who need to know in order to safeguard the child, will be told. It is essential in reporting any case of alleged/suspected abuse that the principle of confidentiality applies. The information should only be shared on a ‘need to know’ basis which means sharing information with persons who have a need to know in order to safeguard a child/young person and is not a breach of confidentiality and the number of people that need to be informed should be kept to a minimum. If an employee/volunteer has any doubt as to whether a report should be made, he/she should consult with The Big Idea House Designated Liaison Person.
Under the Data Protection Act every person has a right to establish the existence of personal data, to have access to any such data relating to him/her and to have inaccurate data rectified or erased. The Big Idea House Data Controller will ensure that data that is collected fairly, is accurate and up-to-date, is kept for lawful purposes, and is not used or disclosed in any manner incompatible with those purposes. All data in relation to child protection records collected must be stored in a safe and confidential manner in a secure locked cabinet.
This will be kept in the office of the Designated Liaison Person. Only the Designated Liaison Person and the Deputy Designated Liaison Person will have access to this information.